Abed
My name is Abed, I am from Jordan.
I went to a school for the blind from Grade 1 to Grade 6. My life was very hard. I was living far from my parents. The supervisor in the dorm was not good with us. If there was a meal served that I didn’t like she used to force me to eat it by beating me. They were dealing with us very forcefully and with a lot of violence.
After that I moved schools several times and ended up at a school for people with visual disabilities. I participated in a lot of contests. I got first prize for poetry across the entire kingdom and first place in the Governorate for playing music.
I did not succeed in the final State exam so I stayed at home and decided not to study. On 20 February 2007 my Father passed away. My Mum told me “don’t forget the will of your Father that at least one of you or your brothers continue their university education.” After that I reapplied for the State exam and passed.
It was very hard for me in the University. Up until this moment they don’t have an office to help people with visual disabilities. It is financially difficult as I had to pay from my own money to print books by Braille method. Some professors really look-down on me, one even gave me a blank exam paper as a joke. This motivates me to never let anyone stop me from reaching the goal I want.
Since 2002 I’m a theatre actor I also play the Ney, a middle Eastern flute. Most my friends are mostly people with no disabilities. We hang all the time, we chill. I am also now a member of the Board of ‘I am Human Society for the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.’
20 June 2016 was a very, very important day. I fulfilled my Father’s will and made peace and blessings beyond his soul. It was my graduation day from the university. Everybody was happy. I felt I made my parents very proud. Out of all my brothers, I am the only one who has reached this level of education. And if anything, it proves that disability is in the society, not in the disabled person.
In 2014, I applied for a Masters degree in the University of Jordan and thank God I was accepted. I will write my thesis about the relation between human rights and disability in Jordan. We will convey our messages to decision makers and to all that disability is actually in the society itself, rather than in the person with disability.
