Delwara's experience of human rights, disability and poverty

We met Delwara with her eight year old boy Shubho who was riding on a wheelchair just in front of National Disability Forum (NFOWD) seeking arm in a dusk of July 2009. Delwara an educated women, does sewing at her neighbourhood at Rayerbazar, the fringe of the capital city to earn the bread for her family, had never tried this before she lost her husband who survived two kids with disability and some others. Shubho, Delwara's youngest boy goes to school, presently at grade two. Shubho does not like this street earning, so does Delwara. But had her last chance to survive after a horrible experience she just had following a police arrest and torture. Shubho and her elder sister had a membership with CSID, an NGO, by virtue of their disability. A CSID staff asked Delwara to send her other girl to work as domestic help. That master had a burglary and they suspected poor domestic help who just joined. Delwara, the mother got a police arrest following that incident. Police took her to remand and tortured like anything. She sold all her belongings to bribe police and now became a part time street beggar in the town. Shubho hates begging, he does not like this at all, but could not protest since hunger and extreme poverty knocks their door every single moment. Delwara sought support from CSID, they took her to BLAST for her human rights protection. Nothing worked. Human rights is not for these people. Therefore, seeking arm became silent part time job of Delwara's family. "You think I like this job being an educated women?" asked Delwara, "They made me destitute and sent all of us to the street", she sobbed. We became speechless and tried to understand the meaning of 'human rights' and 'poverty'...

Photo: Mahbub Kabir, taken and published with consent of the subject.

Story: Mahbub Kabir, July 2009