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Disability in Yemen

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Disability in Yemen

http://www.inclusive-education.org/system/files/publications-documents/Tines_National%20Strategy%20on%20Disability%20in%20Yemen.pdf

Demographics

An estimate taken in 2004 indicated that there around 380,000 disabled people in Yemen.[1] A paper produced by the United Nations (UN) in 2009 estimated that somewhere between 3 and 5% of Yemeni people were disabled.[2] The Yemen government recorded around 150,000 Yemeni people with disabilities,[3] while in 2014, the Yemeni Handicapped Forum revealed that there were more than two million people living with some type of disability in Yemen.[4] The ongoing conflict in Yemen has added to the number of people who are disabled.[5] There have been around 28,500 people injured in Yemen since March of 2015.[6]

Disabled individuals make up less than 1% of the workforce in the country.[7] More individuals with disability live in rural areas of Yemen.[8] In addition, those in the lowest income brackets are twice as likely to be disabled as people in the highest brackets as reported in 2005.[8]

Causes

In many cases disability in Yemen could be prevented.[2] People in Yemen have disabilities related to spinal cord injuries which could be corrected with surgery.[1] Incidents of polio still occur in Yemen.[9] Approximately 30% of disabilities in Yemen may result from congenital conditions or from complications during delivery as reported in 2003.[10]

A study released by Ibrahim Omran ties most cases of disability to war and conflict in Yemen.[11] Because of armed conflict in the region, thousands of Yemeni people have lost limbs since 2015.[12] Traffic accidents, conflicts between tribes, land mines,[13] spinal fever, genetic diseases and malnutrition are also leading causes of disability in Yemen.[1] Marriages between close cousins also increases changes of genetic causes of disability.[14]

Discrimination

Families of disabled people and those who are disabled can face social stigma.[15] Some people in Yemen believe that mothers can pass a disability to their children.[15] Families have kept disabled people under virtual house arrest in some situations because of the shame associated with disability.[1] Disabled women have difficulty seeing themselves getting married, although disabled men in Yemen imagined they would be able to marry almost anyone.[16]

Individuals with disability in Yemen can be denied access to education, employment, access to healthcare and have difficulties with public spaces and transportation that are not designed to accommodate disabled people.[15][1]

Policy

The government organization responsible for helping disabled individuals is the Ministry of Social Affairs and Labour (MoSAL).[17] MoSAL also has a Disability Fund (DF).[18] Yemen is one of the countries who has ratified the UN disability rights treaty.[19] The Social Fund for Development (SFD) is a social safety net created in 1997 which targets at-risk people in Yemen, including people with disabilities.[18] The government of Yemen, in 2007, created a National Disability Strategy which "outlines the vision, objectives and principles of a 'rights-based' approach to disability for Yemen."[20]

The Ministry of Education in Yemen has not always had enough funding to support disabled students.[4] There are only a few schools for disabled children and these are only in Yemen's cities.[21]

Non-governmental organizations

Various non-governmental organizations (NGOs) operate in Yemen to help people with disabilities, however, many are underfunded.[4] Organizations like Handicap International have helped by donating mobility aids and offer psychological support for people in Yemen.[6] The Yemen Center for Autism in Sana'a helps individuals with autism and their families.[3] The Altahadi Foundation, also in Sana'a, helps disabled women and girls.[22]

Legislation

The Law for the Welfare of Disabled (Law Number 2, 2002) is considered by the UN to be the principal document pertaining to people with disability.[7] Other laws covering disability include articles 115 - 123 of the Child Law (Number 45, 2002) and Public Law Number 61, 1999.[7] Public Law (61/1999) guarantees that disabled people have the same rights as non-disabled people under the Constitution of Yemen.[23]

Disabled people, however, have claimed that while the laws Yemen has created are good, they are rarely enforced.[24] Wording of the laws is also often vague, making it difficult to enforce these laws on behalf of disabled.[3]

Unique challenges

Because of ongoing conflict in Yemen, people with disabilities face problems such as lack of services and inability to access buildings. Rubble in the streets can make it difficult for those with physical disabilities to access services.[25] Areas that have received heavy bombing have had to discontinue services to people with disabilities.[25]

Human Rights Watch (HRW) states that people with disabilities are at increased risk during times of crisis and conflict.[19] People with disabilities and their families have had difficulty leaving conflict zones.[26] On December 3, 2016, disabled Yemenis rallied on the International Day of Persons with Disabilities, asking that the conflict in Yemen end.[27]

Because most Yemeni people live in rural areas outside of cities, it is difficult to access services for people with disability.[14] Due to the poverty of many disabled Yemeni people, assistive devices are too expensive to purchase.[28]

Disabled women in Yemen face unique challenges because of the conservative attitude towards women in the country.[1] Disabled women in 2004 had illiteracy rates as high as 87 to 90 percent.[1]

Notable activists

  • Fatima al-Aqel, activist for individuals with blindness Al-Aman Organization Blind Women Care (AOBWC)
  • Jamala al-Baidhani, activist for the civil rights of the disabled, Al-Tahadi Association for Disabled Females

References

Citations

  1. ^ a b c d e f g Al Qadhi, Mohammed (8 November 2008). "Yemen's disabled face segregation". The National. Retrieved 2017-06-01. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |dead-url= (help)
  2. ^ a b ESCWA 2009, p. 4.
  3. ^ a b c Hassan, Najila'a (29 July 2013). "Resources few for autistic children Yemeni law fails to guarantee rights of persons with disabilities". Yemen Times. Retrieved 2017-06-01. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |dead-url= (help)
  4. ^ a b c Al-Moshki, Ali Ibrahim (4 December 2014). "Local NGO: Number of disabled citizens in Yemen exceeds two million". Yemen Times. Retrieved 2017-06-01. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |dead-url= (help)
  5. ^ Nasser, Amal (2016-11-28). "Is Yemen falling into an abyss?". Al-Monitor. Retrieved 2017-06-01. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |dead-url= (help)
  6. ^ a b "Yemen: Helping War Survivors Recover Physically and Mentally". Handicap International. Retrieved 2017-06-01.
  7. ^ a b c ESCWA 2009, p. 7.
  8. ^ a b MoSAL 2011, p. 13.
  9. ^ Grut & Ingstad 2006, p. 18.
  10. ^ MoSAL 2011, p. 14.
  11. ^ Al-Arashi, Fakhri (2012). "Perseverance and pain for Yemen's disabled". Retrieved 2017-06-01. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |dead-url= (help)
  12. ^ "The scars of war: Yemen's disabled". International Committee of the Red Cross. 2016-05-23. Retrieved 2017-05-31.
  13. ^ "Yemen: Disability is not an obstacle". International Committee of the Red Cross. 2016-12-02. Retrieved 2017-06-01.
  14. ^ a b Grut & Ingstad 2006, p. 27.
  15. ^ a b c ESCWA 2009, p. 5.
  16. ^ Grut & Ingstad 2006, p. 24.
  17. ^ ESCWA 2009, p. 9.
  18. ^ a b Grut & Ingstad 2006, p. 16.
  19. ^ a b "People with Disabilities at Added Risk in War, Displacement". Human Rights Watch. 2015-12-03. Retrieved 2017-06-01.
  20. ^ MoSAL 2011, p. 8.
  21. ^ Grut & Ingstad 2006, p. 21.
  22. ^ "Wheelchairs and Walkers Distributed". Islamic Relief. Retrieved 2017-06-01. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |dead-url= (help)
  23. ^ Grut & Ingstad 2006, p. 15.
  24. ^ "People with disabilities & freedom of expression". Yemen Times. 13 May 2014. Retrieved 2017-06-01. {{cite news}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |dead-url= (help)
  25. ^ a b "Dispatches: With Disabilities in Yemen, Left in the Rubble". Human Rights Watch. 2015-05-11. Retrieved 2017-06-01.
  26. ^ "Yemen conflict death toll nears 650, with UN rights office spotlighting plight of 3 million disabled". UN News Service Section. 2015-05-05. Retrieved 2017-06-01. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |dead-url= (help)
  27. ^ "Disabled people rally to call for early end to crisis in Yemen". Xinhua. 4 December 2016. Retrieved 2017-06-01. {{cite web}}: Cite has empty unknown parameter: |dead-url= (help)
  28. ^ Grut & Ingstad 2006, p. 35.

Sources

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