COMMONWEALTH PARLIAMENTARIANS WITH DISABILITIES
COMMONWEALTH PARLIAMENTARIANS WITH DISABILITIES: BE VIGILANT, BE PERSISTENT: VIEW FROM TRINIDAD AND TOBAGO
Senator Hugh Russell Ian Roach is currently an
Independent Senator in the Parliament of Trinidad and Tobago, having first entered Parliament in 2013. He is an attorney at law with over 28 years of experience and has practiced internationally with emphasis on negotiation, mediation and lobbying on behalf of international firms and governments. He has presided over several courts-martials as a Judge Advocate in the Trinidad and Tobago Defence Force and was also the Honorary Consul of Trinidad and Tobago to South Africa during the presidency of Nelson Mandela and later that of Thabo Mbeki.
Raising awareness of the challenges that Parliamentarians with disabilities face is timely on the heels of the recentlyconcluded inaugural CPA Conference for Commonwealth Parliamentarians with Disabilities held in Halifax, Nova Scotia, Canada. It is truly commendable that the Commonwealth Parliamentary Association (CPA) and the House of Assembly of Nova Scotia took the initiative to host such a conference, it being a momentous step in securing a rightful place in democracy for disabled Parliamentarians. It is my hope that it will spur on a new sense of urgency in all Commonwealth Parliaments to ensure more participation of persons living with disabilities. For my part, I hope to incite the Parliament of Trinidad and Tobago to be a model of progressive action, in order for disabled members of society to feel eager and able to fully participate. Over the past few decades in Trinidad and Tobago, there have been significant allocations in successive budgets to education and skills training. The country has a large pool of highly-educated people. Yet I remain a solitary presence as a disabled Member of Parliament. This situation raises the obvious question of, ‘How come?’ Firstly, like many other countries, people living with disabilities face hurdles of accessibility which restrict their movement and therefore participation in public life. These challenges can also result in insufficient visibility
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and public awareness of the good work done across a range of fields by persons living with disabilities such that they do not come to the notice of those who are responsible for nominating persons to be Parliamentarians via the Senate. Greater engagement in political processes would require affirmative and enabling actions by political parties including in their outreach to persons living with disabilities as candidates. And even where participation is secured, it has not been a priority for the able-bodied majority of our successive Parliaments to provide adequate physical infrastructure and amenities to accommodate the participation of disabled members of society, who have all paid lip service but yet remain lethargic action-wise. Although not the same as institutional responses, individual conduct does matter. With diminished resources in an oil and gas economy beset by sustained internationally low prices, the Government is under fiscal constraints, with reduced allocations to Parliament. Notwithstanding this, the parliamentary staff remains highly efficient and attentive, making arrangements time and again to facilitate my presence in the chambers. But this is not enough. The ability of Parliamentarians living with disabilities to participate equally should not depend on the kindness and attention of individuals. The apathy of successive administrations of government must end with actions to outfit the Parliament
precincts to be differently-abled friendly. To begin, parking spots suitable in size and close proximity to the Parliament precincts should be provided. There should also be designated places within the Parliament Chambers for disabled ones to be easily accommodated. The chambers’ floor plan should be so laid out to facilitate our free movement to all areas, including ramps to access the podiums of the Speaker and President of the Houses. Wherever possible, the use of carpet should be avoided, as it makes for the easier maneuvering of wheelchairs. Attention should also be placed on the appropriate height of tables, desk tops and other counter surfaces, as they are often too low to sit behind or use comfortably. More importantly, as it is a well-known fire services advisory that stairs and not elevators are to be used in the case of fire and other emergencies, there should be a clearly articulated and well-known evacuation plan for the emergency extraction of disabled ones. Our Parliament and a number of its offices are located on the second to ninth floors, making this an item for immediate attention and implementation. I was the first wheelchairbound MP in 2013. Most of the MPs sitting today are the same since I started, although the incumbents changed sides with the Opposition in the 2015 general elections. And notwithstanding my often articulated concerns and recommendations, the fact that no adjustments have been made demonstrates lack of urgency in