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Equality in the peace process – the importance of giving people with disabilities a voice

Countries
Myanmar
Sources
JPF
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Including all of Myanmar’s peace stakeholders in the peace process involves not just reaching out to all of Myanmar’s many different ethnicities, to women, to young people and to old people. It means including a group that is often over looked but is a group often most affected by conflict: disabled people.

Speaking at the Women’s League of Burma Women’s Forum for Peace this week, Nge Nge Aye Maung, chair of the Association of Myanmar’s Disabled Women’s Affairs, pointed out that many people in Myanmar are disabled as a consequence of conflict. “Without the peace process, without peace, the population of people with disabilities is likely to increase.”

Nge Nge Aye Maung, taking part in a panel on “Equality for All” told the participants that women with disabilities suffer especially from lack of inclusion: “Women with disabilities have been facing exclusion from our society for more than 60 years.” She said: “We have been facing double discrimination as we were born as women and we have disabilities. Because of this our families have told us that we shouldn’t go out, find a proper job, and that nobody will treat us equally.”

She stressed the importance of mainstreaming the role of disabled people, particularly women, in any discussion on equality: “When we discuss equality, we should include women and girls who have disabilities. Equality should be a model that aims to include people with disabilities, as well as all the citizens of Myanmar.”

The Joint Peace Fund is supporting this year’s Forum, which is running under the theme “Together for Peace; Equality for All”. Making sure disabled people were properly included was high on the agenda for the WLB organizers. Lway Poe Nge, General Secretary of the Women's League of Burma, said people with disabilities form an important layer of society. “When we discuss equality, we need to establish a system at all levels of society which is accessible by all and is all-inclusive. So of course disabled people must be included in this,” she said.

Six people with disabilities are participating in the Forum including in panel discussions programs. Sign Language interpretation was provided for those who needed it. Nge Nge Aye Maung, said: “When we convene an event on any occasion, providing Sign-language interpretations should always be considered for people with disabilities. And, providing services for those who have deaf disabled or physically disabled person who may need disabled-friendly stairs’ design should be built. That is the equality,” she said.

According to the 2014 Myanmar Population and Households Census, the total population of Myanmar is 51.4 million and there are 2.3 million persons (4.6 per cent of the population) with disabilities.