ADVOCACY MEETING WITH NEPALI CONGRESS FOR DISABILITY-INCLUSIVE AND ACCESSIBLE ELECTORAL PROCESS

On the 26th of September, An interaction was organized with the Joint General Secretary Jivan Pariyar, and the team of Nepali Congress to draw attention to disability integrative electoral access and candidacy for the upcoming federal and provincial elections. The meeting was held at Hotel Hardik, Baghbazaar where Nepali Congress representatives, the disability rights activists and leaders, political associates with disabilities, and youths were present. During the discussion, the president of CIL-Kathmandu handed over the position paper stating the demands of persons with disabilities for their inclusion and representation in the coming election.

The general secretary presented the position paper in the session, followed by the interaction and recommendations from the attending activists. The assistant general secretary showed his concerns and empathy towards one of the marginalized sectors: disability, and repeated his commitment to mainstream and prioritize the persons with disability in the political arena and also to work in promoting the further marginalized groups within the disability movement.

The sitting also proved to be meaningful, as it was utilized to collect recommendations from persons with disabilities for the manifesto framing process by the Nepali Congress. These suggestions and guidance would be included and emphatically considered in the manifesto” as said by MP Kamala Panta. The participants from diverse disability backgrounds and experiences highlighted their specific issues and also the general challenges faced by those with disabilities and urged the party leadership to incorporate those agendas in the manifesto and hence in the implementation process afterward.