Zayed Higher Organisation raises voices of People of Determination from United Nations platform
11 June 2025 20:26
NEW YORK (WAM)During its participation in the official side event of the COSP18 conference in New York, the Zayed Higher Organisation for People of Determination (ZHO) highlighted inspiring stories, innovative solutions, and called for inclusive and comprehensive partnerships.The Organisation reaffirmed its leadership in bringing the UAE's experience in empowering and integrating People of Determination to global forums, through its active participation in the official side event at the 18th session of the Conference of States Parties to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (COSP18), held at the United Nations headquarters in New York under the theme: "Empowering Inclusive Development through Disability-Inclusive Action and Effective Partnerships."During the session, organised by the ZHO in collaboration with the Permanent Mission of the UAE to the United Nations and Rehabilitation International, a distinguished group of decision-makers, experts, and activists from around the world gathered.The Organisation delivered a global call to action for joint work, continued collaboration, transcending borders, and fostering inclusion and empowerment for People of Determination in every aspect.It also conveyed a clear message to the world: empowerment only happens through partnership, and the future cannot be truly inclusive unless all people, in all their diversity, are at the centre of policies and programmes.During the session, the ZHO announced the launch of the International Journal of Disability and Rehabilitation Studies, a specialised research platform that enhances the scientific impact to serve People of Determination globally.Established in partnership with Rehabilitation International, the journal aims to promote impactful scientific research that makes a difference in the lives of People of Determination worldwide.In his recorded opening remarks, Abdullah Al Humaidan, Secretary-General of the Zayed Higher Organisation and Vice President of Rehabilitation International for the MENA Region, emphasised the importance of collective action to enhance inclusion across borders from the UAE to the world.He stated, 'Our participation in this event reflects the UAE's unwavering commitment to making inclusion and integration a sustainable approach that guarantees equal opportunities for People of Determination to participate, excel, and lead. At the ZHO, we believe that inclusion is not optional; it is essential to build a more just and sustainable future. Through this session, we have shared successful human experiences, based on a national vision of empowerment, with countries around the world. We are not here to promote achievement, but to present a practical model that reflects the vision of our wise leadership for an inclusive society that provides opportunities and supports human diversity.'He added, 'We do not merely provide care and rehabilitation services, but we are building an empowerment ecosystem that believes every individual, regardless of their abilities, has a role in the development process. This is not just a slogan, but a national commitment reinforced by the UAE's policies and implemented by the ZHO in all its initiatives.'Al Humaidan also addressed the participants from different countries, 'People of Determination are not just a topic for discussion at conferences—they are partners in policymaking and solutions. This is a firm belief we hold, embodied in our partnerships with both the public and private sectors, and with international organisations.'In a paper titled 'Success Stories and Inclusive Solutions' presented by Abdullah Al Kamali, Executive Director of the People of Determination Sector at the Organisation, he highlighted the Organisation's major achievements in professional empowerment. Additionally, he emphasised that People of Determination have tremendous potential, provided the community also believes in them.Al Kamali said, 'Inclusion does not stop at providing services, it is a belief in human potential and the right to dignity and participation.'He noted that the UAE is driven by a deep conviction in the abilities of People of Determination.The Organisation developed the first national vocational qualification specifically for them, creating real opportunities for employment and entrepreneurship. This translates inclusion into an economy of innovation and calls for investing in people and building a fairer, more participatory world.Hamad Hazza Al Darmaki, a coach at Al Ain Club for People of Determination, shared his personal journey, 'I returned from my studies in the US not only with a degree but with a mission. I founded the first football team for the Deaf in the UAE and the first official association for them. I also contributed to developing the Emirati Sign Language Dictionary in cooperation with the Zayed Higher Organisation and the UAE Deaf Association, to preserve our visual language and cultural identity.'He added, 'True empowerment is when we are the ones writing the chapters of change. My participation in the committee to host the 20th World Federation of the Deaf Congress in 2027 in Abu Dhabi was a source of national pride. Today, I continue as a coach at Al Ain Club for People of Determination, nurturing new talents and advocating for empowerment through sports and education.'Mira Al Shamsi, a genomic analyst at the Organisation and Vice Chair of the Health Committee at Rehabilitation International, stated, 'Comprehensive and inclusive health is not an additional service, it is a fundamental human right that must be ensured for all, especially persons with disabilities.' She emphasised the need to redesign health systems to be built with and for persons with disabilities, based on the principles of equality, non-discrimination, and equal opportunity enshrined in the Convention.She noted that the Zayed Higher Organisation applies a data-driven, equity-based approach, where participation in the Emirati Genome Programme is not limited to diagnosis, but also aims to design tailored health and educational interventions that meet individual needs and consider genetic diversity and social context.She underscored that building inclusive health systems requires cross-sector partnerships and real empowerment of persons with disabilities as rights-holders, not merely service recipients. She concluded, 'The UAE is committed to continuing to work in line with the principles of the CRPD to ensure fair, accessible, and human rights-based health for all.'Maryam Al Qubaisi, activist and MS Ambassador, concluded, 'I was diagnosed with the disease at 17, and it changed my dreams, but I chose to be the voice of those who aren't heard. The real barriers are not in the body but in thoughts and society.'
She spoke about her 'Inclusive Design for Inclusion' initiative, affirming, 'True innovation begins when we design technology with, not for, People of Determination. Technology should not just race ahead; it must include everyone.'
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Those emaciated children - profoundly malnourished, their stick-then legs covered by the thinnest membrane of skin - aren't going to recover without meaningful intervention. Their condition won't stabilise while Israel deprives them of food day after day. Sooner or later they will die, mostly out of our view. Meanwhile, desperate parents must now risk their lives, forced to run the gauntlet of Israeli gunfire, in a - usually forlorn - bid to be among the handful of families able to grab paltry supplies of largely unusable, dried food. Most families have no water or fuel to cook with. As if mocking Palestinians, the western media continue to refer to this real-life, scaled-up Hunger Games - imposed by Israel in place of the long-established United Nations relief system - as "aid distribution". We are supposed to believe it is addressing Gaza's "humanitarian crisis" even as it deepens the crisis. On the kindest analysis, western capitals are settling back into a mix of silence and deflections, having got in their excuses just before Israel crosses the finishing line of its genocide. They have readied their alibis for the moment when international journalists are allowed in - the day after the population of Gaza has either been exterminated or violently herded into neighbouring Sinai. Or more likely, a bit of both. Truth inverted What distinguishes Israel's ongoing slaughter of the two million-plus people of Gaza is this. It is the first stage-managed genocide in history. It is a Holocaust rewritten as public theatre, a spectacle in which every truth is carefully inverted. That can best be achieved, of course, if those trying to write a different, honest script are eliminated. The extent and authorship of the horrors can be edited out, or obscured through a series of red herrings, misdirecting onlookers. War on Gaza: How Israel is replicating Nazi starvation tactics Read More » Israel has murdered more than 220 Palestinian journalists in Gaza over the past 20 months, and has been keeping western journalists far from the killing fields. Like the West's politicians, the foreign correspondents finally piped up last month - in their case, to protest at being barred from Gaza. No less than the politicians, they were keen to ready their excuses. They have careers and their future credibility to think about, after all. The journalists have publicly worried that they are being excluded because Israel has something to hide. As though Israel had nothing to hide in the preceding 20 months, when those same journalists docilely accepted their exclusion - and invariably regurgitated Israel's deceitful spin on its atrocities. If you imagine that the reporting from Gaza would have been much different had the BBC, CNN, the Guardian or the New York Times had reporters on the ground, think again. The truth is the coverage would have looked much as it has done for more than a year and a half, with Israel dictating the story lines, with Israel's denials foregrounded, with Israel's claims of Hamas 'terrorists' in every hospital, school, bakery, university, and refugee camp used to justify the destruction and slaughter. British doctors volunteering in Gaza who have told us there were no Hamas fighters in the hospitals they worked in, or anyone armed apart from the Israeli soldiers that shot up their medical facilities, would not be more believed because Jeremy Bowen interviewed them in Khan Younis rather than Richard Madeley in a London studio. Breaking the blockade If proof of that was needed, it came this week with the coverage of Israel's brazen act of piracy against a UK-flagged ship, the Madleen, trying to break Israel's genocidal aid blockade. Israel's law-breaking did not happen this time in sealed-off Gaza, or against dehumanised Palestinians. Israel's slaughter of the two million-plus people of Gaza is the first stage-managed genocide in history. It is a Holocaust rewritten as public theatre Israel's ramming and seizure of the vessel took place on the high seas, and targeted a 12-member western crew, including the famed young Swedish climate activist Greta Thunberg. All were abducted and taken to Israel. Thunberg was trying to use her celebrity to draw attention to Israel's illegal, genocidal blockade of aid. She did so precisely by trying to break that blockade peacefully. The defiance of the Madleen's crew in sailing to Gaza was intended to shame western governments that are under a legal - and it goes without saying, moral - obligation to stop a genocide under the provisions of the 1948 Genocide Convention they have ratified. Western capitals have been ostentatiously wringing their hands at the "humanitarian crisis" of Israel starving two million people in full view of the world. The Madleen's mission was to emphasise that those states could do much more than tell two Israeli cabinet ministers they are not welcome to visit. Together they could break the blockade, if they so wished. Britain, France and Canada – all of whom claimed last month that the "situation" in Gaza was "intolerable" - could organise a joint naval fleet carrying aid to Gaza through international waters. They would arrive in Palestinian territorial waters off the coast of Gaza. At no point would they be in Israel territory. Any attempt by Israel to interfere would be an act of war against these three states - and against Nato. The reality is Israel would be forced to pull back and allow the aid in. But, of course, this scenario is pure fantasy. Britain, France and Canada have no intention of breaking Israel's "intolerable" siege of Gaza. None of them has any intention of doing anything but watch Israel starve the population to death, then describe it as a "humanitarian catastrophe" they were unable to stop. The Madleen has preemptively denied them this manoeuvre and highlighted western leaders' actual support for genocide – as well as let the people of Gaza know that a majority of the western public oppose their governments' collusion in Israel's criminality. 'Selfie yacht' The voyage was intended too as a vigorous nudge to awaken those in the West still slumbering through the genocide. Which is precisely why the Madleen's message had to be smothered with spin, carefully prepared by Israel. The Israeli foreign ministry issued statements calling the aid ship a "celebrity selfie yacht", while dismissing its action as a 'public relations stunt' and "provocation". Israeli officials portrayed Thunberg as a "narcissist" and "antisemite". The Gaza genocide is not a 'bug' - it is the logic of Israel's system Read More » When Israeli soldiers illegally boarded the ship, they filmed themselves trying to hand out sandwiches to the crew – an actual stunt that should appall anyone mindful that, while Israel was concern-trolling western publics about the nutritional needs of the Madleen crew, it was also starving two million Palestinians to death, half of them children. Did the British government, whose vessel was rammed and invaded in international waters, angrily protest the attack? Did the reliably patriotic British media rally against this humiliating violation of UK sovereignty? No, Starmer and Lammy once again had nothing to say on the matter. They have yet to concede that Israel is even breaking international law in denying the people of Gaza all food and water for more than three months, let alone acknowledge that this actually constitutes genocide. Instead, Lammy's officials - 300 of whom have protested against the UK's continuing collusion in Israeli atrocities - have been told to resign rather than raise objections rooted in international law. According to sources within the Foreign Office cited by former British ambassador Craig Murray, Lammy has also insisted that any statements relating to the Madleen bypass the government's legal advisers. Why? To allow Lammy plausible deniability as he evades Britain's legal obligation to respond to Israel's assault on a vessel sailing under UK protection. The media, meanwhile, has played its own part in whitewashing this flagrant crime – one that has taken place in full view, not hidden away in Gaza's conveniently engineered 'fog of war'. Much of the press adopted the term 'selfie yacht" as if it were their own. As though Thunberg and the rest of the crew were pleasure-seekers promoting their social media platforms rather than risking their lives taking on the might of a genocidal Israeli military. They had good reason to be fearful. After all, the Israeli military shot dead 10 of their predecessors - activists on the Mavi Marmara aid ship to Gaza - 15 years ago. Israel has killed in cold blood American citizens such as Rachel Corrie, British citizens such as Tom Hurndall, and acclaimed journalists such as Shireen Abu Akleh. And for those with longer memories, the Israeli air force killed more than 30 American servicemen in a two-hour attack in 1967 on the USS Liberty, and wounded 170 more. The anniversary of that crime – covered up by every US administration – was commemorated by its survivors the day before the attack on the Madleen. 'Detained', not abducted Israel's trivialising smears of the Madleen crew were echoed uncritically from Sky News and The Telegraph to LBC and Piers Morgan. Strangely, journalists who had barely acknowledged the tsunami of selfies taken by Israeli soldiers glorifying their war crimes on social media were keenly attuned to a supposed narcissistic, selfie culture rampant among human-rights activists. The graver Israel's atrocities in Gaza, the quieter the BBC grows Read More » As Thunberg headed back to Europe on Tuesday, the media continued with its assault on the English language and common sense. They reported that she had been "deported" from Israel, as though she had smuggled herself into Israel illegally rather than being been forcibly dragged there by the Israeli military. But even the so-called "serious" media buried the significance both of the Madleen's voyage to Gaza and of Israel's lawbreaking. From the Guardian and BBC to the New York Times and CBS, Israel's criminal attack was characterised as the aid ship being "intercepted" or "diverted", and of Israel "taking control" of the vessel. For the western media, Thunberg was "detained", not abducted. The framing was straight out of Tel Aviv. It was a preposterous narrative in which Israel was presented as taking actions necessary to restore order in a situation of dangerous rule-breaking and anarchy by activists on a futile and pointless excursion to Gaza. The coverage was so uniform not because it related to any kind of reality, but because it was pure propaganda – narrative spin that served not only Israel's interests but that of a western political and media class deeply implicated in Israel's genocide. Arming criminals In another glaring example of this collusion, the western media chose to almost immediately bury what should have been explosive comments last week from Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu. He admitted that Israel has been arming and cultivating close ties with criminal gangs in Gaza. He was responding to remarks from Avigdor Lieberman, a former political ally turned rival, that some of those assisted by Israel are affiliated to the jihadist group Islamic State. The most prominent is named Yasser Abu Shabab. The western media either ignored this revelation or dutifully accepted Netanyahu's self-serving characterisation of these ties as an alliance of convenience: one designed to weaken Hamas by promoting "rival local forces" and opening up new "post-war governing opportunities". The real aim - or rather, two aims: one immediate, the other long term - are far more cynical and disturbing. More than six months ago, Palestinian analysts and the Israeli media began warning that Israel - after it had destroyed Gaza's ruling institutions, including its police force - was working hand in hand with newly reinvigorated criminal gangs. Israel's immediate aim of arming the criminals - turning them into powerful militias - was to intensify the breakdown of law and order. That served as the prelude to a double-barrelled Israeli disinformation campaign. Instead of the UN's trusted and wide distribution network across Gaza, the GHF's four "aid hubs" were perfectly designed to advance Israel's genocidal goals These gangs were put in a prime position to loot food from the United Nations' long-established aid distribution system and sell it on the black market. The looting helped Israel falsely claim both that Hamas was stealing aid from the UN and that the international body had proven itself unfit to run humanitarian operations in Gaza. Israel and the US then set about creating a mercenary front group - misleadingly called the Gaza Humanitarian Foundation – to run a sham replacement operation. Instead of the UN's trusted and wide distribution network across Gaza, the GHF's four "aid hubs" were perfectly designed to advance Israel's genocidal goals. They are located in a narrow strip of territory next to the border with Egypt. Palestinians are forced to ethnically cleanse themselves into a tiny area of Gaza - if they are to stand any hope of eating - in preparation for their expulsion into Sinai. They have been herded into a massively congested area without the space or facilities to cope, where the spread of disease is guaranteed, and where they can be more easily massacred by Israeli bombs. Displaced Palestinians return from an aid distribution centre in central Gaza on 8 June 2025 (AFP) An increasingly malnourished population must walk long distances and wait in massive crowds in the heat in the hope of small handouts of food. It is a situation engineered to heighten tensions, and lead to chaos and fighting. All of which provide an ideal pretext for Israeli soldiers to halt "aid distribution" pre-emptively in the interests of 'public safety' and shoot into the crowds to 'neutralise threats', as has happened to lethal effect day after day. The repeated massacres at these "aid hubs" mean that the most vulnerable - those most in need of aid - have been frightened off, leaving gang members like Abu Shabab's to enjoy the spoils. Gaza Humanitarian Foundation: Israel's new model for weaponised aid Amira Nimerawi Read More » And to add insult to injury, Israel has misrepresented its own drone footage of the very criminal gangs it arms, looting aid from trucks and shooting Palestinian aid-seekers as supposed evidence of Hamas stealing food and of the need for Israel to control aid distribution. All of this is so utterly transparent, and repugnant, it is simply astonishing it has not been at the forefront of western coverage as politicians and media worry about how "intolerable the situation" in Gaza has become. Instead, the media has largely taken it as read that Hamas "steals aid". The media has indulged an entirely bogus Israeli-fuelled debate about the need for aid distribution "reform". And the media has equivocated about whether it is Israeli soldiers shooting dead those seeking aid. And, of course, the media has refused to draw the only reasonable conclusion from all of this: that Israel is simply exploiting the chaos it has created to buy time for its starvation campaign to kill more Palestinians. Calibrated warlordism But there is much more at stake. Israel is fattening up these criminal gangs for a grander, future role in what used to be termed the "day after" - until it became all too clear that the period in question would follow the completion of Israel's genocide. It comes as no surprise to any Palestinian to hear confirmation from Netanyahu that Israel has been arming criminal gangs in Gaza, even those with affiliations to Islamic State. It should not surprise any journalist who has spent serious time, as I have, living in a Palestinian community and studying Israel's colonial control mechanisms over Palestinian society. For years, Israel's ultimate vision for the Palestinians - if they cannot be entirely expelled from their historic homeland - has been of carefully calibrated warlordism Palestinian academics have understood for at least two decades – long before Hamas' lethal one-day break-out from Gaza on 7 October 2023 – why Israel has invested so much of its energy in dismantling bit by bit the institutions of Palestinian national identity in the occupied West Bank and East Jerusalem. The goal, they have been telling me and anyone else who would listen, was to leave Palestinian society so hollowed out, so crushed by the rule of feuding criminal gangs, that statehood would become inconceivable. As the Palestinian political analyst Muhammad Shehada observes of what is taking place in Gaza: 'Israel is NOT using [the gangs] to go after Hamas, they're using them to destroy Gaza itself from the inside.' For years, Israel's ultimate vision for the Palestinians - if they cannot be entirely expelled from their historic homeland - has been of carefully calibrated warlordism. Israel would arm a series of criminal families in their geographic heartlands. Each would have enough light arms to terrorise their local populations into submission, and fight neighbouring families to define the extent of their fiefdom. None would have the military power to take on Israel. Instead they would have to compete for Israel's favour- treating it like some inflated Godfather - in the hope of securing an advantage over rivals. In this vision, the Palestinians - one of the most educated populations in the Middle East - are to be driven into a permanent state of civil war and "survival of the fittest" politics. Israel's ambition is to eviscerate Palestinian social cohesion as effectively as it has bombed Gaza's cities "into the Stone Age". Divinely blessed This is a simple story, one that should be all too familiar to European publics if they were educated in their own histories. For centuries, Europeans spread outwards - driven by a supremacist zealotry and a desire for material gain – to conquer the lands of others, to steal resources, and to subordinate, expel and exterminate the natives that stood in their way. For Palestinians, to exist is to resist Israel's war of annihilation Read More » The native people were always dehumanised. They were always barbarians, "human animals", even as we – the members of a supposedly superior civilisation – butchered them, starved them, levelled their homes, destroyed their crops. Our mission of conquest and extermination was always divinely blessed. Our success in eradicating native peoples, our efficiency in killing them, was always proof of our moral superiority. We were always the victims, even while we humiliated, tortured and raped. We were always on the side of righteousness. Israel has simply carried this tradition into the modern era. It has held a mirror up to us and shown that, despite all our grandstanding about human rights, nothing has really changed. There are a few, like Greta Thunberg and the crew of the Madleen, ready to show by example that we can break with the past. We can refuse to dehumanise. We can refuse to collude in industrial savagery. We can refuse to give our consent through silence and inaction. But first we must stop listening to the siren calls of our political leaders and the billionaire-owned media. Only then might we learn what it means to be human. The views expressed in this article belong to the author and do not necessarily reflect the editorial policy of Middle East Eye.
Al Etihad
a day ago
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Zayed Higher Organisation raises voices of People of Determination from United Nations platform
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At the ZHO, we believe that inclusion is not optional; it is essential to build a more just and sustainable future. Through this session, we have shared successful human experiences, based on a national vision of empowerment, with countries around the world. We are not here to promote achievement, but to present a practical model that reflects the vision of our wise leadership for an inclusive society that provides opportunities and supports human diversity.'He added, 'We do not merely provide care and rehabilitation services, but we are building an empowerment ecosystem that believes every individual, regardless of their abilities, has a role in the development process. This is not just a slogan, but a national commitment reinforced by the UAE's policies and implemented by the ZHO in all its initiatives.'Al Humaidan also addressed the participants from different countries, 'People of Determination are not just a topic for discussion at conferences—they are partners in policymaking and solutions. This is a firm belief we hold, embodied in our partnerships with both the public and private sectors, and with international organisations.'In a paper titled 'Success Stories and Inclusive Solutions' presented by Abdullah Al Kamali, Executive Director of the People of Determination Sector at the Organisation, he highlighted the Organisation's major achievements in professional empowerment. Additionally, he emphasised that People of Determination have tremendous potential, provided the community also believes in Kamali said, 'Inclusion does not stop at providing services, it is a belief in human potential and the right to dignity and participation.'He noted that the UAE is driven by a deep conviction in the abilities of People of Organisation developed the first national vocational qualification specifically for them, creating real opportunities for employment and entrepreneurship. This translates inclusion into an economy of innovation and calls for investing in people and building a fairer, more participatory Hazza Al Darmaki, a coach at Al Ain Club for People of Determination, shared his personal journey, 'I returned from my studies in the US not only with a degree but with a mission. I founded the first football team for the Deaf in the UAE and the first official association for them. I also contributed to developing the Emirati Sign Language Dictionary in cooperation with the Zayed Higher Organisation and the UAE Deaf Association, to preserve our visual language and cultural identity.'He added, 'True empowerment is when we are the ones writing the chapters of change. My participation in the committee to host the 20th World Federation of the Deaf Congress in 2027 in Abu Dhabi was a source of national pride. Today, I continue as a coach at Al Ain Club for People of Determination, nurturing new talents and advocating for empowerment through sports and education.'Mira Al Shamsi, a genomic analyst at the Organisation and Vice Chair of the Health Committee at Rehabilitation International, stated, 'Comprehensive and inclusive health is not an additional service, it is a fundamental human right that must be ensured for all, especially persons with disabilities.' She emphasised the need to redesign health systems to be built with and for persons with disabilities, based on the principles of equality, non-discrimination, and equal opportunity enshrined in the noted that the Zayed Higher Organisation applies a data-driven, equity-based approach, where participation in the Emirati Genome Programme is not limited to diagnosis, but also aims to design tailored health and educational interventions that meet individual needs and consider genetic diversity and social underscored that building inclusive health systems requires cross-sector partnerships and real empowerment of persons with disabilities as rights-holders, not merely service recipients. She concluded, 'The UAE is committed to continuing to work in line with the principles of the CRPD to ensure fair, accessible, and human rights-based health for all.'Maryam Al Qubaisi, activist and MS Ambassador, concluded, 'I was diagnosed with the disease at 17, and it changed my dreams, but I chose to be the voice of those who aren't heard. The real barriers are not in the body but in thoughts and society.' She spoke about her 'Inclusive Design for Inclusion' initiative, affirming, 'True innovation begins when we design technology with, not for, People of Determination. Technology should not just race ahead; it must include everyone.'
