About Myself: a blind man describes his life in Bangladesh

My name is Vashkar Bhattachearjee from Chittagong, Bangladesh. I was born in a village on the 1st of July, 1979. My father is a government employee. My mother is a housewife. I have one brother.

My job

I do not have job yet! I am an unemployed visually impaired person from Bangladesh. It is a dream for visually impaired persons to get job in Bangladesh. Very few blind persons can get an education. If they do, technolgical knowledge, such as computers, is not included. Because of this, they face a lot of obstacles in their daily lives. On the other hand, we need proper training that can increase capability of people with disabilities. We do not get proper information from various corner but I am lucky that I can access the internet and E-mail.

I worked as a volunteer for the Rotary Club, (past President Rotaract Club of Islamabad, district 3280, Bangladesh). I am a life member of CLASS, that is, Children Luchemia Assistance Support and Service. I am also the secretary of the Chittergong Association of the Blind, but it is no longer very active.

My academic career

I graduated with honours in history from Chittagong University and I appeared in the examination in General History. Before that, I studied at a normal high school in Chittagong.

Problems encountered

My family didn't know where I should go to school, because people in Bangladesh think that blind people can do nothing. Most people think that it is impossible for a blind person to get an education. My family was very frustrated. My father heard from an eye doctor that there was a primary school for the blind in Chittagong, and I was admitted to that school. After leaving that primary school, I attended a junior high school for sighted children. It was very hard for me, because there were no Braille books, and the teachers did not know how to teach blind children. After leaving junior high school, I also went to a high school for sighted students. After leaving the primary school for the blind and entering mainstream education, I discovered that there was a lack of facilities for blind people. At junior high and high school, there were no Braille books, very few writing frames and Braille paper.

After leaving high school, I tried to enter many universities, but they all refused my application because of my blindness. Therefore, some other blind applicants and I began a hunger strike. Suddenly, the university decided to let us enter, but again there were no facilities. The university teachers didn't know anything about Braille or how to teach blind students. Some of the teachers cooperated with us, but some did not. For example, one day in class I was taking notes on my Braille slate, but the teacher  thought I was playing. He told me to stop playing, stand up and leave the room. I complained to the head of the department, and I showed the teacher who had asked me to leave his class that I had actually been taking notes, not playing. He was very surprised when I read my Braille notes to him. He thought it was like magic.

An example of a problem I faced is when I invited a govermnent high official to a seminar about white cane safety day. When I entered his office, he gave me some money and didn't talk to me. This is because he thought that blind people are beggars. After he'd given me the money, I was very shocked, and I could not stop my tears. I gave my invitation letter to him, and suddenly he realized what he had done. He apologized, and eventually came to the seminar, and said that he had come to learn about visually impaired people.

When and how did i lose my eyesight?

After birth, there were no hospitals or doctors in my village. I bled from my nose and mouth. My family did not do anything. When I was two years old, my family realized that I was blind, and their dreams about my future were shattered.

What is the most popular job among blind people in Bangladesh?

This is a difficult question to answer. Very few blind people in Bangladesh have a job. Most of them are still begging in the road. Some of the blind people who have jobs work as teachers in schools for the blind, as lawyers, or in NGOs. Even if a blind person receives a university education, it is often very difficult for him to find a job.

Training in Japan

1. I was selected for one-year training course (from August'01 to July'02) named 4th Duskin Leadership Training in Japan (A Program for Persons with Disabilities in Asia-Pacific Region) and obtained training on Computer & Information Technology for Persons with Visually Impaired.
2. Japanese Braille System.
3. Daisy (Digital Accessible Information SYstem).
4. Japanese Blind School System.
5. Japanese Braille Library System.
6. Japanese Language & Braille.
7. Sheltered Workshop.
8. Leadership Training.

Training in Thailand

I got one week Duskin Follow-up Training in Bangkok about project Management and Capacity Building.

Conduct of Workshop & Paper Presentation

Returning from Japan I have arranged a Workshop on IT Technology and its Application in the field of Visually Impairment in association with UTSA (United Theatre for Social Action) in October, 2003 at Chittagong.

Outstanding Social Activities

1. I joined to the Rotaract Club of Islamabad, Chittagong (Sponsored by the Rotary Club of Islamabad 3280) in 1997 and have been serving as best as I can since I joined the Club.
2. Selected as "the Best Secretary" among the 153 Rotaract Clubs in Bangladesh.
3. My Club was awarded & honoured 3 times as the best Club in Bangladesh.
4. Selected & Elected as "resident" of the Club in 2001-2002 Rota-Year.
5. Honoured many times in recognition of my outstanding activities as "Social Activist."

Training & Participation of Workshops, Seminars & Symposiums

As I am deeply involved in social activities as Social Activities and being in contact with the Rotaract Club of Islamabad I have an opportunity to participate innumerable Seminars, Symposiums & Workshops and awarded certificates.

Languages known

I have fluency both in English and Japanese languages.

My hobbies

I like to meet and make friends with many different people. I like singing and dancing. I am a member of a musical group composed entirely of blind people in my country. Since coming to Japan, I have become very interested in Japanese language and culture, and I am eager to learn more. I would love to return to Japan one day.

My opinion about the Japanese life.

I had started a new life in Japan. Japan is a wonderful country. They have an fascinating culture. This country seems very convenient for disabled people. People are extremely kind, especially women and girls. I have learned many new things from Japan, for example, how to use computers. This is the most exciting thing for me, because I had never used a computer before coming to Japan. I never even imagined that blind people could use computers. The Japanese lifestyle seems very different from our lifestyle in Bangladesh. For instance, going to the ofuro together. Also, people seem very busy with their jobs, and don't seem to spend much time with their families. I am very interested in Japanese houses, for example, tatami rooms. We don't have tatami rooms in Bangladesh. Before entering the house, Japanese always remove there shoes. We in Bangladesh also do this.

My future dream

I visited to Japan with many hopes and dreams. I've been studying hard to achieve my goals. Did you know that in my country we have no Braille libraries? Because of this, I have been studying how to set up a Braille library at the moujin bunka sentaa and the Japan Braille Library. I hope to set up a Braille library in Bangladesh one day. I also want to start a center for the blind where people can learn about Bangladeshi culture, receive education, and study how to use computers. I think that reading, writing, and finding information by computer are vital tools for blind people to live independently. Of course, they cannot afford to buy a computer, but they could come to my center and use a computer freely. For this reason, I need to learn much more, and I would like to cooperate with  many organizations and individuals to achieve this dream.

I would like to give you some information about visually impaired people in my country. In Bangladesh we have 130 million people. Ten percent are disabled. 1.2 million people are blind. However, only 1 per cent of blind people are educated. Life for girls is especially difficult, because they have no chance to marry, find a job or receive an education. Most blind people come from very poor families. We don't have any good advocacy organizations for blind people which could campaign for our rights. Now, disabled people's organizations are gaining strength, but blind people's organizations are not included. many organizations work in Bangladesh, of course, but they do not seem to think about blind people. I don't know if the World Blind Union is thinking about Bangladesh. However, at the Osaka Blind Summit, there was no representative from Bangladesh, so I asked many questions to the WBU president on behalf of Bangladeshi blind people. I would like to appeal now to all of you visually impaired people. Now is the time to help the visually impaired in Bangladesh.

My email is vashkar79@hotmail.com and my web site is www.vashkar.tk

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