People with disabilities are vulnerable to abuse and can be taken advantage of, said parents and those who work with them.

Organisations and individuals are taking to the streets independently to lend their support to the movement for the 31-year-old junior doctor at RG Kar Medical College and Hospital and reclaim their rights for a safer environment.

A group of individuals with disabilities, their parents, therapists, special educators and support staff walked from the Academy of Fine Arts to Hazra last week.

A woman from New Alipore walked with her 14-year-old daughter who has autism, concerned about her daughter’s safety in a society that fails to provide a safe space for girls.

“For any parent of a child with disability the concern is what will happen to them after us. Incidents like these only reinforce our fear and anxiety, because we know that it is difficult for my girl to take care of herself completely in my absence,” said the mother.

“We try to raise them in a way that they are financially independent. But if a workplace can pose such a danger, what do we train them for?”

Special educator Sudeshna Basu, who was part of the walk, said: “It is often easy to take advantage of a child with disability because they sometimes take time to distinguish good from bad. Adolescents or older individuals with an intellectual disability cannot understand what is abuse and what is not and they can get obliged to
someone not understanding that their vulnerability is being used.”

Many of the participants expressed anger and helplessness over why a hospital or a workplace cannot be a safe space.

“If a doctor cannot be safe in a hospital after a 36-hour shift, how can we expect the safety for our children?” asked Arunasis Adhikari, founder and managing trustee, Bhabna Trust, which runs a residential facility for individuals with autism in West Burdwan and a school for special needs individuals in Calcutta.

Adhikari said the inability to express themselves makes individuals with disabilities more vulnerable to abuse.

“If abused, many of them might not be able to express anguish and that leads to trauma. The incident at RG Kar shows that it is not about the rape and murder of one doctor but the entire system has collapsed, else such a thing cannot happen in a hospital,” said Adhikari.

Basu said system change was needed to address the gaps in the system.

“It is not about cosmetic changes. There also has to be an attitudinal and a mindset change in a society that refuses to treat women with dignity,” she said.

The hundreds who walked did so to assert their rights as citizens.

“Citizens with disabilities have a right or responsibility to lend support and stand in solidarity with people and issues that affect society. People should be safe at work, at play and everywhere. Justice should be delivered and that is what we are walking for,” said Indrani Basu, founder, of Autism Society West Bengal.

The West Bengal Disability Advocacy Network also held a walk for justice and “safety for all” from Deshapriya Park to Gariahat last week.