Legislature, Mr WT Mchunu, at a consultative forum with people with
disabilities
2 November 2006
On behalf of the KZN Legislature let me take this opportunity to welcome you
for having made it to this consultative forum. The holding of this forum is
indeed long overdue. We would have liked to host this meeting at an earlier
date but our busy schedule prevented us from doing so. I hope that you will
find it in your hearts to forgive us.
Chairperson, issues that affect people with disabilities are issues that
affect all of us. Let me hasten to state that although a lot has been done in
bringing issues of equality into mainstream politics, there is still a long way
to go in honouring the promise of our Constitution, the promise of equality and
justice for all.
The recently held People's Assembly in Kokstad correctly noted the
following:
"People with disabilities are faced with a unique set of barriers to becoming
self reliant, thus creating a cycle of dependency, segregation, isolation and
exclusion. Disabled people have access to fewer resources, and experience
greater difficulty in meeting their basic needs than their able-bodied
counterparts. Difficulties in gaining access to basic needs, such as education
(including skills development) and employment are compounded by the negative
attitudes that are frequently directed at disabled people. Thus, disabled
people experience discrimination in all aspects of life, resulting in their
being more vulnerable to poverty and to economic dependence. This has a direct
impact on life expectancy."
The KZN Legislature has taken concrete steps to address the systematic
marginalisation of vulnerable groups. On an annual basis, we hold sectoral
parliaments specifically to look at issues affecting the youth, workers and
women. We do this deliberately because we do not want issues affecting these
groups to be sidestepped by other broader issues of government. This is the
same urgency that we seek to inculcate on issues affecting people with
disability.
Today I want to commit this legislature to work closely with you in ensuring
that issues that directly affect you are dealt with in a proper and open
manner. We have no intention to adopt a paternalistic approach by assuming, in
your absence, that these are issues that affect people with disabilities.
It is against this backdrop that I encourage you to discuss, at length, all
the issues that affect disabled people.
We commit ourselves to report back to you on how we would have gone in
addressing the issues to be raised here. We would want the interaction to be
ongoing so that the issues are thoroughly addressed and recommendations
implemented.
As I conclude, I want to assure you that the KZN Legislature is fully behind
every effort that seeks to improve the lot of our hitherto vulnerable groups. I
thank you.
Issued by: KwaZulu-Natal Legislature
2 November 2006
