By Narong Patibatsarakich
Chair person : Thai with Disability Foundation,
Wheelchair and Friendship Center in Asia and Pacific -Thailand
(WAFCAT)
Former : Senator of Thailand
Chairperson of Asia and Pacific Regional Council of DPI
Chairperson of DPI-Thailand
Disabilities movement is the movement of the group or network of the people with disabilities who need for the equal rights of opportunities in the society. They would like to let the society acknowledge that they are existed in the society and did not want to be excluded from any activities in the society and did not want to be ignored from the policy maker to received the public service as any other citizen in that society.
The Pads in Europe and North America may have more experiences than the PWD in Asia and the Pacific. They have fighter for many years until at the end of International Year of Disabled People, all Pads of every region establish their own organization in the International level named Disabled Peoples' International (DPI). This is the cross disabilities and human right organization. Its motto is Vex Nostra in Latin or Our Own Voices. This motto means that we should collect PWD as a group to let our voice loud enough to be heard. To be successes we should use the organization of disabled people as the mechanism for mobilize our goal.
DPI acted as the International organization to achieve the goal. In the Asia Pacific region which more than half of the population is here? And the poorest countries are here. DPI Asia Pacific holds many Leadership Training seminars in many counties to develop new leaders and to encourage them to establish the cross disabilities organization of disabled people. And this kind of organization will change the society for PWD live equally and full participation. Toping, our friend, who passed away, work hard for this purpose as the regional development officer.
In Thailand, there are a group of disabled persons participated at the First World Congress of Disabled Peoples' International in Singapore, 1981. They are exited to learn about the right of disabled persons and how to fight for those rights. The representative of Thailand enroll as a member of the Asia Pacific Regional Council as a provisional member by promised that after they go back to there home , they will establish such organization. They are successes to establish the cross disabilities organization in 1983. The first activity is to draft the Rehabilitation Act. The main features are quota system employment, Accessibility, free service or medical rehabilitation and the participation of PWD in every committee , sub-committee that make policy for PWD. After campaign for the Rehabilitation Act for 8 years, it passed the parliament and proclaimed to be enacting in 1991.
We hold the big demonstration for the lift of electric train Bangkok Metropolitan Authority. The result is not so good, only the ministry of interior accepted to provide the lifts at 5 stations of 23 stations. It is not come to reality until many years ago we organized the demonstration for these lifts. At this time we got the budget 60 million Baht fro the construction and lifts. Both demonstrations, Topong is the key person and leader.
When we are going to have the new airport, Suwanapoom, we check the accessibility in the airport and found that it is not perfect; we claimed the air port to correct it but not success. So we bring this matter to the court, Topong is the leader again.
