BACKGROUND
Up to the end of the
19th century, Disability was being viewed with the medical aspect and in a
spiritual manner. It was believed that disability occurs as a result of sin. A
person with a disability was being treated as a victim of a curse and/or a person
with a bad fate. Appropriate information relating to disability was vastly
lacking, so people of all levels were not aware of issues relating to
disability. The rights of persons with disabilities were not recognized and
there was no legislative protection of the rights of persons with disabilities.
The persons with disabilities were living with deprivation, neglect,
discrimination, which resulted in isolation and exclusion from mainstream
society. The Government was considering disability as a welfare issue so
persons with disabilities were totally excluded from any development
initiative, plan, and activities. A very few NGOs were working with persons with
disabilities but emphasizing the medical/social/charity perspective rather
than giving importance to the rights and entitlements.
In the context of the
above situation and experiencing the barriers and denial in personal life, with
the aim of promoting rights and mainstreaming disability issues through
addressing the barriers and issues of persons with disabilities Khandaker
Jahurul Alam (present Executive Director & who himself is a person with a
physical disability) jointly with other two persons with disability and two
like-minded social workers formed the Centre for Services and Information on
Disability (CSID) as a Non-profit voluntary organization in December 1997.