A dialogue session was held to discuss the proposed amendments to the Persons with Disabilities Law at the Solidarity of Women Institute on Wednesday, February 19, in the presence of Her Excellency Senator Asia Yaghi, Chair of the Committee for Persons with Disabilities in the Senate, and Her Excellency Senator Dr. Zuhair Abu Fares, Rapporteur of the Committee, along with Ms. Enaam Al-Asha, Chair of the Jordanian Solidarity of Women Institute Association, and a number of legal and human rights experts and specialists in disability affairs.
The session aimed to establish a comprehensive mechanism to review the articles that need to be re-evaluated and amended, in a way that ensures the promotion of the rights of persons with disabilities and the improvement of the level of services provided to them.
In her speech, Her Excellency Senator Asia Yaghi stressed the urgent need to amend the law, noting that it serves about one and a half million persons with disabilities who hold Jordanian citizenship.
She stressed the importance of developing the level of health, educational, social, cultural and economic services, and ensuring easy access to them. She called for the necessity of adhering to the directives of His Majesty King Abdullah II Ibn Al Hussein in providing services with justice, equality and without discrimination.
For his part, Dr. Zuhair Abu Fares stressed the importance of developing a comprehensive vision that serves the interests of persons with disabilities and their families, while emphasizing the need for coordination and networking with government agencies, ministries and the private sector, to ensure the implementation of the law according to the rules, through continuous follow-up and permanent evaluation. At the end of the session, it was decided to prepare a comprehensive report that includes the most prominent recommendations and outcomes, to be presented to the Committee for Persons with Disabilities in the Senate, in preparation for holding an expanded dialogue session that brings together all concerned parties to discuss the proposed amendments to the law.