Accept and be kind – Yee
THIRTEEN out of the 117 students enrolled in the institution have Down Syndrome, says Suva Special School headteacher, Cecelia Yee.
As the world observed World Down Syndrome Day yesterday, Ms Yee pleaded with the communities to “accept and be kind” to children with Down Syndrome and to “look at the person, not the disability”.
“We see it everywhere, even in front of the school when they get on to the bus, we can see how they are being stigmatised for being a child with Down Syndrome,” Ms Yee said.
“The disability is so visual, it’s so easy to look at the child differently.
“They’re labelled as children who cannot do things or cannot learn, and this is not true. People should look at the person, not the disability.”
Ms Yee said more awareness was needed to tackle the issue of stigmatisation of people with the condition and more medical screening was needed in communities.
“Our communities need to be aware that we have people living with disabilities in our communities who attend school.
“Medical screening is needed as well. This can be a project the health department can look into.
“You know how they have their rheumatic heart disease screenings in different locations, the same can also be done for people with disabilities.”
Ms Yee said with the knowledge she had for children with the condition, “you can even detect a pregnant mother carrying a child with Down Syndrome”.
“I think this needs to be strengthened in our hospitals and more awareness done in our communities, so we can educate our people on how to deal with a person with Down Syndrome.”