The disabled community in South Africa says it appreciates the progress made in protecting their rights in law in the past 30 years of democracy, however, its real life experience remains difficult as the disabled struggle to access public facilities and economic opportunities.
TimesLIVE Premium spoke to organisations representing disabled communities to gauge their experience, who have mixed views.
Jace Nair, CEO of Blind SA, commended government for legislation and policies aimed at including people living with disabilities in government and opportunities.
“The constitution of the country and the bill of rights are both against discrimination against people with disabilities.
“We have the white paper on the rights of persons with disabilities, which is based on the UN convention on the rights of persons with disabilities. We have excellent policy in the country, however, the implementation of it is far from satisfactory.”
“If you look at employment equity, even though cabinet guidelines state that 2% of jobs should be for persons with disabilities, the majority of state departments have not reached that yet,” said Nair.
Nair said while there is legislation such as the Employment Equity Act, little is happening in the private sector to ensure there are opportunities reserved for disabled persons.
“The private sector also ignores that legislation and prefers paying the penalty rather than employing persons with disabilities. This leaves persons with disabilities largely unemployed and dependent on social grants,” he said.
Nair added there is no strong monitoring mechanism to hold government departments accountable.
He said the majority of disabled children do not write the national certificate exams like other children, which means they do not have sufficient points to enter tertiary institutions.
There is an estimation that there is over 500,000 children with disabilities who should be at school but are not. We have low levels of literacy, low levels of skills and high levels of unemployment.
— Jace Nair, CEO of Blind SA
“We don't have mathematics being taught to blind students in our country ... The majority of our learners at the schools for the blind do not have textbooks in a format like Braille. They share a few books. They do not have a Braille writing machine for every child.
“Teachers themselves have not been schooled in teaching blind children because at universities they are taught to teach children in a visual manner. Blind children have to be taught orally,” he said.
He said many teachers at the schools for the blind have not been specially trained to teach children with visual limitation.
“There is an estimation that there are over 500,000 children with disabilities who should be at school but are not. We have low levels of literacy, low levels of skills and high levels of unemployment,” he said.
Nair said blind people still have to rely on someone else to assist them to travel.
He added that the Copyright Act of 1978 does not have exceptions to allow books to be transferred to Braille and audio for the disabled community.
Furthermore, access to information is still a challenge as not everything aired on television has subtitles and sign language interpretation.
Disabled people also struggle to access government documents and brochures in banks, yet they are expected to enter into loan agreements, Nair said.
Richard Barron, general manager of the Quadpara Association of South Africa, said he was injured in an accident in 1999 that changed his life. He got a job and had to relocate and live with his aunt in Mitchells Plain where public transport was accessible with a wheelchair. But in the workplace, Barron said he found a different situation.
“It was a struggle getting around. People would forget about me. It was a struggle back then and it is still a struggle, especially in the rural areas.
Barron now lives in Atlantis on the west coast and has the benefit of driving an automatic car which was adapted with hand controls as he is in a wheelchair.
“After getting the car, I got a lot of things done on time. Because I did not have to wait for other people.”
My friends in the rural areas are still struggling. They are sitting at home and do not have access to transport...They live in a completely different world. They are almost prisoners in their own homes. The streets in rural areas are not conducive for people in a wheelchair. Taxis don't pick you up during rush hour because they see you as a burden.
— Richard Barron, general manager of Quadpara Association of SA
Barron said despite having a vehicle, accessing many places is still a challenge.
“Many times I have had to go to the back to gain access to a restaurant. It is not the best experience if you want to take your wife out,” Barron said.
He said newer buildings are more accessible than older ones as there is usually suitable parking and a wheelchair toilet.
Despite having a job and being able to move around, Barron said some people living in rural areas do not enjoy these basic rights.
“My friends in the rural areas are still struggling. They are sitting at home and do not have access to transport ... They live in a completely different world. They are almost prisoners in their own homes. The streets in rural areas are not conducive for people in a wheelchair. Taxis don't pick you up during rush hour because they see you as a burden.
“Things become expensive for you because you need to pay people to provide support around you,” Barron said.
Barron said for the lives of disabled people to get better, all spheres of government must work together.
