Urgent appeal to support displaced people with special needs

The Nudem Organization for People with Disabilities and the Disability Affairs Office of the Social Affairs and Labor Authority in Jazira Canton issued a joint statement regarding the obstacles faced by people with disabilities who have been displaced from the Tabqa and Raqqa regions.

The statement was read at Saleh Abdi School in Qamishlo city in Kurdish by Nudem Organization's member Mezgin Osman, and in Arabic by Nudem Organization's administrator Siham Joli.

The statement emphasized that the families who have members with special needs face compounded difficulties that impact their daily lives due to a lack of resources in these centers; emergency surgeries, essential medications, wheelchairs, and hearing aids, as well as the absence of facilities suitable for their healthcare needs.

The statement also noted that the existing facilities are inadequately equipped to accommodate people with disabilities, exposing them to the risk of neglect, and hindering their access to emergency or ongoing healthcare, particularly for those with chronic illnesses requiring close monitoring.

The statement also highlighted the urgent need to provide psychosocial support to help people with disabilities overcome the trauma of displacement and prevent feelings of isolation and marginalization.

The organization and the Office for Disability Affairs called for immediate intervention to ensure the protection and care of people with special needs through "rehabilitating and equipping shelters and schools to meet their health and mobility needs, providing specialized healthcare through medical teams to regularly monitor health conditions, offering psychosocial support to help people with disabilities overcome trauma, reviewing shelter policies to ensure respect for the rights of people with disabilities and the fulfillment of their specific needs, and guaranteeing unimpeded access to humanitarian and medical aid."

The statement emphasized that these measures represent an urgent humanitarian appeal to preserve the lives and dignity of people with disabilities, stressing the importance of solidarity and joint action to provide a safe and inclusive environment for all displaced persons, especially the most vulnerable groups.

ANHA