International day of disabled persons today
By Bushra Makhdoom

ISLAMABAD—The International day of disabled persons will be observed across the globe including Pakistan on Monday, December 3.
On the 3rd December 1982, the UN General Assemblydecided on the World Programme of Action for DisabledPeople. The United Nations committed itself and its members to promote the full participation of disabled people in social life and development as well as prevention and rehabilitation measures. The theme for the day this year was, “Decent workfor persons with disabilities”. The theme of this year’s observance of theInternational Day of Disabled Persons not only highlightsthe link between independent living and sustainablelivelihoods, but also their important role in developmentand in achieving full participation and equality in allaspects of life. International Day of Disabled Persons, proclaimed byUnited Nations, is to celebrate and acknowledge the experience and capabilities of people with disabilities. The Day was initially proclaimed in 1992 tocommemorate the anniversary of the World Programme of Action concerning Disabled Persons, adopted by the General Assembly to promote understanding aboutdisability issues and to increase awareness of gains to be derived from integrating disabled persons into allaspects of political, social, economic and cultural life.
The significance of sustainable livelihood ofpersons with disabilities was underlined in the series of the most recent United Nations General Assemblyresolutions, which identified three priorities for actionto equalize opportunities for persons with disabilities: accessibility; social services and safety nets; and,employment and sustainable livelihoods.
Observance of the Day provides opportunities for participation by all interested communities - governmental, non-governmental and the private sector - to focus upon catalytic and innovative measures tofurther implement international norms and standards related to persons with disabilities. Schools, universities and similar institutions can make particular contributions with regard to promot awareness among interested parties of the social, cultural, economic, civil and political rights of persons with disabilities.
A major focus of the Day is practical action to further implement international norms and standards concerning persons with disabilities and to further their participation in social life and development on the basisof equality. The media also have important contributions to make in support of the observance of the Day - andthroughout the year - regarding appropriate presentation of progress and obstacles implementing disability-sensitive policies, programmes and projects forpromote public awareness. The World Health Organisation estimates that thereare 600 million disabled people worldwide, about 10 per cent of the world population. It is also estimated that about 80 per cent of all disabled people worldwide live in developing countries.
More than half a billion persons are disabled as aresult of mental, physical or sensory impairment and nomatter which part of the world they are in, their livesare often limited by physical or social barriers.
Increasingly, the work of the United Nations isfocused on equalization of opportunities for persons withdisabilities. One of the most important concerns isaccessibility to new technologies, in particularinformation and communications technologies, as well asto the physical environment.
The notion of “mainstreaming” is also given prominence, that is, including a disability dimension in policyrecommendations covering a wide spectrum of social and economic concerns.
In Pakistan, the systematic care of persons withdisabilities was brought into focus in the 1980s with theobservance of 1982 as the United Nations International Year of Disabled Persons. In this regard, the government has also approved aNational Plan of Action - 2006 to ensure all requiredfacilities for them and to make them useful members of society.