The determined do not need pity, just our encouragement
Abu Dhabi is playing host to the week-long Special Olympics World Summer Games starting today, presenting citizens and residents with a massive opportunity to take that giant leap into the world of the people of determination. As an expat in the UAE for about 14 years, I have witnessed first-hand the rapid strides that the UAE society has taken in creating a matrix of acceptance and encouragement for those with intellectual disabilities. The government has led from the front in this field, laying down clear policies to integrate the life and activities of this section into the wider society.
Under the country’s National Policy for Empowering People with Special Needs and in order to recognise their achievements in different fields, the UAE mandates that those with special needs or disabilities be referred to as ‘people of determination’. Over the last several years, the UAE has taken concrete steps to ensure the inclusiveness of the people of determination in all walks of life, including the workplace. The country has enacted laws protecting the rights of people with special needs and guaranteeing them the right to live with dignity. The country promises equality and non-discrimination, by law as well as through its economic and social development programmes and policies. A recent study titled ‘Regional Perceptions and Determined Aspirations’ found that the UAE government is leading the disability support in the Mena region.
But while the government is doing all it can to encourage, empower, and enable the people of determination, we must ask ourselves if we have really done our bit to ensure inclusiveness. As the study highlights, government policy and action have ensured that our sentiments towards the people of determination are positive, but this does not translate into action. Those with intellectual disabilities do not want or need our pity — we must first change our mindset to understand that they are differently abled. All that is needed is that we shed our indifference and encourage them to overcome the challenges they face, one step at a time.