Report: People don't want disabled neighbors

As part of a project funded by the Sabancı Foundation that aims to fight discrimination against people with disabilities, the survey took place in nine provinces across the country to get a better representation of the population's views on problems faced by the disabled. To conduct the “Perception and Discrimination Survey,” in-depth interviews were conducted with 241 disabled and 178 fully abled people.

According to the results of the survey, 57.3 percent of those surveyed endorse the idea of establishing separate buildings for disabled children, news website ntvmsnbc.com reported. The survey indicates that 67.5 percent of those surveyed are uneasy with building special facilities for the disabled.

Although a large proportion of the respondents support the integration of the disabled into society, 70.3 percent of interviewees don't want to have a physically disabled neighbor.

According to the survey, 98.9 percent of those surveyed think that the disabled should work and 80.4 percent support the idea that they should be able to work from home.

The survey results demonstrate that the disabled are alienated from society as they face insurmountable difficulties in the public and social sphere. In this regard, 54.6 percent of the disabled back the projects of building separate residential homes. Add to this, 60.1 percent of the disabled have a positive approach to working at home.

Meanwhile, the survey reveals the challenges that the disabled face in Turkey. More than 70 percent do not have a job and live with their families. Almost half of the disabled spend their vacations at home.

More than 50 percent of the survey participants say there are no informative signs for the disabled at bus stops and 34.6 percent of the disabled say they face difficulties when they get on the bus, metrobus and subway.

In remarks to ntvmsnbc.com, Süleyman Akbulut, head of the “Disabled Discrimination Prevention and Response Platform,” stated that prejudice and lack of awareness are the main reasons behind why people do not want neighbors with disabilities.

Akbulut said society discriminates against disabled people, although it may not be aware of its prevailing attitude. “The disabled have the right to be educated with other people without being subject to exclusion in the same schools. Our laws make public schools mandatory to provide education to the disabled,” he told ntvmsnbc.com.