| The
Council for the Blind has a brave vision but lack of public support
is their main stumbling block
Turning a blind eye
By Vihanga Perera
Reaching the address of The Council
for the Blind, I stop, wondering whether I've come to the wrong
establishment.Before me is a dilapidated building, the coating fractured
in places. However, once inside, the atmosphere is quite different;
the work runs smoothly, as visually handicapped students indulge
in their 'studies', in the hope of a better vision for the morrow.
Set
up in 1956, the Council for the Blind is the only gazetted institute
of its kind. Its service for the blind, is on a simple human-to-human
basis. Its aim is to encourage and uplift standards and to add to
the list of qualified citizens in this country.
Being
a member of the World Blind Union, the Sri Lanka Council for the
Blind is clear in its objectives. Says S.L. Hettiarachchi, the Secretary
of the Council: "We provide services for the sustainable development
for the blind…We believe in services for them as a right,
not as charity."Mr. Hettiarachchi, a voluntary serviceman for
this cause, is himself blind. "But it's no problem. Our system
is for the sighted to work with the blind and not work for them."
The
Council for the Blind believes in permanent development for the
handicapped. This includes computer studies; in fact, the Council
did produce a top diploma student in this field not very long ago.
Backed up by a library with a wide selection, the Audio Unit plays
a dominant role in their day-to-day agenda.
"Actually, we are badly short of 'readers'. We need more readers
to convert the texts to Braille," Mr.Hettiarachchi points out.
The computer lab is handled entirely by a blind instructor and The
Council is the only institute with such trained instructors for
the blind.
Vasanthi, one of the 'readers', acknowledges the commercial aid
received from various non-governmental sources. "The Korean
Businessmen's Association is mainly responsible for the uplifting
of the Audio Unit," she remarks with appreciation. "But
overall, the support we get is not sufficient. You can see it in
the building itself."
The Council for the Blind, in fact, does have a site along Sarana
Mawatha in Rajagiriya. This block was given to them by the Urban
Development Council in order to facilitate a Rs.40 million building
project. "We need funds," exclaims the Secretary. "The
government provides us with Rs.50,000. But, 95% of our expenses
are locally generated. In fact, the salary bill itself runs to no
less than Rs.150,000."
An absolute service-provider being neglected thus is rather pathetic.
Young men, walking along with calculated steps, pressed shirt and
pleasant smiles pass into the library section. "If a man comes
simply asking for a white cane we just give it away. We don't even
seek any identification," the President of the Council, Amaradasa
Gunawardhana states.
The dilapilated building and the optimistic enthusiasm of the people
at The Council for the Blind form a classical paradox. "My
earnest call is for all philanthropists and activists to be more
supportive of the 'service' we provide," says Mr.Hettiarachchi.
"We have done only a little….we can do a lot more!"
The Council for the Blind has produced many who compete in the commercial
and professional fields. From the offices of the Ministry of Finance,
they go as far as telephone operators and even chess players who
'check' in at the international level. "We never lose faith
in ourselves. As long as there's a vision, there's work to be done,"
the energetic secretary concludes. |
