UNMIK ON AIR
DOCUMENTARY ABOUT THE BLIND
(Hysni)
OFFICE ATMOSPHERE
CUT 1: The computer is an ordinary one, but I
have a special software program that speaks, and it enables a blind person to
have the same access to computers as other people.
Gezim Rexha, a broadcast media monitor with the OSCE and one of an
estimated 2000 blind people in Kosovo.
INTRODUCTION: Hello and welcome to this special edition of UNMIK
on air!
A post-war society has so many problems to deal with, that its
priorities generally exclude people with disabilities. Kosovo’s blind are no
exception to this rule – often they lack the basic necessities for blind
people, things like white sticks and seeing eye dogs let alone Braille watches
or more sophisticated products specially made for people with visual
disabilities. They also have to cope with incomprehension or even prejudice on
the part of people they deal with – and everything can become a big deal, from
crossing the road to finding a job.
Yet, people find unexpected strengths in themselves as they learn
to cope with their disabilities – today, we introduce you to 3 blind people,
Gezim, Nazmi and Mentor, who have managed to overcome their handicap and make a
go of their lives.
Atmosphere or music
The idea of a blind person monitoring broadcast media might appear
incongruous or even impossible to some. But Gezim Rexha has taken to his job
with enthusiasm – an English graduate from the University of Prishtina, Gezim
is highly appreciated by his colleagues at the OSCE.
ATMOS Gezim reads a Braille book; What do you do
when you meet a word that you do not know in your reading?
LINK: It is amazing to see Gezim’s hypersensitive fingers glide
over the paper as he reads a Braille text. Gezim in fact was the first blind
student at the English Department in Pristina University.
CUT 2: I had problems from the moment when I
applied, mainly because of prejudices, inexperience and the inability of
professors there to understand that a blind person can study normally together
with other students.
LINK: Gezim proved his professors wrong – not only did he show
that a blind student could study with other students; he was also one of the
top students in the English faculty. But it took hard work, diligence and a
tremendous amount of faith in his capacities.
Since there were no Braille textbooks available, he became a
member of some English libraries that used to send him books by mail. The irony
is that he had more textbooks than his fellow students and this was pre-war
Kosovo! The other irony of course is that subjects in his mother tongue
Albanian proved to be the biggest challenge.
CUT 3: I had problems with exams in Albanian.
That took lots of time. I had to find somebody to read the book for me, I had
to record it each time in order to prepare for the exam.
Tr. 63 Written exams were another challenge for me but I always found alternatives, for things like dictation and translation, I used to bring a typewriter with me since I had no computer at that time.
LINK: Fellow students were often helpful, says Gezim, but its
clear he wouldn’t be where he is today without iron determination.
CUT 4: Teachers could
not believe I would make it, and up to some point I understood and justified
them, but I felt very bad since I knew that the blind in other countries of the
world, and in the region, could study normally. I felt weak, because I was on
my own and I did not know how to convince them. This was frustrating.
LINK: There’s nothing Gezim feels he cannot take on today, but
then that’s because he learnt how to draw on his own inner resources and
refused to allow his disability to rule his life.
ATMOS (Radio)
LINK: 45-year-old Nazmi Sejfullahu was
only a child when he stepped on an explosive device, a remnant of World War
Two. That fateful step resulted in the loss of sight in both eyes, something he
prefers not to talk about.
ATMOS Dial, radio
LINK: A father of 2 children, Nazmi has
been working as a switchboard operator at the Iber Lepenci social enterprise
for over 22 years. Not a job that most
would consider exciting, but Nazmi enjoys his job, being in constant touch with
people is real fun, he says.
Sense organs are wonderful things – the deprivation of one sense sharpens other senses, opening up all kinds of dimensions normal people can only try and imagine. Nazmi, like other blind person is extremely sensitive to sound – the simple exercise of hearing is a completely different experience for people who cannot see. Seeing colours in voices for example.
CUT 5: Hysni: To my surprise, though we had talked only
once quite some while ago, you could remember my voice.
Nazmi: It is true that I remember the voice color very well.
Nazmi: All voices have color. Yours, too.
ATMOS: Radio; Nazmi; Yes, I got it, NN is on the field….
LINK: Nazmi’s colleagues are proud of him and cant get over their
amazement at how he can remember thousands of phone numbers by heart.
CUT 6: It is a pleasure for me that all the staff
here do not have to bother to remember numbers of their home, family members,
relatives. They just say; Nazi, please connect me to this person or that person
and I just do it.
ATMOS
CUT 7: One time I happened to be away from the
switchboard, I had been invited for a coffee. Gezim, a colleague, wanted to be
connected to his home. When my replacement asked for the number he was told to
ask me because my colleague didn’t remember his own number!.
LINK: If his sense of humour is one thing that keeps him
going, his concern for other blind people is another thing that gives meaning
to his life.
CUT 8: Today I got the
news, the very good news, that the director of the Central Hospital in Prizren,
Dr. Muzafer Kalenderimi, did a great thing, he accepted a telephone operator,
Mr. Hysni Buqaj, a father of two. Hysni and his wife Miradie are both blind.
That’s something typical in Kosovo, blind people living together. Another blind
girl who qualified in physiotherapy was also accepted at the hospital. I am
very appreciative.
LINK: Given the lack of awareness of problems faced by
blind people by society at large, Nazmi and others like him have learned to
stand by each other. The blind can lead the blind sometimes.
ATMOS (Mentor in a live show with Radio Kosova) We
start the show “Good Evening Kosovo”, with the song “Come back”, come back all
you who can help Kosovo, you all who can invest, let us become better and
better.
LINK: Mentor Mripa, Kosovo’s best-known blind singer and the host
of Good Evening Kosovo on the public broadcaster RTK. The lack of sight is more
than compensated by music; it is my life he says.
CUT 9: I listened to music way before I started
to sing. I listen far more to the music of others than to mine. When I listen to my songs, I think I could
have sung better here and there.
LINK: Mentor’s job with Radio Kosova seems to have been tailor made for him, it’s a fabulous link with the outside world, and for Mentor, a dream come true.
CUT 10: I have always been open, my wish was to
work for a radio that is listened across Kosovo, as well as in Europe and
around the world. We began with one show and now I have four. Thanks to the Internet it can be heard all
around the world; we have listeners from America, Canada, New Zealand,
Australia. Could it be more delightful?
ATMOS: (Mentor Radio Kosova) Here goes the song “Memories”
from Sabri Fejzullahu….
LINK: Mentor has many prizes as a singer and songwriter to his credit. He was also been the first blind actor to play a role in a Kosovar film in 1997. Yet, despite the accolades and the awards, he too has had to deal with pre-conceived notions about blind people.
CUT 11: Prejudice. How to put it, suppose you are
my boss, and I want to do something, and you say; well no I do not think you
can do it, without even giving me a chance. In many cases they close the doors
to for us just because we cannot see. In a nice way they say; “Well, we will
see, but it is quite difficult for you, etc”. You do not know whether I can do
it or not, give us an equal chance with all the others.
Mentor’s song
LINK: Nazmi, Gezim and Mentor have not only come to terms with their blindness – they all lead full lives and have a tremendous sense of solidarity with each other. That Kosovo society today is unable to do much for them is something they are prepared to understand. What they find unacceptable is the lack of sensitivity to their problems and often, discrimination as well.
CUT 12: Mentor I think a general integration of the blind
is necessary. They need to have a chance to go out, to socialize, to get a job,
since jobs and integration are their only salvation.
music
CUT 13: Nazmi To help a blind person, you should provide
education, find a job for them, since a job means everything for them, so with
their own work they earn a salary, not to wait for charity.
Music
CUT 14: Gezim Give us a chance without prejudice, we are
not asking for privileges.
The blind should also raise their voice and speak for themselves
Bring up Mentor’s song
BACK/ANNO: That brings us to an end of
this special programme. Thanks for listening.