After meeting Anas Sarwar yesterday, I had some more reflections I thought would be helpful to share with people who interact with Persons with Disabilities daily.
Assuming that most of our readership knows Gilgit Baltistan and the Politics of the subcontinent, why can we not appreciate or be open to new ideas or the worst-case scenario take credit for these so-called new ideas? Gilgit Baltistan, or the commonly used term ‘ the Northern Areas,’ is filled with unique cultures that have evolved. However, with that comes risks and more responsibilities that we must face.
Why is there Equal Respect for Persons with Disabilities within the UK?
In the book, Why Nations Fail, Daron & Robinson (2013), in their preface, state that countries like ‘ England or Britain are much richer than Egypt because, in 1688, Britain had a revolution that transformed and revolutionized the British (English society). Taking Daron & Robinson’s word for granted, in modern British society, Persons with Disablities are equal citizens and economic contributors. For instance, in the UK, 5.15 million Disabled people were in employment, an increase of 325,000 from a year
previously (Gov.UK, 2023), contributing more than £240 million in benefit savings, particularly for the Employment and Support Allowance = A save in Human resources for the government plus economic flexibility
The Great Game – Human Capital and what we propose is of the same tree
The Great Game, which I like to call the human capital that the West possesses. In Pakistan, the mistakes that Overseas Pakistanis make are not learning the loopholes that the government does here. Taking the UK as an example again, why would the Tories favor Virgin GPs over NHS ones – it saves them money and ensures privatization prevails. Sticking to the Virgin example, the company is well known for outsourcing its work to India, where there is cheaper labor but perhaps greater productivity.
By all means, we are not trying to say that Persons with Disablities should not be in high paid jobs, but at least government and individuals should take this into example. E.g., we sold some led Bulbs to SCO and a Sost Based company where we were making a profit and delivering perhaps on greater productivity than another firm.
I urge all individuals and government officials to think along these lines for Persons with Disablities within GB and Pakistan