DISABILITY/ DISCRIMINATION: Children's voices (interview 3)

Summary: During the Middle East and North Africa regional consultation on children and the UN disability Convention in Sana’a, Yemen, CRIN will be talking to some of the children, with and without disabilities, who are participating. Their voices will be recorded here: http://www.crin.org/DisabilityNews.

Jihad, 16, is from the Yemeni Children’s Parliament

Why are you here at the event today?
I came to give my views to adults about the rights of children with disabilities.

What children’s issue do you think is most important from your work with the children’s parliament?
Well, Yemeni law says that children are adults when they are 15, but international law says children become adults when they reach 18, so we want to change this.

Do you think there are areas of life where people with disabilities feel discriminated against here in Yemen?
Discrimination is a big problem here because too many people are ignorant about disability. The problem is mainly in rural areas because 67 per cent of people with disabilities in Yemen live in the country side. People talk to people with disabilities in an aggressive way.

Do you think girls with disabilities are treated differently from boys with disabilities?
I think boys can defend their rights better. Girls are surrounded by their families. Because of customs which go back to before our grandfathers’ time, girls are not made to go to school. Girls study to sixth grade, but boys are pushed to finish secondary school and sometimes go to university.

Do you have some ideas about who could improve how children with disabilities are treated?
Yes, the government and associations should let us participate in workshops and conferences so we can give our opinions.

Do you think there is anything that children themselves can do to change adults’ behaviour towards them?
They should defend their rights by talking about what they want and give interviews to the media.

How do you think this event will help children with disabilities?
This is the first time an international conference on children with disabilities has been held in Yemen. There are special laws for people with disabilities here but noone pays attention to them. I hope this conference will be a chance for us to lobby the government to make sure this changes.

 

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