Special needs children are ‘our children’
An AYATI Bathiya & Santhush song for inclusivity
It is a routine day at bustling ‘AYATI’ and parents and children with disabilities are walking in.
On Tuesday, when we visit this state-of-the-art centre at Ragama, there is excitement in a spacious room on the first floor with children having a whale of a time on a trampoline or giving brilliant smiles from a playpen.
They are part of a video-shoot for a hauntingly moving song by acclaimed duo Bathiya & Santhush (BNS) to be launched next Friday (December 3) which is World Disability Day with the theme ‘Leadership and participation of persons with disabilities toward an inclusive, accessible and sustainable post-COVID-19 world’.
“This is all for inclusivity and eradication of stigma which is rampant in our society,” says the Executive Director of Hemas Outreach Foundation/AYATI Trust, Shiromi Masakorala, adding that with “our children” always on their minds, they are looking for innovative ways to integrate them with their different talents and abilities into society.
The lyrics of the ‘AYATI’ song are heartrendingly based on the ground situation faced by these children especially those with Down Syndrome……‘Oba wagema api daru deriyo………Eka se salakamu……manusath kama.’
A challenge faced by their parents is that they are not given an equal opportunity to get into schools, where they will learn to socialize with others, be independent and integrate, so that they walk out as productive and dignified citizens. Sadly, myth and lack of awareness are leading to social isolation.
With the conviction that no child should be left behind, the Hemas Outreach Foundation, the corporate social responsibility arm of the Hemas Group, and the Faculty of Medicine, University of Kelaniya set up the AYATI Trust in 2016, with the patronage of MAS Holdings Pvt. Ltd.; the Roshan Wijerama Foundation, Rotary District 3220 and the Sri Lanka Army.
AYATI, Sri Lanka’s first National Centre for Children with Disabilities was commissioned in January 2020 (last year) and more than 7,000 children are registered here presently, accessing health and therapy all for free.
In March this year, the ‘Eka Se Salakamu’ movement was launched to provide a platform for these families and children to air their views, showcase their talents, share their experiences and lobby for their rights including state involvement in setting up a long-term care facility for orphaned Down Syndrome people.
Delivering promptly on promises made then, now comes the song and also a ‘My World’ Ideation Zone at AYATI.
| ‘My World’ Ideation Zone: Their own secret garden | |
| Not only children but stressed carers can let loose their creativity at the ‘My World’ Ideation Zone which was getting the finishing touches when we visited on Tuesday. It will also be opened next Friday. Having art therapy at its core, children and parents may draw, write or create with clay whatever way their creativity takes them. Their ‘work’ will be on display in the zone. From the zone – a large space within AYATI but away from the hustle and bustle of other sections – whenever a child feels like it, he/she can step into a manicured garden in the embrace of long and colourful ‘pencils’. This special garden houses a play kade (boutique) and a playhouse. These outdoor settings allow the therapist to observe the child’s natural behaviour, assess his/her needs and provide the necessary interventions, it is understood. |
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