The Senate’s Functional Committee on Human Rights in its meeting reviewed in detail the ICT Rights of People with Disability Bill, 2020 introduced in Senate by the government after passage from the National Assembly.
In addition to minor amendments in definition and in syntax in Part I, amendments were made in Section 9(4) Section 10(3), Section 12(4) (5) (6) (7), Section 14(1), Section 14(3), Section 15(5), Section 19(1), Section 19(3), Section 19(7) of Part II of the bill. Part III and IV will be discussed in the next meeting of the Committee. The meeting was held under the chairmanship of Senator Mustafa Nawaz Khokhar here at the Parliament House on Wednesday and was attended among others by Senators Dr Mehr Taj Roughani, Keshoo Bai, Shaheen Khalid Butt, Jahanzeb Jamaldini, Usman Khan Kakar, Secretary Human Rights, Chairman FBISE, Executive Director State Bank of Pakistan, representatives of people with disabilities. Before considering the bill clause by clause the Committee heard the people with disabilities as to what the existing problems are and how they can be resolved. The considered view of all participants was that in most of the departments there is an understanding and written SOPs for good treatment and ease of disabled persons but implementation is lacking. The Committee was assured by the FBISE that the recommendations of Committee regarding providing writers and assistants to disabled people during exams, provision of braille, specially designed tests, and others will be taken to the board of governors and these people will be facilitated. Similarly, representatives of PIA and commercial airlines also assured the Committee that people with disabilities will be facilitated as much as is possible and any complaints can be directed to their toll free numbers. The Committee was told by SBP that commercial banks are being directed to ensure talking atm machines and international standard ramps for facilitating these people. The Committee directed SBP to hold stakeholders’ conference on the issues for disabled people in a month’s time and conduct annual accessibility audit/evaluation regarding the services for them in 3 months’ time and come up with their findings.
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