Friday, August 27, 2010

Uganda: Women with disabilities face ongoing discrimination, sexual and gender-based violence

Women with disabilities in northern Uganda experience ongoing discrimination and sexual and gender-based violence, Human Rights Watch group said in a report released on Thursday.

Many are marginalised, unable to gain access to basic services, including health care and justice, and they have been largely ignored in post-conflict reconstruction efforts.

The 73-page report, "'As If We Weren't Human': Discrimination and Violence against Women with Disabilities in Northern Uganda,"describes frequent abuse and discrimination by strangers, neighbours, and even family members against women and girls living with disabilities in the north.

Al Jazeera's Malcolm Webb reports from northern Uganda - a region recently emerging from over two decades of civil war between the rebel Lord's Resistance Army(LRA) and the government.