Be it holding programmes in buildings which are inaccessible to persons with disability like the Institute Menezes Braganza, to occupying parking slots and seats in buses which are reserved for persons with disability, to not stopping the vehicle to allow persons with disability to cross the street. Accessible buildings, reserved parking slots and seats in buses are made for persons with disability to make it convenient for them to move about in society. If the general public is not sensitive to persons with disability and organizes programmes in inaccessible buildings, occupy reserved parking slots and seats in buses and do not stop vehicles to allow them to cross the streets how will persons with disability be able to move about in society?
Goa has 33,000 persons with disability as per Census 2011. It is estimated that there are 40,000 persons with disability in Goa as on date. This is the figure of only those with permanent disability. Many of them are educated, employed, self reliant, achievers and role models in society but they are not able to enjoy life to the fullest due to the above insensitivity and attitudes of society. Then there are those with limited mobility like elderly senior citizens, pregnant women, parents with babies and children and those with temporary disability like fractures who will benefit from holding programmes in accessible buildings or stopping the vehicle to enable them to cross the street. By not being sensitive to persons with disability we are leaving out a sizeable portion of society from mainstream society.
December 3 in Goa also coincides with the feast of St Francis Xavier. It was a person with disability, St Ignatius of Loyola who was responsible for St Francis Xavier changing his life and becoming a saint. Ignatius of Loyola asked Francis Xavier only one question – ‘What does it profit a man if he gains the whole world but suffers the loss of his soul’. Today I ask you, “Can we call ourselves a developed state if we are not sensitive to a sizeable portion of our society?”
As we celebrate the feast of St Francis Xavier and the international day of persons with disability let us ask ourselves this question and be sensitive to persons with disability from today onwards. Let us organize programmes in accessible places only, keep reserved parking slots and seats in buses for persons with disability only and stop our vehicles for them to cross the streets.
I wish all persons with disability a very happy international day of persons with disability. I also invite all of you with your families to the celebration of this day to be held on December 4 at Azad Maidan, Panjim from 4 pm onwards.
