Did you know that Viet Nam’s National Assembly selected April 18 of each year as the Vietnamese Day of People with Disabilities since 2011?
There are lots of people among us who unfortunately have disabilities, thereby bearing both mental and physical sufferings. Most of the people with disabilities face several difficulties in all aspects of their social life, for example when studying at school, looking for a job or getting married. However, the biggest obstacle they come across is probably the discrimination of the society in which they are members of. That obstacle is probably invisible but cruel, forcing them to live on the margins of society. But many people with disabilities who hail from various cities and provinces across the country are not resigned to their fate, making every effort to cope with it and assert themselves.
At the War Remnants Museum, we have plenty of opportunity to meet and talk to the people with disabilities who are also war victims. They can be veterans who lost parts of their bodies in wartime; former prisoners of war who had disabilities due to the severe wartime prison conditions; victims of UXOs or victims of Agent Orange/dioxin. Many of them have striven to make their own living and also help the others who suffer the same fate, which has aroused and spread a deep sense of mutual love in the society. Though the people with disabilities – war victims are physically disabled, they show a strong determination to thrive. The work they are doing may look simple, but it can create good values and is welcomed by the society.
They themselves resemble green shoots adorning our daily life! Read our next posts from tomorrow on some examples of Vietnamese people with disabilities – war victims to learn how they have overcome their difficulties and thriven in their daily life!
