WESTERN BUREAU:

Members of the disabled community are adamant that their rights must be respected by the wider Jamaican society, and are anticipating the passage of the National Disability Act through which redress can be sought.

"I am issuing a warning to members of the wider Jamaican society, who have been treating the disabled community with scant regard," said Floyd Morris, State Minister in the Ministry of Labour and Social Security.

"When we put in place the National Disability Act, woe to the man or woman who violates the rights of persons with disability," he said. "We are moving with due haste to ensure that this legislation becomes a reality, that the rights and dignity of persons with disability are fully recognised and defended."

Voice concerns

Senator Morris was speaking at the regional consultation on the National Disability Act at the St. James Parish Church, in Montego Bay yesterday, where members of the community from across western parishes were given an opportunity to voice their concerns and share experiences.

Mr. Morris told the audience the fact that Jamaica was the first country in the world to sign the International Convention for the Protection and Rights of the Disabled should serve as an indicator that discriminatory practices against the disabled would no longer be condoned.

According to Monica Bartley, chairperson of the National Disability Act legislation committee, the 2001 populationcensus of Jamaica reveals that approximately six per cent of the Jamaican population is disabled, which converts to 162,800 individuals (80,000 males and 82,800 females).