Have you noticed people just like you but different in some way living with you in your communities? Most of you know them as People with Disabilities. So what’s special about them? You might ask. And I tell you they are special because they have a equality to earn. They should walk the extra mile to win their rights and they should talk more about themselves to earn their living.
That’s why they have organized themselves globally as Young Voices for a collective effort to earn what they deserve to live in our own communities equally. So why don’t we look at some great achievements in three countries around the world.
Let’s begin with Nyamizi from Tanzania, a vibrant youngster who wants to be heard. She has just graduated from the University of Mzumbe, Morogoro. According to her the biggest change her group experienced was the boost of confidence and the empowering awareness of the rights of the People With Disabilities in the UN Convention that enabled them to meet the employers like NCSS in her country and invoke awareness in them regarding the employability of the young persons with disabilities. She and her friends think that meeting the stakeholders that are responsible to make their lives better in various ways personally and convincing them about the possibilities of incorporating the Persons With Disabilities in their daily life is the best way to campaign in her country.
The way forward for Tanzanian youngsters with disabilities as she says, is an attempt to continuing their activities with the help of people in their community who can contribute to sustain the social incorporation of the youth.
Precious from Zambia has a different story to tell. She considers the advocacy to be the central element of their success in Signing, ratifying and implementing the legal framework for the people with disabilities in her country. They have T V and Radio programs in the local stations to educate the public about their rights and achievements as well. Thereby she and her friends have eradicated the discrimination in her community quite effectively.
Ashura from Kenya has her own achievements to share with us. As an individual she has won the Miss Deaf in the world in the modeling career. It was in fact an opportunity that was opened to her through the advocacy campaigns of the organization called Young Voices Kenya. Consequently she is now confident to stand stronger in emphasizing the rights of the Persons with Disabilities in her country. She believes that the most effective factor of campaigning is showing the power of the Persons of Disability through example. However the Kenyan youngsters with Disabilities are going to sustain their effort of retaining their rights through continual advocacy campaigns and country-wide awareness.
The three stories of these three individuals about their effort could indeed be an inspiration as well as an enlightening experience for all of us who dare to even fight for the silliest right in the world without a basis.
P.S. This article put together by me and another team consisted of 3 participants, was selected to be included in the publications of LC Global Young Voices.
Since the dawn of new millennium, in different conferences around differently shaped tables different people have been discussing many different things about the different courses of action that could be taken for the betterment of the people who are different from them, yet with a universal indifference to the fact that those tables did not feature anybody that’s benefitted through the difference they were trying to make.
Then along with the tagline “Leave No-one Behind.”, the voices of the younger generation who wanted to be heard, got together from all over the world under the wings of Leonard Cheshire Disability services in the year 2013as the Global Young Voices in Nairobi Kenya.
With the participation of twenty-two countries from around the globe, they’ve made their way forward so far amidst many obstacles while passing numerous milestones that they achieved in different levels within the last three years since 2009 where Global Young Voices has been initiated.
As the Young Voices representative from Sri Lanka I was privileged to be a part of this gathering held in Nairobi from the 22nd until the 25th of October. The event was known as the global Young Voices Conference 2013 and it was all about inclusion and sustainability of the movement.
Right from the beginning the conference presented me ample unprecedented experiences. Although conferences of international caliber weren’t anything new to me, the novelty of communicative competencies’ and the refreshing positivity in attitudes of the people who conducted this discourse, inspired me immensely.
The two highlights of the very first day for me, have been gently encapsulated thus within just one beautiful click that speaks a gazillion words.
Mr. Washington (The Gentleman in the picture to the right), the Regional Advocacy manager of Leonard Cheshire Disabilities was the first person I saw, conducting a session using sign language with the aid of a sign language interpreter while the outstanding talent of the Kenyan Young Voices was brought to life by Miss. Nicole Mballah (the young Lady in the picture to the left) as she sang the welcome song for all the participants at the outset.
With such a vibrant commencement, the three days passed by with many points to learn and plenty of inspiration to share.
In yet another important session Ms. Libby Powell, a media pro from the United Kingdom who has dedicated her career for the people with Disabilities through her communication rights organization known as Radar, empowered the gathering with effective and condensed communication strategies.
Then came the roundtable time for the attendees to reflect and plan ahead. The discussion was focused on four major areas: Education, Livelihood, Inclusive Development in post-2015 global youth agenda and of course the way forward for the Global Young Voices.
Very many valuable inputs received from the Young Voices representatives were accumulated to compile a draft known as Global Young Voices Call to Action. This document is expected to enhance the policy level regulations included in the United Nations’ Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in order to meet the implementation level that could be enacted world-wide.
Since I got the opportunity to contribute to the drafting of the aforesaid document along with another participant from India, I’m very positive about my role in the future activities of the Global Young Voices.
Yet in fact, Global Young Voices has reached a challenging juncture at this phase because the funds extended to this project by the European Union has come to an end. I feel further excited About this situation because I was able to thus actively contribute at such a decisive stage of this organization so that I would treasure my own small happiness of being a part of a course directed at the people like myself that will be uplifted to the functional level again through the means devised by the very people like myself.
