In recent years, global inflation, high housing prices, low wages, rising electricity and consumer prices, the cost of living continues to increase, making people feel very stressed. A recent street survey conducted by Eden Foundation found that, in addition to money, the things that make people feel “poor” and “deprived” include: lack of job resources, lack of empathy in the workplace for women with families, and long working hours that make it impossible to spend time with family members; and for persons with disabilities, not being able to study and live like the general public, not being able to make friends, being healthy, and not being able to have a job are the things that they care about the most.
Eden Foundation's Service Programs for Persons with Disabilities has adopted the theme of “Poverty of Persons with Disabilities” this year in the hope that while we are concerned about the living conditions of the poor, we can also see the dilemmas and needs of persons with disabilities. There are more than 1.2 million persons with disabilities in Taiwan. In addition to the economic aspect, due to the society's inability to tolerate and understand them, and due to the system's inability to meet their needs, various “barriers” block their way forward, and they are caught in the plight of deprivation in their lives, employment, medical care, education, cultural and leisure activities as well as interpersonal interaction, and they do not have the chance to change, then even more so, they do not have the right to make choices.
Eden's Service Programs for Persons with Disabilities, with the theme of “Poverty of Persons with Disabilities”, hopes that the public can see the dilemma and needs of persons with disabilities.
According to the report of the Ministry of Labor, the labor force participation rate of the general public is nearly 60%, and the unemployment rate is about 3.34%. However, the 2019“Survey on the Labor Situation of Persons with Disabilities” found that the labor force participation rate of persons with disabilities over the age of 15 is only 20.7%, and the unemployment rate reaches 8.1%, and nearly 90% of the unemployed people are eager to be hired, and even if they are employed, the average salary of persons with disabilities is less as only about nearly 70% than the general population. In addition, according to the report of 2021 “Survey on the Living Conditions and Needs of Persons with Disabilities”, due to the lack of a accessible environment, many persons with disabilities have difficulty in even basic socializing. For example, in the past five years, the usage rate of accessible taxi has been less than 6%, and even a simple dine out gathering is the furthest thing from home for them.
Mr. Tine-Yuang Ho, Vice CEO of Eden Foundation, said that in order to address the “poverty plight” faced by the persons with disabilities, if they are provided with adequate care, they will be able to live independently and show their potentials; as long as there are job opportunities, they will be able to give full play to their capacities through job accommodation; and as long as there is the mainstream society that understands and respects persons with disabilities, they will be able to include into the community and live a good life. In fact, persons with disabilities are no different from us, they want to make a living and contribute to the society. We need all of your support to make this a reality.
Huei Ru has been in Eden's laundry course in Keelung for nearly 20 years and has become very skillful in ironing and laundry.
Mr. Ho further pointed out that in the year 2023, Eden's Service Programs for Persons with Disabilities benefited 10,887 people in terms of life care, and 413 people in terms of employment and vocational rehabilitation supported for persons with disabilities. In addition, in recent years, Eden has actively supported persons with disabilities to develop diversified leisure culture and sports, such as “Tee-ball”, “Chinese Opera”, and “Wheelchair Dance Group”, etc., and organized nearly 170 leisure activities; and through the “Dream-Catching Bus”, the service users ofYilan Education and Nursing Institute went to the Taipei Dome to watch the Chinese Professional Baseball League (CPBL) regular season game, which were all aimed at supporting persons with disabilities to have more choices and independent rights on their life, leisure and entertainment.
Huei Ru is 52-year-old and the service user of the laundry course at the Yi-Ai small-scale sheltered community workshop in Keelung.Her right hand functionally impaired due to lack of oxygen at birth, and that in her early years, the social environment was more difficult to accept persons with disabilities to work. Later, she joined the training course of our Sheltered Laundry Shop, and now, 20 years later, she has been recognized for her ability to work, and her ironing and laundry skills are very proficient, and she can teach her peers how to handle clothes quickly, which makes her the “assistant instructor” of the Laundry Shop. In the future, she will participate in more diversified courses, learn new handicraft skills, and strengthen her ability to cope with interpersonal interactions, so that she can have more self-determination rights and opportunities to make choices in her daily life.
Huei Ru teaches her peers how to handle laundry quickly, and is like the “assistant instructor” of a laundry shop.
Ah Han is 21-year-old person with cerebral palsy as well as the severe intellectual and physical disabilities. As his father is also a wheelchair user, his mother, who is the main caregiver, often feels exhausted. Introduced by a friend, Ah Han came to Eden’s Yilan Education and Nursing Institute to receive day care service to relieve his mother's heavy burden of care. According to the social worker, Ah Han enjoyed attending the course, was the instructor's helper, and liked to interact with others and participate in various activities, so he adapted well to the life in the Yilan Education and Nursing Institute.
To relieve the burden of caring for his mother, Ah Han received day care service at Eden’s Yilan Education and Nursing Institute
Over the past 43 years since its establishment, Eden has not only taken care of persons with disabilities through a variety of services, but also extended its services to their caregivers, because only through home-based empowerment can we provide persons with disabilities with the appropriate services they need and an independent living. We hope that the public will join hands with Eden to “believe” in persons with disabilities, and support them to prevent “poverty” in their lives, so that they can eventually be included into the mainstream society and live a good life! For details, please search “Eden Disability Services” or call our support hotline 0800-025885.
