Postcard from Bishkek

In America, October 15th is known as White Cane Safety Day.

It has been so since President Lyndon B. Johnson designated it as day to celebrate the achievements of people who are blind or visually impaired and the important symbol of blindness and tool of independence, the white cane, back in 1964.  He signed the proclamation within hours of a joint resolution being passed in the United States Congress which empowered him to do so.  In 2011, President Barack Obama also named it Blind Americans Equality Day.

For the record: The white cane is not only a tool used by blind people to help them move around, it is a globally recognized symbol  for the blind in society.

The cane, staff, and stick have have been used as travelling aids for the blind and visually impaired throughout history, to alert the user of obstacles in their path. It was not until the twentieth century that the cane, as we know it today, was promoted for use by the blind as a symbol to alert others to the fact that an individual was blind.

James Biggs of Bristol is often credited with the invention of the white cane, in 1921.  After he lost his sight is an accident he had to readjust to his environment.  Feeling threatened by the increased level of motor vehicle traffic around his home, he decided to paint his walking stick white in order to make himself more visible to motorists.

Like most good ideas, it took time to catch on, and in 1931 it was adopted in France and the coverage the campaign received in British newspapers led to a similar scheme being sponsored by rotary clubs throughout the United Kingdom.  Likewise, in North America the introduction of the white cane has been attributed to the Lion’s Clubs International.  In 1930, a Lion’s Club member watched as a blind man attempted to make his way across a busy street using an ordinary cane and realized that the cane was barely visible to motorists, and persuaded the organization to begin a national program promoting its use.

In some areas of the US, special ordinances were passed recognizing the cane and giving priority to pedestrians carrying the white cane.

Apparently, according to one source, something like 500 to 600 people lose their sight each year. There are no facilities provided as Rehabilitation Centres to assist them adjust to their new condition – indeed there appear to be only two in the whole of the former Soviet region; both of which are in Russia. Here in Kyrgyzstan, most of the services that would be provided by such Centres are delivered by the charity, the Kyrgyz Society of the Blind and the Deaf, (KSBD).

There are two residential schools for blind children in Kyrgyzstan: one in the capital, Bishkek and the other in Osh.

Although some people are blind from birth, many blind people lose their sight when they are already adults, and this can cause depression other psychological problems.  People who had led full active lives, were usefully and productively employed have to come to terms with their new situation and capabilities.   Members of the KSBD are active in trying to help and support people in such circumstances, helping to train them in areas of self sufficiency, space orientation and communication (such as reading Braille), as well as computer skills … but they admit that they lack certain trained specialists.

One of the ways in which blind people can find useful employment is as masseurs.  A special branch of the medical academy trains recently blinded people in the skills and techniques of massage – a two year course which can lead to gainful employment.  The first such produced sixteen such graduates, some of whom went on to work in state institutions and others that went into private practice.

The question of employment is a vital one for all blind people …  so that they can earn a living and also feel that they are contributing as useful and valued members of society.  There were eleven specially established enterprises which provide employment for over a thousand blind people, but they have problems marketing their produce and so have stood idle for a number of years.

There is a specialised library, run by the KSBD, containing almost 40,000 books in Braille, or as audio books, which was established in 1971 and serves about 9000 members, including about 100 students.  However, although there are books embossed in Braille available in both English and Russian, apparently there are practically none in Kyrgyz.  One US based charity is addressing this with a pilot project and hope to produce about 15 books and, hopefully, the first of these will appear before the end of the year.  If the pilot is successful, then perhaps more will follow.

Other initiatives are supported by USAID, the Eurasia foundation and the World Bank are designed to build upon the knowledge skills and experience to be found in the various non-governmental voluntary organizations and provide facilities and opportunities to help empower blind people to take charge of their lives.

 

More attention has been paid to the position of blind people here in Kyrgyzstan as a result of the high profile of Dastan Bekeshev, a blind lawyer who was elected as deputy of the Jogorku Kenesh for the Ar Namys Party.  He attended one of the special schools for the blind and visually impaired children before graduating (with honours) from the Kyrgyz-Russian Slavic University.  Before entering politics he worked in the Tax Administration and the Ministry of Economic Regulation.  In the Parliament he has served as the Chairman of the Committee on Human Rights and Equal Opportunities, and at present is Deputy Chairman of the Committee for the Rule of Law and the Fight against Crime.

 

A few years ago I was reading newspaper article about a talking books library for the blind here in Kyrgyzstan and the trouble they were facing getting people to read the books and this was one of the inspirations that led to the website gk.kg – Good causes in Kyrgyzstan - which we started as a project to give charities a showcase to publicise their activities and their needs.

As an aside: It has always struck me as odd and a pity that people don’t seem to want to advertise such needs … whereas we thought we would be adding at least one page a month we are struggling to raise any awareness among the local community!  Fortunately some other projects have had more success … such as spasibo.kg (which is in Russian and is designed for people to post “thank you” messages),

 

 

Tags: For_the_Record, Kyrgyzstan, Life_in_Kyrgyzstan