Speakers at a programme have called for ensuring capacity building for Legal Aid and Referral Service Providers to strengthen access to justice for people with disabilities (PWDs).

They also for ensuring disability-friendly judicial system and courts in the country.

PWDs, particularly women and girls, are more vulnerable to sexual violence, abuse, rape and other types of gender-based violence.

They are easily victimised but they face many challenges to get justice, they said.

The speakers said that physical structures at courts and judicial system are not suitable for their use, lawyers mostly not aware of disability related law, victims fail to continue case because of their financial condition, and their inability to prove the crimes to the court due to physical condition.

They said these while speaking at a workshop titled “Awareness and Capacity Building for Legal Aid and Referral Service Providers to Strengthen Access to Justice for Persons with Disabilities”.

Visually Impaired People’s Society (VIPS) with the support of Manusher Jonno Foundation organised the workshop at International Mother Language Institute in the capital on Wednesday (17 Dec).

The event was told that the country has 15% people living with disabilities at the moment.

The speakers called on National Legal Aid Service Organization to appoint disabled people as their panel lawyers so that they can deal with the cases of PWDs more effectively.

The activities of Legal Aid should be expanded up to the grassroots level for the sake of PWDs.

Stressing on disability-friendly judicial system, they called for ensuring all kinds of accessibility (both infrastructure and judicial process) so that PWDs have access to justice easily.

As most of the PWDs are economically backward, they need necessary supports from Legal Aid, a government institution which provides free legal support for poor litigants.

But its website and publications are not unsuitable for the use of PWDs, they said, demanding setting up of disability crisis centre at district level so that PWDs get all the supports at the grassroots level.

The workshop put forward a number of recommendations. These are- the procedures for getting legal aid services of the victims from the legal aid office and NGOs should be barrier free and inclusive plus easily available.

Foundation and advance capacity development of legal aid services providers should be human diversity inclusive. Physical and non-physical service points should be accessible considering universal design standard guidelines.

All legal aid related documents and publications should be available in accessible version considering disability diversity support needs.

It is imperative to fully ensure the implementation of the Rights and Protection of Persons with Disabilities Act 2013, use PWDs in promotional activities of Legal Aid, introducing hotline by Legal Aid for PWDs, including disability law in the training activities of Legal Aid, and raising awareness among lawyers about the disability law.

Sk Ashfakur Rahman, executive director of National Legal Aid Services Organization and Senior District and Sessions Judge, attended as the chief guest, while it was chaired by Advocate Musherraf Hossain Mazumder, senior advocate, Supreme Court of Bangladesh and president of VIPS.

Sk Ashfakur Rahman, in his address, assured of extending his allout assistance for protecting the rights of PWDs.

Md Jahangir Alam, ex-general secretary of VIPS, presented the keynote paper.

Barrister Jyotirmoy Barua, human rights lawyer, Supreme Court of Bangladesh, Md Saidul Huq, executive director of Blind Education and Rehabilitation Development Organization (BERDO), Zahidul Kabir, lead, Disability and Inclusion, BRAC, among others, attended the event.