Gender-Based Violence Hits People with Disabilities Hard in Adamawa, "We Are Completely Left Out"
- People with disabilities in Adamawa have reported facing verbal, physical, and emotional abuse in local communities
- The disabled individuals are often excluded from political processes, community decisions, and social recognition
- They urged public support and government inclusion to help disabled people exercise their rights and feel valued
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People with disabilities are not exempt from gender-based violence, harassment, and discrimination. In local communities in Adamawa State, they face numerous challenges and often feel excluded from community decision-making.
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A disabled person who was verbally and physically assaulted a few days ago no longer goes out to socialise due to fear of humiliation and discrimination. He expressed that he feels unloved by others, which has led him to adopt a lifestyle of isolation.
Many people believe that disabled individuals are not worth associating with and often treat them as insignificant. This attitude by the public is disheartening and unacceptable. The government also contributes to this perception by failing to include disabled people in political processes.
Gender-based violence affects people with disabilities in many forms, including verbal, physical, sexual, and emotional abuse.
What challenges do disabled people face?
Speaking to Legit.ng, the chairman of the disabled association of Demsa Local Government Area, Mr. Bitrus, disclosed that disabled individuals face a lot of discrimination sometimes from friends, family, community members, and government officials.
He said:
"We are being underrated and subjected to nothing when it comes to community decision-making or involvement in political positions. I feel so pained by such an attitude because some of us are educated, but people feel we can't do anything good."
"I was humiliated some years ago by an individual who feels he is perfect because he's not disabled like me. We were in a conversation, and he told me that it's because of my manner of approach that God made me disabled. I felt so bad and emotionally drained. That statement almost broke me down, making me feel disregarded, unloved, miserable, and not useful."
"One thing I did was to build confidence and courage to overcome any form of abuse that will come my way due to my nature. Since that very day, I vowed not to allow any individual to harass me again, and that was how I started encouraging my fellows to also be bold."
"A lot of them have brought so many complaints to me on gender based violence, and I do encourage them to always speak up for themselves, it's not a mistake that they are created in such a nature. They should be proud always. When it comes to the issue of gender-based violence, I've not had any from my community yet, but I've promised to fight it to the end if any of my members becomes a victim.."
Source: Original
Why those with disabilities should be supported
In terms of politics, Bitrus lamented:
"We are completely left out like trash; we have no regard or importance in that aspect. And the government easily forgets that we also exercise our right to franchise during election seasons, but after that, we no longer become useful to the people we voted for, and such is so heartbreaking."
"Sometimes, we will appeal for assistance from the political leaders we voted for, and they will openly reject our plea."
Bitrus called on the public to always love and encourage people living with disabilities because they need love, support, and encouragement always to help them feel regarded in the community.
He also called on the government to always put them in political positions to enable them exercise their rights effectively.
Disabled innovator empowers others through invention
Muhammad Dalhatu, a physically challenged innovator from Adamawa state, has created practical appliances such as reachable fans, oil stoves, and heater buckets using local materials. His inventions now serve communities both regionally and internationally.
Despite a spinal cord injury from a 2015 accident, he turned adversity into purpose, using proceeds from his inventions to plant over 1,000 trees and support environmental efforts in schools and communities.
Source: Legit.ng
