Blind protesters locked at Lahore shelter
At least 70 people with visual disabilities were locked at a shelter house on Thursday in Lahore to stop them from staging a protest outside CM House.
The protesters were enraged after the police locked the shelter house they had gathered at. They had announced a protest against the government’s failure to fulfil their demands; jobs for the unemployed and employment of working people to be regularised.
In November 2019, the blind people had called off their protest after the government assured them that their demands will be met within 35 days.
“It has been four months now,” said a protester. “We had no other option but to protest again.”
The police have trapped us, they hit us and even tore our clothes, another protester remarked.
“I just asked the police to open the gate and they responded by choking me,” said a person.
The anti-riot police was deployed outside the shelter home following the chaos.
Usman Basra, the spokesperson of the Punjab government, said that such incidents will not be tolerated. “We will try to solve the issue.”
When asked why it took the government so long to meet the demands of the blind people, Basra said that it takes time to pass legislation.
“There are a lot of things we need to think about,” he said. “We are trying to increase the job quota for people with disabilities.”
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