ASEAN delegations join autism awareness walk at SM MOA

The annual celebration for autism awareness spearheaded by the Autism Society of the Philippines (ASP) and mall giant SM Supermalls has expanded its reach.

In the 16th Angel Walk held at SM Mall of Asia Arena in Pasay City Sunday, hundreds of persons with autism and various groups advocating their rights and welfare joined the parade that aimed to promote awareness of the special condition.

For the first time, delegations and advocates of People With Disability (PWD) rights from the Association of Southeast Asian (ASEAN) region participated in the event.

Mona Veluz, president of ASP said that for the first time, they have partnered with ASEAN counterparts this year to widen their advocacy not only in the Philippines but also in the neighboring countries in the region.

Representatives from some ASEAN organizations graced the event.

She said that through the joint efforts of ASEAN organizations, they are able to reach more people with autism and bring their causes towards a more integrated approach. “Just last year we held the first ASEAN friendship tournament for people with autism and we have lined several more activities this year which is the reason we are excited for the coming years,” Veluz said.

Dang Koe, chair emeritus of ASP, said her group has gone from mere awareness organization towards social integration of people with autism to make them productive members of society.

“We are now on our 16th year of doing this Angels Walk. Our children have grown up and we are now going towards making them productive members in the community and society so that at least when we as parents leave them, we would be leaving them in a more caring society,” Koe said.

She added that they have started talking with government officials, other non-government organizations and private companies to push for initiatives that will open job and livelihood opportunities for people with autism. She said while some companies have started to hire PWDs, people with autism have still to be accepted in the workforce.

“We want our children to be useful because they are and they can be with the right guidance, education and opportunities for them to do so. And that has been what we are gearing towards in our advocacy for inclusion,” Koe pointed out.

Aside from going international, another milestone during the event was achieved as Angels Walk broke its earlier record of 12,000 participants with more than 15,000 attendees in this year’s event.

Koe said their group has indeed come a long way since from a few hundred attendees in 2000 when they started to more than 12,000 last year. The participants marched around the MOA complex and were treated to a show featuring children with autism.

The Angels Walk has been conducted in partnership with SM Cares, the corporate social responsibility arm of SM Supermalls, since 2009. Koe said they are extremely thankful to SM for their warm accommodation to their cause.

“We could not thank SM and SM Cares enough because through the years, they never get tired to be our partner and have accommodated us all these years including holding Angels Walk in other cities,” Koe said.

Bien Mateo, SM’s vice president for operations and head of the SM Disability Program, said SM is honored share the same advocacy with ASP and be the host to another family-centric affair. “We continue with our commitment to make sure there are no barriers in our operations staying true to our being a mall for all, with or without disability,” Mateo said.

Koe stressed that SM and it many malls and stores have become the most autism friendly establishment. “We can say that SM is the most autism friendly center in all of the Philippines and we all feel very welcome in their establishments,” Koe added.

The event kicked the start of the celebration of the Autism Awareness Week in the country.