HEALTH Minister Leslie Ramsammy said, last week, that, following President Bharrat Jagdeo’s assent to the Disability Act, in the latter part of November, he will be signing orders, this week, to give effect to the law.
Dr. Ramsammy affirmed that persons with disabilities have rights not given through charity but now provided for under the laws of this country.
“This is an important step for Guyana,” he observed.
Ramsammy acknowledged that his making the orders will not make the lives of persons with disabilities perfect but, rather, it is a step in the right direction.
Treasurer of the Guyana Blind Cricket Association, Ms. Theresa Pemberton praised the Head of State, as a compassionate individual who has supported the Disability Movement.
She said persons with disabilities needed the Act to be promulgated to provide a supportive framework for their pursuit of self-advancement.
“People with disabilities have much potential. They need a chance to be something in life. They want to make their lives worthwhile, be something and realise the potential they have,” Pemberton said.
Well-known broadcaster, blind Ms. Julie Lewis added that persons with disabilities are now standing on firmer ground than they did before but not fully firm land.
“The Act is encouraging changes,” she agreed.
Lewis encouraged persons with disabilities to play their part in building a platform from which they can advance.
“Persons with disabilities need to be more visible. They need to do things to improve themselves,” she urged.
Lewis, who has 26 years experience in the media, said there is still more to be done and the way forward must be pursued in partnership.

PRIMARY AREAS

Typist Clerk at Ptolemy Reid Rehabilitation Centre, also disabled Ms. Stacey Johnson said, in moving forward, the primary areas to be addressed are accessibility, employment and education.
“There is still work to do in these areas,” she said, agreeing that having the Act assented to is one step in that direction.
“Getting the bill passed was overcoming a major challenge,” Johnson said.
Public Relations Officer of Guyana Council of Organisations for Persons with Disabilities(GCOPD), Mr. Ganesh Singh, echoed similar views and acknowledged that the promulgation puts persons with disabilities into focus.
“More people are aware of the concept of disabilities and persons with disabilities are more recognised,” he admitted.
However, Singh lamented that the stigma and discrimination persist in society.
Getting the law enacted has been, for stakeholders, a long journey that began in 2005, consultations on it concluded in 2006 and the final draft was completed in 2007 and the bill was passed in June the same year.
Subsequently, the report of the Special Parliamentary Select Committee was unanimously adopted and the bill was given its final reading in the National Assembly, giving persons with disabilities the legality to access services and realise their full potential.
The National Commission on Disability (NCD) is responsible for addressing implementation, monitoring and sensitisation to the provisions under the Act.
President of GCOPD, Mr. Leon Walcott remarked: “Once the legislation is in place, Guyana will be able to ratify the relevant United Nations convention. By signing on to it, we say we agree but, once it is ratified, it indicates that Guyana is prepared to meet the requirements of the pact.”
To date, the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities has 146 signatories and 89 countries have ratified it.
Walcott announced that a draft sensitisation plan has been developed to assist all stakeholders to better understand the provisions in the Act.
He said the Disability Movement has come a long way in the last two years but he confirmed that the remaining challenges are discrimination and stigma and there is more public awareness action to be undertaken.