Senator calls for Albinism to be included in the Person With Disabilities (OKU) Act
By JS Lee
NewsSenator calls for Albinism to be included in the Person With Disabilities...
Senator Datuk Ras Adiba Radzi, who also represents the Person With Disabilities (OKU) in the Senate, had on last Friday (9 July) proposed to the the Women, Family and Community Development Ministry (KPWKM) to include people with albinism as one of the categories within the Persons with Disabilities (OKU) Act 2008.
She said the move was made reference after the South Africa government approved the inclusion, whereby they can now protect and promote the rights for people with albinism and ensure their welfare and psycho-emotion to be safeguarded.
Source: Malay Mail
Meanwhile, she also proposed the KPWKM Ministry to work closely with the Ministry of Health (MOH) so that a database and mandatory reporting for people with albinism in Malaysia could be structured.
"This is to ensure their welfare and wellbeing will be better protected through detailed policy planning and implementation. A (creation of) specific policy for the albinism community should also be expedited by the government." she said, as reported by Bernama.
In addition, Ras Adiba said that people with albinism are among the vulnerable groups in Malaysia who were often forgotten or neglected. Albinism is a rare genetic condition where people are born without usual pigment in their bodies, where it can affect the skin, hair, eye colour and vision. Nonetheless, it is not contagious.
"The world has been ignoring the plight of this group for centuries, they were forced to continue living in a world full of discrimination, stereotypes and stigma…until we forgot that June 13 is the World Albinism Awareness Day which should be celebrated and organised with various awareness campaigns," she said.
She also urge Malaysians to openly accept children with albinism to ensure that they do not feel sidelined and can continue living their lives just like everybody else.
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