Disability Policies In Pakistan: The Way Forward

Abstract

This research article reflects policy development regarding disabled people in Pakistan. International efforts and policy development for the wellbeing of disabled people paved the way for generating debates and discussions on the condition and the rights of disabled people in Pakistan. Subsequently, laws have been enacted for the protection and promotion of the rights of disabled people in the country. Available literature on the polices related to disabled people have been critically reviewed and discussed. UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) possesses immense and historic importance for inclusive society and it is being considered the first legally binding international treaty by which communities can hold their respective states for the enforcement of its articles and promote the quality of life of disabled people. Pakistan has ratified CRPD in the year 2011, following government’s commitment to promote social, political, economic and civil rights of disabled people. In this regard, Pakistan enacted sporadic but important laws both in Provincial and National Assemblies. However, these policies could not bring about changes in the lives of disabled people. There is no proper mechanism at national and local level to implement the policies developed for the wellbeing of such downtrodden people.

Embracing Inclusion: Private School Teachers' Perspective

“…Utilizing a Rao soft calculator, the sample size was determined to be 200 participants, based on a known population size, with a confidence level of 95% and a margin of error of 5%. The primary instrument for data collection was the Attitudes Towards Mainstreaming Scale (ATMS) questionnaire, which was designed to assess the demographic characteristics of the teachers and their attitudes towards inclusive education and the integration of children with diverse abilities into mainstream schools (13). Data collection was rigorously conducted in accordance with the ethical standards set forth by the Declaration of Helsinki.…”

“…In response to these challenges, Pakistan ratified the CRPD in 2011, aiming to ensure basic rights for persons with disabilities (PWDs) in education, health, employment, and other community domains (11). The United Nations Conventions on the Rights of the Child (1989) and on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (2006) underscore literacy as a critical component for all, including children with disabilities (12,13). Specific studies within the Pakistani context, such as the investigation into teachers' attitudes towards inclusive education in primary private schools in Lahore (2008) and a comparative analysis of the perceptions of primary school teachers in Peshawar (2020) between rural and urban boys' schools, have shown a generally positive perception of inclusive education with no significant differences between urban and rural teachers' views (5,14).…”

Striving for Inclusion of Diverse Employees: How Important is the Context?

“…The management clearly and undisputedly considered women and persons with disabilities (PWDs—also referred to as Employee with Disability—EWDs) as diverse employees. This was unsurprising as PWDs usually make-up a small portion of the workforce in countries around the world (Anuaruddin et al, 2018; Bonaccio et al, 2020), including Pakistan (Gul, 2020). There are other groups that have not yet been considered as mainstream diverse employees, including diversity on the basis of neuro, cognitive, certain mental or physical abilities, sexual orientation, ethnicities, age or ideologies (Reiners, 2019).…”

“…One PWD suggested that while efforts are made for PWDs, genuine inclusion was still far from reality because it meant increased costs for companies as they had to provide facilities and change certain operating procedures. Despite that, TG managed to meet the 2% requirement by the Government of Pakistan to employee PWDs (Gul, 2020) through hiring 18-20 PWDs every year. In general, inclusion of PWDs was perceived positively by all interview participants.…”

The Relationship Among Quality of Care, Government Social Protection Program and Quality of Life of People with Disability: Empirical Evidence from Dili Municipality

“…Globally disability issues have gradually been understood and considered in development, therefore since 1990s United Nations has recognized disability has relations with poverty and subsequently in 1992, and declared an annual observance of the International Day of Disabled Persons was proclaimed by the United Nations General Assembly resolution 47/3 (Gul, 2020). The observance of the Day aimed at promoting better understanding of disability issues; similarly mobilize support for the dignity, rights and well-being of persons with disabilities.…”