Barriers of The Visually Impaired Persons In The Electoral Process In Zambia

International Journal of Research and Scientific Innovation (IJRSI) | Volume VIII, Issue III, March 2021 | ISSN 2321–2705

Barriers of The Visually Impaired Persons In The Electoral Process In Zambia

Pauline Mileji¹, Beatrice Matafwali² & Gistered muleya^3
1Kwame Nkrumah University
²,³University Of Zambia

Abstract: The study sought to identify barriers faced by persons with Visual Impairment in the electoral process in Zambia. A phenomenological research study design was used. Data was collected using interviews and Focus Group Discussions (FGDs). Purposive sampling procedure was used to sample thirty participants. The key findings were that the Visually Impaired persons face many barriers of which the following were part of; lack of education, lack of social network, lack of confidentiality, ignorance, fear, stigma, inaccessible information, transport and suitable facilities. The study recommends that adequate civic education should be delivered to the Visually Impaired persons. In this regard, there is need to adopt the human rights model that will allow the Visually Impaired persons to participate at all levels of the electoral process.

Keywords; Inclusion, Human Rights, Electoral Process

Background
Studies have indicated that the participation of the Visually Impaired (VI) in the electoral process is not without barriers. The Resource Book on Disability Inclusion (2017) refers to barriers as the process, mindset or structures that prevent men, women and children with disabilities from equal access to information, facilities and basic services that are available to the general populace. In this sense, societal attitude to disability, or the way persons with disabilities are perceived and treated, may serve either as an enabling or disabling factor to inclusion.
A report by the European Union Agency for Fundamental Rights (2014) revealed that European Union (EU) member states have made significant progress in integrating the rights to political participation of persons with disabilities into their national legal and policy framework. However, it was established that legal and administrative barriers continue to prevent some persons with disabilities from participating in political life on equal basis with others. The following barriers were identified;

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