We always grew up with the quote ‘ there is a time and a place ‘ for a particular situation or scenario.  It depends on which part of the world you belong to.  Some may say it differently; some may say it in lovey-dovey lingo.  Nevertheless, this conflict or psychological warfare between the Ables [1] and people with disabilities has not ended rather escalated thanks to the mass Media.  To put it another way, Global societies have to an extent always depicted the disable (s) as victims [2] .  Why?

Assessing the disabled victim card

One of the LinkedIn Posts that stood out was when a disabled activist said ‘ Why hasn’t the government been able to establish even a single Skills Development Center in Gilgit-Baltistan for the training of PWDs from 1947 until now?  ‘ Farhan Baig’s profile.  This is significant because it shows the incompetence of governments and similarities across political spectrums and ideologies.  If one were to look  at the United States, a relatively new nation-state, it would also be a perfect fit because it  also has unequal treatment of disabled persons.  For example healthcare provisions, Obama Care vs. Private Care.  India would also fit this model.

Thus, the disabled victim card suits the few and not the many which is why disable people are victims and this fear factor was instilled into the masses by the Mass Media Earlier review.

The Mass Media uses and misuses

 The internet especially Social media is the power now.  Everything and anything can be retrieved on it : from the writings of Milton Friedman to Qanon and everything else.  From a movie angle, the disables are a great fit to play victims.  That is why I believe that people do not see the value in engaging with disabled people, not because X isn’t a great person, but because Jim Parsons who plays a fictional character, [3] has created in the mind of Y that X will be Sheldon.  So everything is messed up inside our judgments: we say one thing and do the other because we are limited in our creative thoughts and individual judgment. People tend to belief that the world reflects what is shown rather than what is not : to put it another way, people don’t have time to think, read and judge about disabled people.

Conclusion.

The Mass Media creates fear in society about disabled people.

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[1] Using plurals of groups

[2] Ibid.

[3] In the Big Bang Theory

In an economy like Pakistan, all economic resources must be pooled to stabilize the financial system. An economy dictates how a country will progress, rather than the slogans of Karl Marx or other socialist parties. We saw how Russia under Lenin fell and then under Stalin became a failed system. Without discussing greater political history, this war between ‘ ableism and disabled,’ a much more significant loss, is felt by the disabled community every day and every month of the week.

An earlier article on this website that reviewed evidence showed Persons with Disablities can benefit the economy. It also opposed Marx’s ideas of being an Ideal Man suited for work. Lit Review: Nonetheless, there was no follow-up after that because it was understood that this was important, the rights for PWDs in all forms of employment. However, now, it is a wake-up call for all private and governmental agencies to employ Persons with Disablities in Gilgit Baltistan.

Economic analysis for Persons with Disablities (updated September 2023)

Using the British Council 2014 lens, Pakistan’s economic Growth Rate is predicted to be at . 22% [1]  as BC showed in 2014 that Pakistan could lose 6.3% of its GDP due to the exclusion of persons with disabilities (PwDs). So what does this indicate? Firstly, it shows that Pakistanis [2]  are not interested in accommodating PWDs. Secondly, it shows that there has to be serious dialogue for employing a disabled person. Remember, if you are employing a disabled person, it can open different avenues and revenue generation schemes.

Conclusion

Without including Persons with Disablities in Gilgit Baltistan, one can not boost the economy, as shown by the British Council Data.

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[1] Reuters probably have not considered the British Council data.

[2] In this context, referring to the Pakistani government

We saw this LinkedIn Post about how people are said to be uncomfortable with disability. Rivera’s post and what was written in it reflected, if not all, the lives of disabled people in Gilgit Baltistan, Pakistan, and the World. Social media has not shown the difficulties of disabled people as it should.

Ableist Clickbaiting versus Disableist Seeking Rights?

We have often had to implement specific social media marketing tactics that were not our choice but society’s demands. Though we can not say that content creators do not have a right to clickbait, in our context, so much clickbait reinforces stereotypes that do not represent us.

The Psychology behind Conformity informs us that people, whether in Rome, Islamabad, or Gilgit, have been forced to think that disabled people can not do anything, can not achieve anything and are a burden on society ( which is very untrue) home.

Just because the Goodwill team reports on facts rather than distorted facts, it somehow gets lost in the Worldwide Web, which should not be the case. To put it simply, in an ideal world, content creators should be discussing these issues rather than fashion

Conclusion

Real-life issues should be discussed on social media, including Persons with Disablities. Much of the content on our website will come last, as much of the social media is clickbait. The issues discussed here are significant and foremost, as they dictate people’s livelihoods and opportunities within a society. People should view the stories as a glimpse of what reality means for disabled people of Gilgit Baltistan and other countries that our stories cover.

By putting fashion icons first, it seems that humans do not want to converse with disabled people on how an ableist has impacted their lives:

• Environment
• Culture
• Language
• The Social Make-up of Society

Many past sociologists have contested whether one’s environment (nurture) or whether one’s genetic code influences one’s life chances (nature). Whether you are on either side of the debate, facts cannot be distorted. We are told by many people what is the success rate of this (skills development center). We often have to gather evidence, write reports, etc., but let it be known that the People of Gilgit Baltistan are, if not the most accepting of disabled people at the moment, will be in the years to come because education is evolving daily within the region.

Investing in Gilgit Baltistan’s Disabled Society is a smart move.

While one investor should know the problems of disabled people in Gilgit Baltistan Home, one should also consider the environment of Gilgit Baltistan, its educational attainment and the general background of the area. While many of the problems are highlighted on this website, let it be known that evidence has come from reputable sources, including Ijaz Shigri’s report that highlights ‘ Gilgit Baltistan is open for education as net enrolment is high ‘ Shigri, 2016. Moreover, the Al Jazeera report of education thriving in Hunza supports Shigri’s viewpoint, but how is this related to disabled people? Behaviourism!

Conformity and Investment

Many investors lack the psychological knowledge of Behaviourism within human beings. Applying Stanley Milligram’s 1961 obedience experiment, we can say that disabled people will be ambitious to compete with their non-disabled counterparts. We see this on social media, but more often than not, the obedience experiment Reflects human behavior. The point I am trying to make here is with such a competing environment, disabled people of Gilgit Baltistan will over the time use this psychological hack to their advantage.

Any evidence to back your claim up?

Like we said whether you are on either side of the debate, facts cannot be distorted. The Sociology Head Zubair Ahmed of Gilgit’s KIU talked about a disabled student Muhammad Rafi who said that Rafi now can access notes due to Goodwill’s work Zubair Ahmed’s speech. Likewise many videos on our YouTube channel shows that students are gaining the skills which is reflective of our actions Goodwill Channel.

If there is one place where global society learned its structures, it was Rome, home of the Romans.  The Roman Civilisation, modern-day Italy has historical facilities which tourists can learn from.  Rome is a tourist destination with a historical significance nowadays and in the past.

Hidden Social Meanings found within its buildings and surroundings

Rome is diverse, from the Vatican City to the Coliseum, but with that, Italians appericate their history and reflect upon the past mistakes that were committed.  Academics have highlighted that, like in Pakistan these days and across the world, Depending on one’s status, impairments would have more or less an impact on their daily life.  Read more; for instance, the ‘Great ‘Julius Caesar experienced many seizures.

Secondly, in terms of the present-day Vatican, Pope Jorge Mario Bergoglio, after ten at night, lets people experiencing poverty in Rome sleep in his Gardens palaces.  What message this brings is that even though the Romans and the Roman Church argue that there is a move away from feudalism to socialism, even though people might critique and suggest that feudalism is within the churches, which I agree with, there is a time and place to critique such people.

Romans versus the Pakistan Elite

For the latter part of the discussion, let’s assume that the Brits have taken this Aspect from the Romans/Italians.  Can the Pakistani Elite not do the same for PWDs?  Are we suggesting that the Pakistani Elite are much bigger than the Romans?  Sania Nishtar’s programs, such as Ehsaas and HealthCard, pushed the Social Welfare Agenda, but why was it stopped, especially for PWDs?  Where is that agenda?  A Unjust Budget

Conclusion

Gilgit Baltistan has a rich history, but unlike the Italians, the feudalistic structures still remain within society. We must treat disabled persons the same, no matter whether they are poor or not.

After their latest visit to Gilgit Baltistan, Amtul Akthar, Chairperson of the Amna Begum Community Welfare Trust, called upon the Chief Executive Officer Ghulam Muhammad Baig of Gilgit Baltistan’s Goodwill Movement in London on Friday, the 25th of August, to discuss further matters in Gilgit Baltistan ABC’s last visit.

Conclusion of the ABC’s Trust Visit

Amtul Akthar appreciated the practical work of Mr. Farhan Baig, President, and his team. Amtul said ‘that in Gilgit Baltistan, there are very few entities that Ghulam and Farhan have established that are honest, effective communicators and have a good environment where Persons with Disabilities work. The other Director, Mr. Salim Akthar, contributed and added that he (Ghulam) is a good leader as he has given PWDs the right to express themselves and promotes each student individually. Ghulam and the board of advisors thanked them.

What was the outcome for the marginalised communities of Gilgit Baltistan?

We as the organization are very pleased that the ABC Trust supports us but certain common similarities such as the government not being able to effectively support us were discussed. While welfare provisions are mentioned in Gilgit Baltistan law, these acts are not implemented which both organisations need to work on. The ABC Trust is a supporter of GBGM because the organisation supports marginalised people as the ABC Trust supports orphans.

We believe that both organisations have the potential to raise awareness internationally for disabled persons or moreover the marginalised people of Gilgit Baltistan could not only be supported at the regional level, but we are unable to do this as some government officials are not concerned for the welfare of disabled persons by their actions and not words!!!

Another question that is regularly asked is if the organization’s officials do not have the appropriate qualifications working on the ground, how can they pursue to gain further disabled rights? This is an excellent question with a simple answer because we have Personal Experience.

What is personal experience like for a disabled person?

If we stick to Personal experience, a person with a disability faces more political, sociological, and psychological hurdles around them. There are two phases that we should focus on, which can be divided into the learning and communication phases.

The Learning phase involves the individual’s socialization: can they play and communicate and imitate the actions of their mother? Parenting experiment. Like any mother, parents would enjoy speaking with their children: but the mother might get rejected by their family for bearing a disabled (special child) in Pakistan[1]. Farhad (1999) says, ‘Educational opportunities for children with disabilities in Pakistan and Bangladesh are seen in the context of the countries’ religious, cultural and economic development. The reason is that people do not want to accept the abnormality that they perceive [2]. Abnormality in Pakistan is often linked to disability because the notion of Parsons with Disabilities being accepted was very limited in the 90s, the generation of disabled people we focus on at home. However, that abnormality is now being challenged by disabled persons, including our partner organizations like STEP and the Hashoo Foundation in the Southern region of Pakistan and more due to social media, a positive aspect of it. Another surprise that data shows from Farhad’s work is that based on the data collected by Akbar (1989) and Richter (1996), GBGM can confirm that special education was not a priority for the government as in the south, data shows that in the 1990s there were only 210 schools in the whole of Pakistan [3].

Moving on to the communication phase, in the same article compiled by Farhad (1999), Malik 1998 states that the parents and relatives consider the disabled as an economic liability and curse of God. Government functionaries take them to be nincompoop parasites. For the general public, they are a nuisance. The disabled themselves are unaccepted by society, lose confidence in their faculties, lose self-respect, and consider themselves fit for dependence upon others and beggary. GBGM has to struggle with this. We are constantly critiqued for not being qualified like others, but is it our fault that the public does not realize it? Even the parents are pressured continuously for not accepting their disabled child. That’s why disabled people are stuck in this limbo of the communication phase, and some teenagers and adults might end up like Genie.

People have to realize that qualifications only get you so much: it is the personal experience, to add the emotions, distress and feelings that only make us more resilient as an organization. This has encouraged our ambitions to strive and struggle for our rights: whether one is living in Glasgow or Gilgit. As a team we have to work to improve the communication phase, whereby more disabled adults can use our skill development facilities.

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[1] Using the Urdu Slang

[2] Ibid

[3] Gilgit Baltistan was under the state subject rule of the federal government then.

Looks and appearance majorly influence human beings’ actions .  They know their actions when someone says, ‘ I am only human.’ The last article, which mentioned fear, did not go in-depth about how a disabled person interacts in society the previous article.  When representing an organization, an individual jumps into the flight or fight response when they have to report objectively – Political or social Government policies.  However, Humans rely on the aesthetic – Looks and appearances- which is superficial but needs to be addressed.

Seeing a disabled person

When one sees a disabled person walking down the street, one automatically gets into this sympathetic mode: which is acceptable; however, the person could be a scientist or a researcher, which one does not assume.  It is this aesthetic factor that makes us sympathetic.  In Gilgit Baltistan, though one should have sympathy, it does not mean one should think they are incapable of working or studying.  Why should we assume anything when we do not have information?  I recently met a person I took to the training center in Gilgit who initially could not comprehend how technology made it easier for disabled persons to interact with the world wide web.  These situations are terrible to witness because it shows you that the aesthetic matters rather than the personality or the mind.

Silent Workers

The other thing is that most of the time, Persons with Disabilities do not want to disclose information about their disability often because they feel that society will ridicule them for their ‘ health issue.’ During these last few years, I have interacted with many disabled persons – from Pakistan and beyond who would not be concerned about their health issues simply because society will not accept them. We are working on a couple of cases that involve individuals due to their disability not getting any jobs Mumtaz’s story. .

These issues need to be addressed, as basically, one is saying that because of our psychological thoughts, a disabled person should not be employed. Even in Islam, the main religion of Pakistan says that disabled persons should be treated equally.

So who are we to judge based on looks and appearances

The Key to liaising with A Non-Profit Organization in Pakistan is whether they meet specific goals and objectives. The Government of Pakistan defines our organization as an organization that works for the welfare of disabled persons, social welfare act (1961).

The Problems of the Region

Gilgit Baltistan Goodwill Movement only works within the region of Gilgit Baltistan. The organization wishes to see

• Increase access to education and training for people with disabilities.

•          Provide affordable healthcare services to people with disabilities.

•          Promote social inclusion and reduce stigma towards people with disabilities.

•          Provide assistive devices to enhance the mobility and independence of people with disabilities.

•          Improve the quality of life for people with disabilities by providing food and shelter.

In the case of Gilgit Baltistan, the awareness of Persons with Disabilities is extremely low. the National accountability bureau (one of the leading institutes of the government of Pakistan) has illegally occupied the accommodation of the  Special Education Complex within Gilgit: which in summary, was a boarding school-like accommodation for disabled people Pamir Times Report on Disabled People. This then leads to adult employment being hindered, as discussed many a times on this website blogs. It is one thing for human rights organizations to dedicate themselves to supporting and voicing the human rights of political workers but not for disabled people across the country.

Call this a conclusion, but it is factually accurate as disabled people are voiceless in the country even though they are a more significant majority of the State of Pakistan Nation’s report.

Taking Back Control

More than a few times, I have been told how disabled people can progress with such laws. It is time we take back control, I say. Not in a radical way, may I add. But in a way in which the government and local initiatives like ours work together. On different forums, I have suggested this, but with the ambitions that we have, we need moral support as well as financial support in Gilgit Baltistan.

If governing structures are not strong enough, we must make them more robust by liaising with different organizations and individuals my vision.