‘Blessed Bonding’: Children with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities get a new voice

PwD commissioner pushes for inclusivity and more support from church

DIMAPUR — State Commissioner for Persons with Disabilities (PwD), Diethono Nakhro launched the ‘Blessed Bonding’, an NGO for children with Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities (IDD), on Saturday at Tourist Lodge, Dimapur.

Speaking on the occasion as special guest, Nakhro said that when parents first learn about their child’s IDD symptoms, it can be difficult to comprehend, especially if they have never encountered these signs before—and once they come to terms with the diagnosis, they must also face societal stigma and prejudice.

She shared that there are different categories of disabilities with different degrees of disabilities; therefore for some of the children, parents will have to be their lifelong advocates in many ways. She appreciated the group of parents who have come together to start the NGO and be the voice of their children.

Nakhro reminded that the state commissioner’s office serves as a monitoring body and quasi-judicial court addressing cases of rights violations against PwDs and ensuring that they are not discriminated against while pushing the government to prioritise accessibility in education, skill development, and employment.

However, she said, real progress depends on public pressure from parents and stakeholders and without their support, pushing the government for change is challenging. The hard truth is that they cannot advance unless they confront the fact that, for years, the disability sector was neglected, with little attention given to it until recently, she added.

According to the commissioner, not even a single law has been properly implemented and they do not even have a single service for rehabilitation. ‘But the good thing is that the awareness is improving now as lots of people in the private sector are also starting various kinds of services and even the government is also much more aware than earlier,’ she said.

Nakhro stressed the importance of church involvement in advocating for and assisting people with disabilities. ‘They need to push for the disabled community to be fully included and to be given equal opportunities as equal citizens,’ she said.

While speaking on the ‘Role of Churches in addressing the issue of Intellectual and Developmental Disabilities’, Rev. Temsu Jamir, pastor at Aoyimti Baptish Church, said that Naga society has been plagued and blinded by superstitions for so many generations and there were so many unfortunate societal stigmas, including those directed at children born with disabilities.

He added that the church has not been sensitive to the needs of children with disabilities and their parents. For nearly two decades now, he said that the church has taken up this issue to sensitise and educate the congregation, but it has ‘failed to practically come forward to help’.

Jamir said that the church has been sensitising and teaching its members, and also organising ‘small events’ for children with disabilities.

However, the church is yet to fully execute its compassionate mission towards parents and children with disabilities, he said, adding that the church in general is yet to wake up from its slumber and apathy.

While speaking on the topic ‘Building Inclusive Communities’, the proprietor of Milestones Centre for Child Development, Yangerinla C Sangtam mentioned that disability inclusion is vital for overall social diversity and the first step is to have a clear understanding of what disability inclusion truly means.

She added that inclusion ensures people with disabilities have their voices and their experiences are heard by people who may not see the same barriers or opportunities that exist in a community.

On the occasion, she also highlighted the challenges faced by people with disabilities and importance of disability inclusion for creating an equitable society.

Sangtam mentioned that in terms of global reality of disabilities, data from the World Report on Disability and other reliable sources show that an estimated 1 billion people, or 15% of the global population, have a disability and the disability rate is higher among females (19.2%) than males (12%).

She added that women and girls with disabilities are three times more likely to experience gender-based violence and currently, there are approximately 200 million children with disabilities worldwide, with roughly five million of them living in low and middle-income countries.

Speaking on the occasion as guest of honour, the chairman of Nagaland State Commission for Protection of Child Rights, Alun Hangsing termed the launch of ‘Blessed Bonding’ a very important initiative.

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