Saudi Gazette report Little awareness exists in Saudi society on the disabled, their rights and society's responsibilities toward those with physical or mental disabilities. Experts have called on the government and private sectors to do more to raise awareness and protect the rights of the disabled, Al-Sharq daily reported. Member of the Disabled Children's Association, Dr. Badr Fares Al-Hamad, said violence against children with special needs is one of the most important issues that needs to be addressed. In order to protect disabled children, he said there needs to be awareness for families on the various kinds of violence their children can be subjected to and how they can protect them. “There is physical harm, sexual harm and harm that results from negligence. Abuse also includes emotional negligence or deprivation. This means that some families are still experiencing the psychological effects of dealing with the birth of a disabled child. They are in a state of denial, either of the child's capabilities or his disability,” he said. “There are different factors that make such children more vulnerable to violence. There are factors related to the social and environmental framework and other factors related to the child himself. The social framework is related to the family's culture and its attitude towards violence and whether or not it consider violence to be normal conduct.” Social factors, topmost of which is family breakup resulting from a shortcoming in the family structure, may be in the form of divorce, continuous disputes between parents or the absence of one parent. Other factors include poor economic circumstances, one or both of the parents suffering from psychological disorders or if a parent was subjected to violence as a child, they may exhibit violent tendencies toward their children. “As to the factors related to the child himself, they might be due to ailments, lack of self-confidence, low self-esteem, fear, not realizing the social and cultural reality or not understanding what is right or wrong,” he added. According to Dr. Al-Hamad, violence against children, particularly disabled children, is on the rise, a disturbing trend he said must be immediately addressed. “Some people might think that our society is devoid of such cases, but regrettably, they exist and are increasing in frequency. While it may be true that it is not in big numbers compared to other countries, but that should not prevent us from directing attention to the existence of this phenomenon in our society. Every few months we hear stories about disabled persons being subjected to violence, whether by relatives or employees of care homes. Also, we hear stories of abused children being admitted to emergency rooms. All these prove that this phenomenon is existent.” According to Dr. Al-Hamad, disabled children are subjected to violence at home, schools and care homes, all places where they should be provided with care. He said a shortage of specialists in care homes and a lack of training, means many employees resort to violence when dealing with disabled patients. “Society may contribute to this matter through lack of attention and care for this segment by making them feel like they are a heavy burden on society. This causes negative psychological effects in these children. Violence has future psychological and mental effects on disabled children, especially if the child has a mental disability. Maltreatment worsens his condition and it becomes more complicated to treat. The child may become aggressive towards others and some may fear society due to the harsh treatment they suffered,” he said.
