Former Chief Minister of Penang Tun Dr Lim Chong Eu passed away today at age 91. Long after he left the Chief Ministership of Penang, he was still remembered for all the progress that he had brought to the island, especially the setting of of the Free Trade Zone (FTZ) in Bayan Lepas. I have not met him in person but I have heard of the great things he had done to develop Penang to become the Silicon Valley of the East. This development opened up employment opportunities for so many Penangites then and now. My late father, a Consulting Supervising Electrical Engineer, benefitted greatly from the many factories that were set up there that employed his services. Tun Dr Lim is a true son of Penang worthy of the respect and admiration accorded to him by every Penangite. Rest in peace Tun, we will remember you for a long time to come.

Abuse of accessible parking at The Gardens Mid Valley – November 13, 2010, 10.04 pm.

I confess, I sometimes park my car in two standard bays. That is because I could not find accessible bays after circling around for the third or fourth time or the few allocated accessible bays were already occupied. I need the extra space to open the car door fully and place the wheelchair beside it.

But look at this little Kancil that was parked outside the P2 lift lobby of The Gardens Mid Valley. It occupied two bays with wheelchair logos painted on them. Even if the car was driven by a disabled person, there is no excuse to occupy two parking bays, more so when these are accessible ones. Some people are simply inconsiderate.

HELP and BBDO/Proximity Malaysia: Wheelchair Drunk Driving campaign poster.
Click on image to enlarge.

While searching for information on wheelchair companies in Malaysia, I came across a campaign against drunk driving by HELP and BBDO/Proximity Malaysia. This poster won the 2008 Golden Kancil Award. Although that poster appeared two years ago, I need to say something that had weighed heavily in my mind since I discovered it.

Having used a wheelchair for more than half of my life, I thought I have gone through enough to not be deeply affected by discrimination, oppression and ignorance of the general public regarding the endless issues faced disabled people. But the people at HELP and BBDO/Proximity Malaysia proved me wrong. I was deeply insulted by that campaign poster against drunk driving.

The main image in the poster showed a wheelchair assembled from parts of a wrecked car driven by a supposedly drunk driver. The text stated that “Drink driving is a problem among youths” and that “HELP wanted to change this attitude by reminding youths of a fate worse than death.” Another message written on a car door says: “Drink and drive and you might live to suffer the consequences”.

Being in a wheelchair is a fate worse than death.

What? Being in a wheelchair is a fate worse than death? Wheelchair users are all suffering the consequences? This is proof of how deeply ingrained the perceptions of disabled people still are in the mind of the general public who think that our life is not worth living anymore. We are still being viewed through lenses tinted with great prejudices.

In one fell swoop, not only are wheelchair users stereotyped as drunk drivers suffering the consequences of inebriety. Wheelchair users are also portrayed as having a fate worse than death. To you people at HELP and BBDO/Proximity Malaysia, thank you so much for enlightening me that my life in a wheelchair has little value and meaning. I truly did not realise that I would have been better off dead.

Drink and drive and you might live to suffer the consequences.

I am not against campaigns against drunk driving. We certainly need to put the message across that drunk driving kills and maims, not only the driver but innocent people as well. However, I take offense that wheelchair users are portrayed in such a negative manner, especially in an era when disabled people still face hardship and inequality in society. Moreover, the impairments of most wheelchair users are due to diseases, accidents unrelated to drunk driving or congenital.

Shame on all the people at HELP and BBDO/Proximity Malaysia involved in this campaign. You have done a great injustice to wheelchair users, not only in Malaysia but all over the world, who despite the barriers that we face every day, have moved on in life. If only all of you had bothered to get to know disabled people, you would have discovered that we are determined to make the most out of our lives just like everyone else.

And NO, being in a wheelchair is NOT a fate worse than death. Although we cannot say we are enjoying it, this is who we are. We cannot change that. But what we can and want to change are all the negative perceptions surrounding disabled people. Advertising agencies, with their ability to move public opinion, should work with disabled people to dispel those myths and perceptions instead of using us as objects of bad examples.