Living in Peru : your everyday companion

(LIP-jl) -- According to Peru 21, more than 1,500 disabled citizens will march on the Parliamentary building today to demand equal rights, as well as to shed light on the general lack of support they receive from the Peruvian government.

Peru's National Confederation of Disabled People has threatened to seek international assistance if they are not heard today.

The march, dubbed "The Sensitizing March for the Rights and Dignity of Disabled People" will begin its route in downtown Lima's University Park (Parque Universitario) and continue along Abancay Avenue until they reach the grounds of the Peruvian Congress.

The President of the National Confederation of Disabled People, Wilfredo Guzman Jara, charged that the Peruvian government has produced actions against the rights of Peru's disabled people during the past months.

Jara strongly criticized the recent closures of schools that catered to disabled students. He also charged that severe budgets cuts have unfairly targeted one of Peru's most neglected populations and called on government authorities to enforce the labor protection law which grants equal hiring opportunities to disabled job hunters.