The disabled just want to live life well

YOUTH and Sports Minister Datuk Ahmad Shabery Cheek said handicapped people should not be referred to as “disabled” but “people with special ability” (“Disabled people have special abilities” – The Star, June 13).

As a person living with a spinal cord injury and tetraplegia, I respectfully disagree with him in this matter. For the lack of better terms, I would prefer that we stick to “disabled people,” not even “people with disabilities”.

The term “people with disabilities” puts the burden of the problem on the person.

“Disabled people”, on the other hand, describes people whose interaction in society is limited by environmental and attitudinal barriers. We are disabled by these factors which when removed also removes the disability.

Our collective desire to play an active part in society is severely hampered by the multitude of barriers that we face at every turn of our lives.

Referring to the minister’s statement that many of us are not “disabled” because we have special qualities that sometimes non-disabled people cannot even match, I would like to point out that not every disabled person can achieve such feats, nor do we desire to be super achievers of such calibre.

Likewise, not all non-disabled persons want to scale Mount Everest, swim across the English Channel or are able to sprint 100 meters in under 10 seconds.

Most disabled people want to lead ordinary, but meaningful, lives just like everyone else. Even this simple desire can be difficult to be realised for some.

The Government should spend more time resolving the outstanding issues, especially accessibility in the built environment and public transport faced by the majority of disabled people, instead of coining terms that do nothing to empower us.

What is the point of being called “people with special ability” when we cannot even get out from our homes safely because the environment around where we live is inaccessible?

Does it matter to us if the minister wants to use a supposedly more positive term to refer to us when we cannot even use public transport to move around conveniently?

We cannot escape from the fact that no matter what positive phrases are used, disabled people are still the most marginalised community in the country.

The Government should seriously work towards improving the quality of life of disabled people by removing barriers and providing relevant social support where required.

Sources: The Star

PETER TAN,

Kuala Lumpur.