The Malta Independent on Sunday
Appalling discrimination against visually impaired bus passenger
● Guide dog refused entry by driver and police officer
Andrew George, a visually impaired (blind) 36-year-old, experienced an inexcusable form of discrimination yesterday when he was not allowed to board a bus by both a bus driver and a police officer.
Speaking to The Malta Independent on Sunday, George described how his journey to work was brought to a sudden halt when his guide dog was refused access on a public bus. A police officer, called to the scene by the bus driver, ordered George to get off the bus claiming the dog was “too big and should be muzzled”.
For George this was, sadly, not the first time he had been discriminated against. In fact, this was the third time that his guide dog was refused access to public transport.
George, a professional physiotherapist from the UK who practises at St James Hospital and at a clinic in Burmarrad, has lived in Malta for 18 months with his wife and two children. His fiveyear-old fully trained guide dog Briar has been with George for four years. Briar became part of the family after George started losing his sight four years ago.
Speaking to this newspaper, George explained the shocking turn of events, when yesterday morning both the bus driver and a police officer refused George his simple right to board a bus: “I felt so angry and embarrassed. I was being refused entry on a bus because I have a disability; it felt like I was the dirt off someone’s shoe.”
“I’ve been doing this trip from Mellieha to Burmarrad for about a year now and just as usual I got on the bus to go to work. As soon as I got on, the bus driver starting shouting ‘no dog, no dog!’ and at this point I showed him my ID card and I told him, in Maltese, that I am blind, that she is my guide dog and if I do not get on this bus I will be late for work.”
However, the bus driver once again adamantly refused him entry. George explained again that he was a physiotherapist who needed to get to work and that this was his guide dog, which he needed. “So I just scanned my card and sat down on the bus. At this point the driver turned off his engine and started shouting at me about calling the police,” George recounted.
“I thought, ‘Great call the po- lice. Not letting me on the bus because of my guide dog is against Maltese and European law. The policeman is going to help me out’. “But that is not what happened.” When the police officer arrived, he shouted at George to get off the bus. “At this point I was pretty angry and very embarrassed since I was being told to get off in front of a bus full of people. Negotiating a way out of the bus is not the easiest thing to do when you are blind.
“The policeman turned to my guide dog and said ‘It’s too big and it should have a muzzle’. At this point, I tried to explain once more and showed my ID card again. I even explained in Maltese but I was ignored by both of them,” George said.
“At this point I had to call the president of the guide dog association to speak to the policeman and then, only after speaking to him in Maltese did the policeman say I could board the bus. I have never felt so embarrassed and angry. It was truly soul destroying to be treated like this,” George said.
“I am trying to lead a normal and professional life and the way I was treated was disgusting. I never had problems like this in the UK but here it goes deeper than just a transport issue.
“In my opinion the bus driver should be sacked; no one should have a job in the public sector with such a prejudiced attitude”.
George said he had contacted Malta Public Transport before, and that officials had shown understanding and even agreed to meet him, but never ended up replying to arrange a meeting. When contacted by George yesterday, Malta Public Transport officials said they would tackle the issue and would be looking into disciplinary measures.
“Briar is a fully trained German Shepherd and was trained for two years to be a guide dog, since she was a puppy She’s the most perfect dog and when she’s with me she’s doing her job and nothing less. The whole altercation scared her terribly, so much so that she lay down and started shaking, as she can sense conflict and tension,” George explained.
“Such prejudice and discrimination goes deeper than just one driver or one policeman. This all boils down to the fact that people need to have respect and empathy for those with disabilities,” George observed.
He emphasised the need to raise awareness about people with disabilities and the use of guide dogs: “I have generally become numb to the discrimination I experience here, but, for others awareness is needed and I hope that such prejudiced attitudes stop here and now.”