The The In Lebanon Issue nº 11, March 2016 Issue nº 11, March 2016 In Lebanon 8 Joint news supplement Joint news supplement 9 Special needs families on hiding them from society, specialized rehabilitative works for people especially if they are females. This situation with disabilities.» When it comes to the subjects female children or adolescents to right to work, «refugees are deprived of Refugees and Citizens United by a Tragedy double discrimination for being a female work and rely on the financial and in- and a person with disability, the fact kind assistance offered by donors.» «Most that exacerbates their psychological and refugees with disabilities live in arbitrary Preceding the War behavioral condition. The state of being a camps that lack architectural amenities. refugee and its harsh conditions contribute They are hostages of improvised shelter to the denial of females of their basic centers or camps that lack the lowest Children with disabilities in an environment that disregards rights, often manifested in preventing standards of health and safety.» them from leaving refugee tents in families Organizations for the disabled have called their needs with many girls in fear that their disability for «determining the degree and type would affect their sisters’ «lot» in marriage. of disability and the additional needs of Perhaps the low percentage (37%) of access refugees with disabilities through a single Imadeddine Raef* to these females is an indication of this specialized form and ensuring the access discrimination. Discrimination has been and participation of refugee children with The Syrian girl Y.D. (13) lives in a tent with eight other members of her family who are not registered on the lists of the UN High Commissioner for observed more than once through the disabilities in alternative educational Refugees (UNHCR), the fact that deprives them of the basic assistance on the one hand and refugee status on the other. The family, living in Younine Observatory on the Rights of Persons with programs through adapting the curricula camp in the Beqaa where no one in her family is productive economically, is hunger stricken. As a consequence, her sister M.D. suffers malnutrition. Disabilities, and in high percentages in gradually from the lowest to the highest Yasmine suffers severe spine curvature that causes her constant pain and mobility difficulties. She used to be able to stand and walk on her feet to Lebanese regions regardless of the family classes.» Moreover, «refugees with perform domestic chores that were required of her, the fact that exacerbated the curvature in her back. In addition to her stepmother’s mistreatment income or living standard; so how can the disabilities should be considered as a real and verbal abuse, her father prevented her from leaving the tent for «social» reasons, which led to her complete isolation in a corner of the tent, urinary situation be otherwise for females living in priority in ensuring their right of access incontinence and shame from her disability. refugee tents? to medical centers contracted by UNHCR An outcry in the wilderness and provision of appropriate therapy for them» in addition to «rehabilitating During a camp field visit, one of the social with 3,670 persons (1,257 females and 2,413 applied arbitrarily, as with the medical and Agreements have been concluded with Although Lebanon has not ratified the refugees with disabilities in specialized workers from the «Enabling persons with males). As a result, around 40 percent hospital care services where difficulties in specialists and the action team has been international convention that provides programs, especially those with war- disabilities to deal with the Syrian crisis of refugees with disabilities who have obtaining prosthetics and medical devices trained on the standards of referral for the organizations of disabled people with project» implemented by the Lebanese obtained a UNHCR registration card have persist. Moreover, most of the articles of each type of therapy and the procedures mechanisms for monitoring its proper caused disabilities.» They have also called Physical Handicapped Union in the Beqaa no specified disability either as a result of the law 220/2000 relating to educational in place have been organized for each application, these organizations have for «equipping refugee centers according got to meet the girl. She was referred to absence of a specialized form on the one integration, education, sports, recreation, type for best results in the follow up on found ways of voicing their issues to the to a mechanism of mobile architectural one of the international organizations hand or the narrow local classification of housing and decent employment have not the progress of each case in addition to International Organization. They have equipment to ensure their equal access to programs to provide her with a medical disabilities compared to classifications been applied for 16 years. equipping the necessary clinics and the drafted a shadow report submitted to the services with non-disabled refugees.» back brace. The device, however, and after adopted worldwide in an era following the mobile clinic. Thus, refugee children have UN-High Commissioner for Human Rights Lebanese human rights organizations are Hostages of the place obtaining it, caused her additional pain and Convention on the Rights of Persons with become a part of integrated work that goes in the framework of a periodic review on looking forward to March 2016, the date th turned out to be unsuitable for her. After Disabilities (CRPD). The project figures show that out of 284 beyond relief and therapy to integration Lebanon’s compliance with its obligations of the 24 session of the Human Rights referring Y. D. again to physical therapy Therefore, the no way to reach refugees refugees, 161 children were subject to in training and recreational activities. relating to the rights of persons with Council at the United Nations and call sessions, some progressive improvement with disabilities, particularly the children, intervention in Middle and North Beqaa For that purpose, workers in most relief disabilities, or what is called the Universal upon the Lebanese government to ratify was observed but the medical examination is by looking for them in refugee camps and (89 percent under the age of 15, 37 percent associations and organizations active in Periodic Report (UPR), coinciding with all the 219 human rights recommendations revealed that she was in need of prompt centers before determining the needs and females), where children make up 57 the Beqaa had to be trained on how to Lebanon’s official presentation of its that have been noted in writing and intervention. In addition to the brace, intervention possibilities to fulfill their percent of refugees and are distributed deal with individuals with disabilities. report in early November 2015 in Geneva. orally during the UPR as it constitutes she needed an urgent surgical operation needs. Research has revealed that most of among the four impairment categories In addition, the referral system has been The report was drafted by the Lebanese the minimum required standards and without which it is believed she would them live in and around Baalbek, Majdel (auditory and verbal, visual, mobility and activated to respond to different needs Coalition of Organizations of Disabled anything less cannot be accepted. Time not be able to walk again. If her disability Anjar, Bar Elias and Marj (around 90 mental), as well as 19 cases of multiple that exceed the project’s capacity relating People and the Lebanese Disability is going by and the current Lebanese was to exacerbate, will she be able to be percent) while the remaining percentage impairments. Moreover, 75 percent of to mobility aids, health and medical Forum and presented by the Lebanese government, like its predecessors since mobile in a wheelchair around the camp? is spread over the towns of Ali Annahri, these children live in refugee tents while treatments and legal assistance (227 Physical Handicapped Union as the the adoption of the «Taif» Agreement, Can the refugee family change its place of Brital, Gazza, Joub Jannine, Hermel, the rest live in rented apartments or persons have been referred to date and executive party. It guarantees the rights disregards the application of relevant residence? And is the surrounding public Iaat, Shmustar, Taalbaya, Taanayel and buildings that lack the basic architectural they are being followed up to ensure they of Syrian refugees with disabilities local and international legislation, space for both citizens and refugees and the Temnine. amenities for people with mobility, visual receive the required service). and demands their inclusion in the thereby making the calls of human rights families that are able to rent apartments It is evident that the infrastructure in or mental impairments. Thus, they are The social and psychological support services provided by the law 220/2000 organizations an outcry in the wilderness. any better for children with disabilities? those areas, as in the rest of Lebanon, lacks in fact the hostages of a place that does department has worked on implementing and the international convention. This The demands for equal rights among any architectural amenities that heed the not heed their needs as well as the needs external social activities and social and report, whose recommendations were refugees on the one hand, and between Figures and needs needs of people with disabilities either