Forum seeks united effort to protect rights of disabled

Special training programme used by Dubai Police praised

More can be done by public and private sectors to nurture the rights of people with disabilities, experts said at a forum yesterday.

Any new initiatives should focus on helping people reach their fullest potential on a path to independence, delegates heard.

The suggestions follow the end of the two-day “Best Practices and Innovations for the Protection of People with Disabilities Forum” organised by the Human Rights department of Dubai Police in cooperation with the Rashid Centre for the Disabled to commemorate UN’s Human Rights Day.

The forum lauded a special training programme used by Dubai Police for people with disabilities — which ensures rights, freedom and independence for those people.

Nasser Al Nourani, a journalist at Khaled magazine issued by Dubai Police and Rashid Al Marzouqi who works at the community care department in the Community Development Authority (CDA), shared their struggle.

Al Nourani, who is blind, said he chose to become a journalist because he studied the Arabic language in college and his father was a journalist.

He said Lt Gen Dahi Khalfan Tamim, Deputy Chairman of Police and General Security in Dubai, gave him a chance to join Dubai Police.

As for Al Marzouqi, who has a physical disability, he studied at the Dubai Centre for Special Needs. He described how he did not let his disability stop him from playing tennis and riding horses.