Dear Editor,
The political parties‘ manifestos need a new framework of government which recognises frankly that it is the duty of the state to intervene actively in the affairs of its disabled people with a view to guaranteeing them some minimum level of decent living, and providing them with the means of achieving this. The aim is to enable each individual to have a fairly equal chance of developing his inborn potential to the fullest, and any new government which can do this will earn the votes of the disabled.
It should not be supposed that each individual will become as competent as every other, but each disabled person should have an equal opportunity to develop his or her talent.
The state should be actively concerned to improve the quality of life for its disabled people, the quality of their environment, the quality of their society and the nature of their economy.
The parties‘ manifestos must do more than merely reproduce the classical rights and freedom of the disabled.
These manifestos must speak now of the social and economic rights of the disabled, such as the right to education, to work, to housing, to medical care, to care for the aged disabled, etc.
But correspondingly the manifestos must say something of the duty of the disabled to society and state – the duty of the disabled to contribute to society, to work for society and the state. The disabled need professional rehabilitation services with modern equipment, occupational therapy and speech and language therapy. and professional physiotherapists.
The disabled vote at periodic elections but for the rest, they seems to look on from the outside. They may criticise governmental action after the elections but they do so as spectators.
Yours faithfully,
Mohamed Khan