People with disability face tough challenges when trying to find employment, use public transportation, find suitable housing, attend private and public activities, and deal with architectural barriers on roads. Everybody has a right to access and use public places, such as shops, restaurants, business premises, educational institutions and entertainment venues.

Unfortunately, people with disability in Malta are often denied these rights either because of insufficient legislation aimed at guaranteeing their accessibility rights or lack of enforcement of existing legislation.

The voice of these persons is often weak and drowned in the cacophony of political rhetoric that dominates the public communication scene.

An inspection by the Commission for the Rights of Persons with disability found that out of 334 businesses along the Gżira and Sliema seafront only 42 are physically accessible for people with disabilities. Perhaps even worse, most of the pavements in our towns and villages do not only have architectural barriers for persons in a wheelchair but often threaten the safety of such persons. 

Illegal ramps leading to semi-basement garages, broken pavement tiles, and potholes are some of the hazards that persons in a wheelchair have to tackle when they use public roads. 

While the government boasts that it is the most progressive and liberal in the last several decades, it certainly fails the test of treating people with a disability with the respect that they deserve. 

Whatever laws may exist to guarantee equal rights to disabled persons, like in many other areas of public administration, there is a lack of political will to enforce these rights. Disregard of existing laws guaranteeing equal rights to disabled persons and lack of newlegislation to reinforce these rights amount to discrimination based on physical or mental abilities. 

Not allowing people with disability to access the use of premises, or any public facilities on the premises is discriminatory. Not allowing them to navigate our roads safely because of architectural barriers is also a discriminatory act. 

The government needs to define a charter of rights for people with disability. It also needs to revise current legislation on the prevention of discriminatory practices against them. 

There are many blueprints for legislation already adopted by countries like Australia that enshrine the rights of persons with disability in progressive statutes.

Ensuring that all public places have an accessible entrance and interior is an important first step. Providing disability access to facilities in public places, for example, wheelchair-accessible toilets, lift buttons within reach, and tactile and audible lift signals for people with visual impairment is another essential requirement. Repairing pavements to make them safe for wheelchair users will help to prevent social isolation. 

But what will effectively dismantle the barriers to social integration that many persons with disability face is the political will to educate the public about equal rights for all and to legislate for and enforce good practices in guaranteeing rights. 

Dismantling physical barriers to social integration will, at times, be difficult because of practical limitations in existing buildings. 

The least that can be done is to introduce standards for existing buildings that can be altered to facilitate accessibility for all.