UNICEF Timor-Leste’s commitment to support leadership by children & youths living with a disability

Dili, 25 November 2024 - Serving as the disability focal point at the UNICEF Office in Timor-Leste has been an incredibly enlightening journey for me. I have gained a deeper understanding of the struggles that children with disabilities face in their daily lives and to appreciate their wide range of life experiences.

As part of my process of understanding children and adolescents with disabilities and their leadership skills and to better understand the unique challenges they face as they assume positions of leadership, I had the privilege of engaging in insightful conversations with Freddy and Jennifer. Both have physical disabilities and have been elected as members of the Youth Parliament against two positions reserved for youths with disabilities. 

Recently, UNICEF Timor-Leste has been engaging the Ministry of Youth, Sports, Art and Culture (MoYSAC) in developing training modules for the youth parliament members. The Youth Parliament is a remarkable leadership initiative that empowers young people to actively participate in the democratic process and contribute to the country's development. This platform provides a space for young people aged 12-17 years to learn and engage about several thematic issues and propose solutions. The members are democratically elected for two years from their sub-districts, and two of the positions are reserved for persons with disability.

Freddy is an 18-year-old male, and is from Ermera Municipality, currently studying in Grade 12 at the Public School of 10 Desember in Dili. Jennifer, an 18-year-old female from Lautem Municipality, is currently in Grade 12, studying at the Catholic School of Hati Kudus in Dili. 

We started our conversations in Tetum, the local language, with the support of our Disability Consultant, Jose Manuel Do Karmo. Jennifer and Freddy mentioned their challenging yet engaging journey to becoming youth parliament leaders, their training, and the current need to prioritise issues relevant to young people, such as education, health, employment, and social justice. 

They also mentioned the critical roles the organisations of persons with disabilities (OPDs), including Asosiasaun Defisiensia Timor-Leste (ADTL), are playing in supporting persons with disabilities, who provide these youths with boarding facilities, guidance, and encouragement for them to access better opportunities. 

Both Freddy and Jennifer mentioned that attitudinal barrier is the most significant. Often, they have faced negative stereotyping, low expectations, pity, harassment, and bullying, including from their schoolmates, family, and the community. These reactions are rooted in stigma and discrimination that reflect negative perceptions of disability associated with societal beliefs and norms. They also mentioned physical barriers, as Freddy, in his manual wheelchair, cycles for three km to reach his school and has limited social protection coverage.

Timor-Leste recognises the right of adolescents and youth to participate, the right to be heard on all matters and decisions that affect them and to have those views considered at all levels of society. Participation is critical since children and adolescents are directly affected by the country’s leaders' decisions, particularly in the social and employment sectors. 

The country also has a significant youth bulge, highlighting even more the need to ensure the energy and perspectives of this population group, including those with disabilities, are influencing decisions. The right of adolescents and youth to influence decisions affecting them is enshrined in the Convention on the Rights of the Child (Article 12), which Timor-Leste has ratified, and is further detailed under General Comment No. 20 on the rights of the child during adolescence. 

Timor-Leste’s National Youth Policy upholds the right to participation and includes a goal area on civic participation. In 2023, Timor-Leste became a State Party to the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD), committing to upholding the rights of persons with disabilities. Fundamental to realising the rights of people with disabilities is the principle of full and effective participation and inclusion in society. 

In practice, however, adolescents and youth with disabilities are often excluded from policy and program decision-making processes. The invisibility of adolescents and youth with disabilities in public spaces and lack of inclusion in education and training also impact opportunities to participate in civic spaces and inform decision-making, potentially further perpetuating the effects of lack of participation. According to the 2022 National Census, there are 17,061 people with disabilities in Timor-Leste, representing approximately 1.6% of the population. This is considered by (OPDs) to be a significant underestimation. Perceiving them as limited in numbers, young people with disabilities often remain invisible in programmes, which is both a cause and a consequence of their exclusion. 

Jose, UNICEF’s disability consultant who also has a physical disability, mentioned that negative attitudes towards disability not only affect the participation of adolescents and youth with disabilities in public life but also impact their confidence and their perceptions of their capacity to contribute to decision-making processes. In addition, disability, gender, and age combine to create triple layers of discrimination, further limiting the participation of young people with disabilities.

Freddy wants to become a political leader, and Jennifer wants to become a doctor. Thus, they can serve, influence and empower persons with disabilities to take the lead in shaping their destinies, address stigmatisation, and contribute to society. Jennifer, who has a special interest in playing badminton and football, mentioned the numerous barriers to participating in sports with inadequate facilities and highlighted her interest in advocating for accessible infrastructure everywhere.

They suggested that collectively, we must strengthen the systematic identification of persons with disability to better reflect on the situation of adolescents and youth with disabilities and then engage with them to identify issues that need to be addressed. 
 

They also asked to involve more adolescents and youth with disabilities in leadership roles, awareness-raising activities, and active community roles, as this will help establish their positive contributions and combat stigma about disabilities. Towards this, UNICEF Timor-Leste has developed a guideline to promote the participation of adolescents and youth with disabilities in collaboration with the MoYSAC. It supports government entities, development partners, and civil society organizations, including young people with disabilities, in activities and events for inclusive civic participation.

While writing this note on the eve of the Celebration of the 2024 International Day of Persons with Disabilities (on the 3rd of December), I reflect on ensuring our collective commitment to foster an environment of respect for the rights and contributions of adolescents and youth with disabilities and celebrate the participation, voice, and leadership of young persons with disabilities in Timor-Leste. 

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