KABUL (Pajhwok): Haseebullah Zaheer, 24, with eyesight disability is a strong and committed person who earned success in his life by evading disappointments and other weakness that could have darken his life.
The only bread earner of his family, Haseebullah asked the acting government to generate more job opportunities for disabled persons and urged people in the society to behave decently with disables.
Hailing from the Chahar Qala Chahar Dahi of capital Kabul and was born disabled with no eyesight, completed his school studies at the Blind Professional High school and is currently the fourth semester student of law and political science at Kabul University.
Besides his higher education studies, Haseebullah is the public relation employee of the Da Afghanistan Breshna Shirkat and director of Braille Alphabet at Kabul University.
Haseebullah was on his way to Kabul University and narrated the story of his daily work to Pajhwok reporter.
He said after waking up in the morning he organized his bed, shoes take ablution, offer prayer, prepare his books, take breakfast and go to work.
He said he always took tea with his mother and father. His father, he said work at one of the government institute.
He complained against the lack of awareness of common people towards blind persons and said: “When I ask someone for help specially when crossing the road, they ignore me. Our culture of helping disabled people is so weak and it makes me disappointed.”
He passed the Kankor test for blinds in 2018 with 96.8 percent marks and grabbed his seat at the law and political science faculty of Kabul University.
“Today, if I tell a blind person studies and studies in different fields, many times people are surprised, and I myself realized that they do not believe that a blind person can study in the best way and have a bright future; This goes back to people’s lack of awareness about disability and the weak culture that prevails in our country,” he said.
Referring to disappointing memories, he said one of the female blind students complained to him regarding the bad behavior of his teacher that she was not allowed in the exam and he went along with her to that professor to inquire about the situation.
“I was sitting with the professor when the blind student came he asked her if she could see her feet and his desk she answered yes then he asked how you can be blind when you see everything.”
Mohammad Hadi Ahmadi, one of the blind persons and Haseeb’s classmate, said they are friend from a long time and work together.
He termed the talent Haseeb possessed extra ordinary and said: “Every blind person has his own talent, but Zuhair is a very hardworking and talented person and he always tries to become a master in living on his own feet and not let anyone else decide for him; I like this feature of Hasib very much and even I want to have such a feature, he is very friendly with his friends, colleagues and other people and all people are satisfied with him.”
He said that they established the Braille printing house three years ago with the aim of helping and cooperating in the field of printing books for the Disabled and about 14 people are working voluntarily in the audio production and printing of books in Braille.
According to him, the printing machine (printer) and sheets were purchased by the Swedish Committee for the Blind, who are now facing a shortage of sheets; Because such a sheet cannot be found inside Afghanistan and they are looking for institutions to solve their problems
“We are trying to make this structure official; We should have a printing house in the framework of Kabul University, to convert books and chapters into Braille for blind students,” he said.
.Despite all the problems faced by Haseeb, he still managed to work as contract based employee of DABS.
He gets 9,000 afs salary monthly and supported his family with his monthly salary.
“There is no braille in the computer, there only a reader and that helped me where ever I want to go in the computer and resolve my problem,” he said.
Haseeb also cooperated with his father in the shop when he was small. Besides all his existing skills and abilities that he possessed, Haseeb also interested in poverty and poem writing and so far he wrote 22 poems.
Bibi Aesha, Haseeb’s mother, said of her six children Haseebullah and Nabiullah were blind and brought them up with a lot of difficulty but she said from Haseeb current situation she was happy because among her all children only Haseeb managed to get to this position.
She said her another blind son Nabi left the school at class nine but now he memorize the holy Quran and was teaching children at one of the Madressa in the town
She said: “Haseeb was seven months old when we knew that he is blind, then we went to Noor Hospital and conducted medical test and doctors said your child is blind. It is very difficult for a mother to know that his child is disabled.”
Referring to public lack of awareness when it comes to their behavior with blind persons she said: “People always talk what is in their mind, sometimes they talk good and sometimes bad, our neighbor says don’t let your blind children leave the house, he is blind, what is he doing when he goes out, I ask people to treat a blind person well and help. It is not lost on them, at least don’t talk bad.”
She asked people to behave in a proper manner with blind persons and never disrespect and humiliate them.
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