PWDs call for improved access to documentation
Persons living with disabilities (PWDs) are grappling with systematic barriers emanating from lack of access to documentation which hinders their participation in key electoral processes, access to education and starting formal businesses.
While Sections 83 of the Constitution upholds fundamental Rights of persons with disabilities, lack of awareness, ignorance and prejudice in society has been a contributing factor to the discrimination against PWDs.
Against this background Women’s Institute For Leadership Development (WILD)’s Ward-coordinator, Lezina Mohammed, conducted a community engagement in Thorngrove Bulawayo with the aim to provide a platform for PWDs to discuss the challenges they are facing in an effort to practice their civic rights.
To kickstart the discussion, Lezina focused on how persons with disabilities in Thorngrove continue to face barriers that prevent them from enjoying their full civil, political, economic, social, cultural and developmental rights due to a number of challenges particularly access to documentation.
Speaking during the engagement, one of the participants expressed concern over a number of challenges faced in accessing IDs and births during the ongoing Civil Registry Blitz running till September 2022.
“A huge majority of PWDs remains undocumented owing to accessibility challenges which include access to PWDs friendly information on the ongoing process and secondly access to the Civil Registry Centres most of which lack ramps particularly for people on wheelchairs to easily access the facility.
“It’s been more than 10 years without an effort by the city council to put ramps on this community building. We are not able to access services being offered on this building particularly the documentation blitz which is currently rolling” said the participant.
With the 2023 elections looming, PWDs are concerned that if the challenges they are facing are not addressed, this key population will not be included in important developments within the electoral cycle.
“We hope that our concerns are handled at Parliamentary level following the appointment of Nasper Manyau as a Member of the Senate for PWDs earlier this month. We hope our concerns will be addressed accordingly,” said a participant.
Another participant also added: “Its worrying to note that most organisations purporting to be representing PWDs are actually led by able bodied persons who are not in sync with our lived realities. We need more PWDs in leadership positions so that they can represent us well particularly now as we are grappling with accessing documentation ahead of the 2023 elections,” said the participant.
According to Deaf Zimbabwe Trust there are specific challenges PWDs face in electoral processes and these range from pre-election technical assessments that do not address election access issues, discriminatory election Law, poll workers not trained on disability management, voter education and information on political party candidates not distributed in PWDs friendly formats.
Participants also emphasised the need for changing societal attitudes through awareness raising and advocacy.
“There is need for changing societal attitudes against PWDs. People need to unlearn and relearn perceptions about PWDs. This is a very important step towards demystifying myths about disability as well as the broader challenges we are facing as a people. In essence inclusion is an attitude.
“So let’s include the concerns and experiences of persons with disabilities within the design, planning, implementation, monitoring and evaluation of policies and programmes on all political, social and economic spheres so that persons with disabilities benefit equally” said one of the participants.
Mainstreaming and universal access for persons with disabilities are the ultimate goals of the disability movement. This means the removal of all cultural, physical, social and other barriers that prevent persons with disabilities from equally accessing opportunities and participating fully in all aspects of life in Zimbabwe.
According to a report conducted by Amnesty International titled “We Are Like Stray Animals” over 300 000 Zimbabweans are in danger of being rendered stateless due to lack of documentation.