Staff Correspondent

Stressing on an inclusive society, rights activists at a workshop called for economically empowering people with disabilities through ensuring their rights such as employment, education and health services.

According to Census 2011, there are over 1.60 crore people with disabilities in Bangladesh. They are mainly economically backward section of people. They need quality education and health services, scope to participate in social and political processes along with job facilities for improving their condition, they said.

If their potentials can be utilized and they are brought into the mainstream of society, they can be empowered economically, contributing to the country’s national development. Discrimination and negligence cannot be shown towards them as SDG’s main message is ‘leave no one behind’. So, we cannot achieve SDGs by 2030 if they are left behind, they observed.

They remarked while addressing the workshop titled ‘Enforcement of the Rights of Protection of Persons with Disabilities Act, 2013’.

Blind Education and Rehabilitation Development Organization (BERDO) organized the event at its office at Rupnagar at Mirpur in the capital on Saturday.

Chaired by Md. Saidul Huq, Executive Director of BERDO, Hosney Ara Begum, Treasurer of BERDO, gave the welcome address at the event.

Muhammad Hiruzzaman, Additional Secretary of Social Welfare Ministry, attended as the chief guest, while Professor Dr. Abdul Hanif Tablu, Secretary General of JICA Alumni Association of Bangladesh, was present as special guest.

In his address, Muhammad Hiruzzaman called for raising massive awareness about the rights of people with disabilities, urging all concerned to work together to realize their rights.

While presenting the keynote paper, Feroza Khatun, Deputy Manager of BERDO, stressed on fully enforcing the Disability Act, 2013 saying that the Act stressed on ensuring the rights of people with disabilities, including the right to employment.

Feroza Khatun told that the Act stipulated for forming five types of committees at different levels for implementing the Act, but the committees remained inactive.

Articles 15, 17, 20 and 29 of our National Constitution also stipulated for ensuring equal rights of all without any discrimination, she said.

Dr. ABM Shakhawat Ali, Vice Chancellor of Bangladesh University of Business and Technology (BUBT), Mohammad Golam Mohiuddin Bhuiyan, specialist of Bangladesh Technical Education Board, Shilu Roy, Director of National Skill Development Authority, Abdul Mannan, Assistant Principal, Government Rupnagar Model School and College, among others, spoke at the function.

Representatives from different organizations and people with disabilities were present.