In the question of the rights of the disabled, the first woman to be seen is the fighter – her name is Salma Mahbub. Salma Mahbub, who battled polio since childhood, has been one of the most well-known and courageous faces of the movement for the rights of disabled people for the past few decades. This time he wants to go to the parliament to pronounce – the disabled are not a burden to the nation, but an asset. In the meantime, she has submitted the nomination form for the reserved women’s seat election. As it is very difficult for people with disabilities to participate in the 300-seat national elections, Salma felt that if they had representation even in reserved seats, then there would have been a space to talk about their rights in a more organized way.
As those who work with the disabled know, Salma Mahbub has been tirelessly running around in a wheelchair for nearly two decades and has been active in the rights movement, especially on women’s issues. Apart from this, he is a well-known face in formulating disability-friendly policies in both public and private sectors, implementing the policies and promises, assisting disabled people and all their needs.
Asked why she thought of going to Parliament, Salma told Bangla Tribune, ‘I have been working for the last two decades. But never thought of going to Parliament. This demand came from friends with disabilities. They want me to take nomination and ensure our representation in Parliament. When they told me about their desire – I told them, not only me, but also those who want to come forward for nomination. I didn’t think about getting selected or not. We want to raise our voice in Parliament, this is the first step.’
Salma herself could not take any formal education due to her disability. But life becomes a vow – the desire to pave the way for those who are more like him, how this backward population can come forward. He has worked and represented the disabled and marginalized people in different places in the country and abroad. Gave and received training.
(u09abu09beu0987u09b2 u09abu099fu09cb)“}”> Salma Mahbub was also elected Co-Convener of the Freshwater Action Network South Asia in December 2020. She is now working as a member of Bangladesh Water Integrity Network (BAWIN), National Girl Child Advocacy Forum (NGCAF) and Sanitation and Water for All (SWA).
Salma served as a member of the Working Committee of the ‘National Survey of Persons with Disabilities (NSPD) 2021’ conducted by the Bangladesh Bureau of Statistics (BBS) from March 2021 to December 2022 and is now serving as a member of the ‘Disability and Autism Thematic Group’ of the National Human Rights Commission. .
Born in a family that believes in the spirit of the liberation war, Salma’s dream is to establish women with disabilities as effective partners in Prime Minister Sheikh Hasina’s Smart Bangladesh. For them to achieve Digital Bangladesh, Vision 2041 and Sustainable Development Goals to build a barrier-free inclusive Sonar Bangla for all citizens including the disabled.
While clarifying his own position, he said, ‘The government has done many kinds of work for the disabled. There was a time in this country that we did not think that anyone would think about the accessibility of public and private buildings and toilets for disabled people. No one thought that many government institutions would now have ramps for wheelchair users. For the first time, tactile tiles have been installed on Dhaka’s footpaths. Such a good initiative of the government has been taken, mainly on our demand and suggestion. But if we can be directly involved in these decisions, I believe that these good works will happen more organically. I took this initiative from that place.’
