3. Current Situation of Persons with Disabilities

3.1 Definition and Classification

There is no specific or official definition of disability widely used in Myanmar.

3.2 Government Policy and National Plan towards Persons with Disabilities

Although references have been made to a national policy towards PWDs, there was no specific or official National Policy readily available for inclusion in this report. According to a Country Profile Report on Disability in March 2002 prepared by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), a national policy in 1975 included the following statements:

• Seeking various ways and means for the rehabilitation of disability
• Re-integration of persons with disabilities in the production activities after the rehabilitation period
• Implementation of the rehabilitation programs to encourage self-reliance of persons with disabilities and decrease dependency

3.3 Government System

The Ministry of Social Welfare Relief and Resettlement

The Department of Social Welfare under the Ministry of Social Welfare, Relief and Resettlement was established in 1953 and is the primary government executing agency for the implantation of social welfare programs under the policy guidelines prepared by the Government. The social welfare policy is part of the National Policy based on equalization of opportunities for vulnerable groups, including PWDs.

The objectives of the Department are as follows:

• To contribute towards the social objective "Uplift of health, fitness and education standards of the entire nation"
• To contribute towards the development of human resources
• To assist those who are facing social problems
• To take preventive measures to control occurrences of social problems
• To turn out voluntary social workers
• To give assistance to the State in some way by implementing social development tasks and giving social assistance

Through the Department's schemes for the Rehabilitation of the Disabled, the following are programs provided:

• School for the Disabled Children
  • The school is located in Yangon and is targeted toward disabled children with single or multiple disabilities aged 6 to 12 years old. Participation in the school is for those disabled who have completed medical rehabilitation in the Hospital for the Disabled and entrusted by parents. The school has a capacity of 100 students and currently has an enrolment of over 120 students.
• School for the Blind
  • There a total of two schools for the blind located in Yangon and Sagaing and are targeted at both partial and total blind students aged between 6 to 18 years old. Participation in the school is for those referred from medical professionals, social workers, local authorities and members of the community entrusted by parents.
• School for the Deaf
  • The school is located in Mandalay and is targeted for the severe deaf aged between 6 to 18 years old. Participation is from those referred from medical professionals, social workers, local authorities and members of the community entrusted by parents.
• Vocational Training School for Adult Disabled
  • The vocational training school is located in Yangon and is targeted towards PWDs aged between 18 and 45 years old. The schools provide vocational training in hairdressing, tailoring, sold-screening, printing, photography and TV repairing. Participation in the school is from referrals from the National Rehabilitation Hospital and Military Hospital.

The Ministry of Health

National Rehabilitation Hospital is responsible for orthopedic and medical rehabilitation and is operated by the Ministry of Health.

The Myanmar Disabled Sports Federation

The Federation was formed in 1989 with the aim of promoting sports activities, which can eventually promote self-confidence and self-reliance in PWDs. The Federation falls under the Department of sports Physical Education and organizes sports activities for the disabled, while training athletes.

3.4 Regional Cooperation

The Government participates in regional conferences and seminars along with various NGOs. Delegates participated in the Asia-Pacific Development Center on Disability (APCD) CBR Training Course held in April 2003. The training course was entitled "Workshop for Strengthening Community Based Rehabilitation (CBR) Movement" was held in Thailand and included participants from the Vocational Training School for Adult Disabled, the Eden Handicap Service Centre, the School for the Deaf and the Mary Chapman School for the Deaf.

APCD also organized a training course entitled "Training Workshop on Capacity Building for Self-Help Organizations (SHO) of Persons with Disabilities" in Bangkok in September, 2003. 21 participants from six Asian countries attended the session including those from Myanmar.

3.5 Statistics Data

Statistics on the number of disabled persons in Myanmar is extremely limited and only sited in limited reference materials with no source documentation.

According to the Myanmar Christian Fellowship of the Blind, the population of the blind was published only once in 1973, by the Burmese Socialist Party. According to the census, the population was approximately 28.8 million, which included a total of 196,020 partially or totally blind people.

3.6 Law and Legislation

The Law on Rehabilitation and Employment of Persons with Disabilities was first enacted in 1958. During 2000, a workshop held by the Department of Social Welfare, Save the Children (UK) and UNICEF was held to create a possible draft of new legislation for PWDs. The workshop was the first official gathering of a wide variety of people including teachers, principals, government workers, NGO representatives, disabled individuals and family members. Following the workshop draft legislation was submitted for the Government to review however, no further progress has been made. Appendix I contains draft legislation proposed in 1983 by the International Labour Organization (ILO) for the replacement of the 1958 law. Provisions within the draft contain aspects of the 1958 Law. A copy of the Law on Rehabilitation and Employment of Persons with Disabilities was not readily available for inclusion in this report.

According to the United Nations Committee on the Rights of the Child as submitted by States Parties, under Article 44 of the Convention, states in 1995, the following provisions were implemented in Myanmar:

• 88. Legal Context
  • As mentioned in section 18 of the Child Law, a mentally or physically disabled child shall enjoy basic education (primary level) or vocational education in special schools run by the Department of Social Welfare or private individuals or non-governmental organizations; he should have the right to enjoy special care and assistance provided by the Government; should enjoy a full and decent life in conditions which ensure dignity, promote self-reliance and facilitate the child's active participation in the community;
  • As mentioned in Disabled Person Employment Act 4 (3) enacted in 1958, the President can form a new department or organization to provide vocational education and medical care to those who are physically disabled or mentally defective;
  • According to section 32 (c) of the Child Law, mentally defective children are regarded as children who need protection and care. Thus, section 34 (d) of the Child Law states that the Director-General of the Department of Social Welfare has the right to send mentally defective children to a mental hospital for treatment.
• 89. Implementation
  • According to the rehabilitation programmes for blind, disabled and deaf people, the Department of Social Welfare provides them with academic and vocational education as well as supplementary care. The Ministry of Health is responsible for curing and rehabilitation services. The rehabilitation centre (hospital) in Yangon was converted into a main rehabilitation centre where disabled children receive priority for medical care. To make education accessible for disabled children, the Department of Social Welfare established one special school each for mentally retarded children, for the blind and for the deaf and dumb. In addition to these, non-governmental volunteer organizations organized three schools for the blind and one school for the deaf and dumb on a self-reliance basis;
  • Myanmar was represented at the meeting to launch the Asian and Pacific Decade of Disabled Persons held in Beijing from 1 to 5 December 1992. Myanmar also signed the Proclamation on the Full Participation and Equality of People with Disabilities in the Asian and Pacific Region on 10 February 1993.
• 90. Constraints
  • The cooperation of Departments concerned is essential in order that disabled children will be able to attend school like normal children. However, due to a lack of special training on the part of the teaching staff in handling disabled children, these children have to face many problems and difficulties in attending school with normal children.

3.7 Social Services

Based on information provided by the Social Security Board, there were 984 claims for temporary disability in 2002, while only 940 were granted benefit awards. During the same period, there were 1,560 claims for permanent disability, while only 1,549 were awarded benefits.

3.8 Medical Services, Rehabilitation and Assistive Devices

The Ministry of Health is the sole provider of support for material and technology for assistive devices for persons with mobility impairments, while the Department of Social Welfare is responsible for socio-economic support. The production and distribution of assistive devices is being coordinated to provide necessary assistive devices to PWDs through CBR programs. Assistive devices have been provided to PWDs through the Ministry of Health as well as in hospitals. According to a report issued by ESCAP in 1995, the production of assistive devices as reported by the National Rehabilitation Hospital is as follows:

The National Rehabilitation Hospital provides assistive devices to those people with mobility impairments who are provided with treatment as both in and out-patients. The service is available to all PWDs who are able to come to these centers. With the assessment of individual cases through early intervention and treatment, the Hospital decides whether the devices are to be provided. Assistive devices, including wheelchairs, braces, crutches, walkers and artificial limbs are produced in hospital workshops through the medical treatment program.

An orthopedic and rehabilitation centre was opened in 2003 in the Kayin State capital, Hpa-an, which has aided in meeting the demand for prosthesis in the south-eastern areas of Myanmar. The establishment of the centre was a great help for amputees in Kayin and Mon states and Tanintharyi division, said Professor Min Lwin, the head of the National Rehabilitation Hospital in Yangon. "They save time and costs because they no longer have to travel to Yangon for prosthesis," Prof Min Lwin said. The Hpa-an centre, established in January in cooperation between the government and the International Committee of the Red Cross, also operates one of five prosthetics workshops in Myanmar. Situated seven miles northeast of Hpa-an, the centre provides prosthesis and rehabilitation treatment for free to amputees. "We have so far made 120 pairs of prosthesis for the needy amputees," said Mr Jacques Forget, a prosthetist who manages the centre. The 30-bed centre has 25 staff, of whom nine are prosthetics trainees. Mr Forget said the ICRC is trying to increase both the production of prosthesis and the number of technicians at the centre. He said two of the technicians would be sent to Cambodia in 2003 to attend an internationally-recognized prosthetics course. Prosthetics workshops which serve the needs of the public operate at the National Rehabilitation Hospital and Mandalay Hospital and the military also has two workshops.

3.9 Community Based Rehabilitation

According to the Department of Social Welfare, in order to deliver medical services more efficiently, the current national health policy advocates a healthcare system that places primary responsibility on the community. The national health plan calls for implementation of community-based rehabilitation (CBR) designed to organize and train people within each community to care for and provide assistance to their own disabled members. CBR utilizes social structures already present in each township. Professionals are sent to townships where they train volunteer health workers, which are in turn sent to perform tasks in their own communities within the townships. For PWDs that require more resources than the community can provide, volunteers and community workers provide referrals to central hospitals, specialists, or schools. Centralized rehabilitation hospitals (i.e. The National Rehabilitation Hospital) or education and service centers serve as supporting resources to community efforts. Local communities thus provide basic but assessable service to a greater number of PWDs than centralized rehabilitation hospitals due the rural nature of the population.

The community-centered approach to rehabilitation is still relatively new in Myanmar. The first CBR effort began in 1982 according to the Department of Social Welfare with a few select townships that covered a population of approximately 100,000 people. Currently, World Vision International is cooperating with the Department of Health to develop CBR projects in six townships on the outskirts of Yangon and Mandalay. World Vision anticipates that each township requires a 15 year period before each township is able to effectively provide CBR programs self sufficiently. Eden Handicap Service Center along with the Myanmar Council of Churches also began a CBR project in a township in Yangon in 2002.

Independent projects to assist PWDs are also supported by existing social structures such as religious organizations which frequently serve as supporting networks. The Myanmar Christian Council assists in several projects in aiding the disable and provides some financial and professional support. Projects utilize participating churches in the council in order to disseminate information about the services they provide to communities.

3.10 Independent Living Movement

Members from NGOs in Myanmar participated in the Independent Living for Disabled Persons Course sponsored by the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) from August to October 2000. There currently has not been any other major initiative for the establishment of an Independent Living Movement in Myanmar.

3.11 Public Awareness

The World Vision Myanmar-Barrier Free Community Project prepared a Directory on the Organizations for/of People with Disabilities in Myanmar, in December 2003. The Directory is provided free of charge.

The International Day of Disabled Persons was observed in December with an opening address by the State Peace and Development Council Secretary which said that after the United Nations designated December 3 as the International Day of Disabled Persons with the aim of uplifting the morale and dignity of the disabled in society, member nations of the UN have been observing the day yearly. As the Union of Myanmar has the tradition of actively taking part in the activities of the UN, the day has been observed yearly without fail since 1994 with the aim of uplifting the morale and dignity of the disabled persons in Myanmar and making efforts for them to have equal opportunities with others. As a member nation of the UN, Myanmar has observed the day yearly with emphasis on successful implementation of the noble aim to promote the social, economic and cultural sectors of the disabled persons.

3.12 Sports

The vast majority of athletes participating in various disability sporting events, both nationally and internationally, contain disabled veterans from the military. The Government actively promotes these events within the country.

Recent International Events:

Myanmar disabled athletes took part in the 2nd ASEAN Disabled Sports event in December 2003 held in the Socialist Republic of Viet Nam. The delegation took back 49 medals, 24 gold, 13 silver and 12 bronze.

The Eighth Far-East and South Pacific Nations Sports Meet for the Disabled which took place in The Republic of Korea October 2002 bringing home four gold, 13 silver and four bronze medals. Myanmar took an overall 10th position out of 43 countries.

Recent National Events:

During December 2003, the 9th Defense Services Commander-in-Chief Shield Volley-ball Tournament for the disabled took place in Yangon.

In February 2003, the Myanmar Disabled Sports Federation organized the 14th annual Myanmar Disabled Sports Meet.

The 12th Disabled Sports Meet sponsored by the Myanmar Disabled Sports Federation was held in February 2002 in Yangon. Present were the chairman of the Myanmar Olympic Committee, Minister for Sports, Myanmar Disabled Sports Federation, Director of Resettlement of the Ministry of Defense and the Director General of the Sports and Physical Education Department.

Biwako Millennium Frammework Seven Priority Areas

3.13 Self-help Organizations of persons with disabilities and related family and parent associations

There are a limited number of self-help organizations in Myanmar that are led by PWDs.

Disabled People Organization

In 2002, the Disabled People Organization (DPO) was established by graduates of the Vocational Training Center for the Physically Handicapped. Currently the organization is waiting for the required governmental registration process to be finalized however, is actively soliciting members to join. This organization would be the first of its kind in Myanmar.

Myanmar Christian Fellowship of the Blind

The fellowship provides a variety of services in Yangon and Myitkyina, but is primarily focused on education of the blind. The fellowship was formed by a blind scholar with the aid of his church and provides first through tenth standard education and house a number of the students during the school year. Other activities of the Fellowship include teaching skills for daily living and mobility to increase their independence in everyday life. The school offers vocational programs such as massage, broom making and handicrafts. The Fellowship maintains a Braille library, a Braille printing center and a recording studio and computer center for skill development.

The Fellowship also operates a Community Resettlement Program which aids the Blind in resettling in a location where there are opportunities for income generating activities.

3.14 Women with Disabilities

The Government does not provide specific programs for women. Women are treated equally in the established programs within the Department of Social Welfare.

The Zion Disabled Women's Development Centre was established in 1998 by a disabled women and provides women the opportunity to earn a wage who are trained and then manufacture wooden toys. The toys are approved by UNICEF for its Early Childhood Development Program.

3.15 Early Detection, Intervention and Education

Early Detection / Prevention

The Ministry of Health has a program for early detection, intervention and management of disabilities. Immunization, prenatal care, health education and information on the care of newborn babies are part of the program. Immunization has been implemented to prevent polio. An anti-polio campaign, followed by a national immunization program has been carried out throughout the county.

The Myanmar Mother and Child Welfare Association and UNICEF have also been providing preventative programs.

Education

As previously indicated, the Department of Social Welfare established special schools and vocational training schools for PWDs. There are special schools for different types of disabilities, including the hearing and visually impaired, the physically handicapped and mentally impaired. Vocational training schools are established for the physically impaired.

3.16 Training and Employment

The Government, through the Department of Social Welfare operates under agreement with the Association for the Aid and Relief (AAR) a Vocational Training Center which offers a 3.5 month course in hairstyling and tailoring. The training center is located in Yangon and most students board at the school. Upon completion of the training, students are granted loans of money or equipment in order to open their own shops.

3.17 Access to Built Environment and Public Transportation

There are no specific laws or regulations for the implementation of barrier-free facilities in Myanmar.

3.18 Access to Information and Communication

The Health Department is carrying out the production and distribution of assistive devices for blind people through a pilot community-based approach. Under the project of Prevention of Blindness, standardization of assistive devices is controlled by the Health Department. There are six programs and 47 projects including projects for hearing impairments in Myanmar. Assistive devices for people with hearing impairments are provided in hospitals, special schools and communities. Assistive devices for people with visual impairments are fully supported by World Vision International and Christoffel-Blinden Mission. Arrangements are under way to produce assistive devices for blind people in the near future, with the cooperation of the Department concerned.

Production capacity is limited for both financial and technical reasons. The financial limitation is in the case of devices needed, where reliance is mainly on imported components and materials. The technical limitation is in cases where there is a shortage of trained technicians.

3.19 Poverty Alleviation through capacity-building, social security and sustainable livelihood programs

Estimates on poverty and policies toward poverty alleviation are rarely available and Myanmar does not have an official poverty line. However, World Vision supports a micro enterprise development project to assist families to increase their income by creating job opportunities through the provision of credit and financial services.

Mr. U Mya Than, Permanent Representative and Leader of the Delegation of Myanmar to the Twenty-Fourth Special Session of the United Nations General Assembly provided insight into Myanmar's poverty alleviation goals in 2000 as follows:

• The draft texts of the Political Declaration and further actions and initiatives, now being considered by this Assembly, can be summarized in three prepositions:

• We should achieve sustainable economic development and poverty eradication, by fulfilling the targets set by the World Social Summit.
• We should step up the social development, supported by the sustainable economic development, by fulfilling the targets set by the World Social Summit.
• We should ensure that the centre of the economic and social development is the people and their well-being, including food security, primary health care and basic education.

In order to achieve these goals, actions are required at two levels, national and international.

First, allow me to apprise this august Assembly briefly of a few selected instances of our national endeavors to achieve these lofty goals in Myanmar.

Through the implementation of our four national economic objectives, Myanmar is making steady and sustained progress in terms of economic development and poverty alleviation.

With a view to laying down a firm foundation for economic development and enhancing the political, economic and social life of the people, the Myanmar Government has undertaken infrastructure building on an unprecedented scale.

The Government has completed from 1988 to date, 110 bridges including 5 Ayeyarwady River-crossing bridges, 110 dams, 43 hospitals, 79 dispensaries, 350 primary schools, 46 secondary schools, 11 high schools and 3700 miles of road, to mention just a few statistics.

The Government's economic development strategy is people centered, and is aimed at the alleviation and eventually eradication of poverty in rural areas, particularly in the less developed border areas.

One of the most important programmes as well as one of the top priority national tasks, being implemented by the Government in Myanmar at present, is the programme for the development of national races in the border areas. From 1988 to 1999, the Government has spent a total of Kyats 17122.37 million (approximately US$ 2.85 billion) on this programme. As a result, poverty and backwardness are now giving way to economic prosperity and socioeconomic development in border areas which had been neglected until recently since Myanmar regained her independence in 1948. In parallel to the border areas development programme, a drug eradication programme has also been energetically and effectively implemented in the border areas.

Consequently, national races in the border areas of Myanmar are enjoying higher level of socio-economic development, higher living standards and happier life as they have never experienced before.

The greatest challenge facing mankind today is economic development and poverty eradication. In a globalizing world today, poverty anywhere can jeopardize prosperity everywhere.

Our programme of actions at the international level should effectively address the crucial issues such as debt relief, the improved market access for developing countries and international assistance for economic development and poverty eradication in these countries.

Undoubtedly, capacity-building for developing countries is of crucial importance. This is also an area where international assistance is very much needed.