Adala UK participates in charitable action for people with disabilities
Members of Adala UK participated in a charitable event, organised by the Saharawi NGO ‘Absar Alkhair’ which works with people with disabilities. The event marked the beginning of Ramadan and included the distribution of food as well as school materials, collected by Saharawi citizens.
Sidi Mohamad Aluat, President of Absar Alkhair, told Adala UK: “the Moroccan authorities deny our NGO official registration. We also don’t receive any Moroccan state support due to our political stance on the Western Sahara issue as we support the Saharawi people’s right to self-determination, as recognised by the United Nations.”
Through previous investigations and interviews, Adala UK has observed that in the occupied territories of Western Sahara, there is a marked difference between the living conditions of Saharawi people with disabilities and those of Moroccan descent. Saharawis who live with a disability are often denied access to education and, later in life, paid employment and are forced to resort to begging or depending entirely on the help of their families and others. This lack of opportunities and the Moroccan authorities’ negative attitudes are the main causes of the relatively low participation of Saharawi people with disabilities in all areas of life.
Legislation which protects and promotes the rights of all people with disabilities, including those of Saharawi descent, is urgently needed, and we ask the Moroccan government to implement this in line with the UN convention for the rights of persons with disabilities.