Eymar's Nicaraguan world

The story of Eynar Alexander Mendoza Vásquez’s life as a disabled person in Nicaragua has echoes all over the world and yet remains essentially his own

I’m currently a university student with few problems of discrimination given that the lecturers and students are understanding of my condition. But my path through education in Nicaragua has not always been smooth.

At four years old I started to walk. This was due not to any medical intervention; doctors I saw were discouraging and wrote me off. It was because of the belief and encouragement I had from my mother and grandmother.

I enrolled in pre-school at five. In the beginning, almost everything went well, until the day they did an activity that one of the teachers wouldn’t allow me to take part in because of my condition. My teacher even came and told me that I was a “spastic” who couldn’t do anything. When I told my grandmother she immediately went to the school and told the headmistress that if she didn’t dismiss the teacher she, my grandmother, would report her to the Ministry of Education.

That was my first step but not my last of course. Later, when I was six, I faced a greater trial: the world that surrounded me. On entering primary school I was now not only fighting to gain my teachers’ and classmates’ acceptance but the rest of society’s too. At first sight they would make fun of me and call me names. Regarding education itself, I had no more problems given that I was twice moved up in second and fourth grades for having excellent marks. I finished primary school as a good pupil.

But the beginning of each new stage was like starting all over again from scratch, since it was necessary to show I was capable of doing the same as the others. In the first two years of secondary school I sat in the classroom but didn’t do the same; because I couldn’t write as fast as my classmates I just used to read the lesson. Even with this I carried on being a good pupil.

I continued my education in another school, the Rodolfo Rodríguez Alvarado Preventative School “Los Quinchos”, where they welcomed me with the pleasure, respect and consideration that up until then only my family had shown me. I finished my secondary schooling there; it was the school where they treated me as just one more pupil and not as disabled and useless. There I learned that I wanted to be part of a more inclusive country.

Nowadays, the problem is physical access to the campus, due to lack of alterations suitable for people with disabilities. Getting from my house to the university is a big problem because the buses aren’t suitable for people with disabilities and most of the drivers aren’t very understanding of my condition. Another barrier is adapting to the education programme.

Besides my studies I do other things such as voluntary work in my neighbourhood library, teaching children to play chess; I’m also part of a youth group that promotes environmental conservation and closeness to God, where we go on walks and meet up with other youth groups. Another interest of mine is playing football with my friends; I love it and really like the fact that I manage to play, even with the difficulty my motor condition presents, but what excites me most of all is the fact they let me join a team.

I also carry out voluntary work with ASNIC (the Nicaraguan Association for Inclusive Communities). ASNIC has given me an opportunity to carry out various activities in favour of disability, such as informing public universities about the need to adapt their entrance exams (for people with disabilities) and travelling to England in representation of the board of directors. The trip allowed me to see what policies could be applied in my country.

I believe we need to carry out a census which would show how many people with disabilities there are in Nicaragua, what they do and what opportunities, in every sense of the word, each one has. It’s also hugely important that young people take part in any action carried out because change lies in our hands, implementing plans and strategies that will bring us change sooner. And, especially, young people with disabilities should take into account that nobody will feel their pain, and that they are the most qualified in bringing about change in attitudes.

I think what is most lacking in Nicaragua is the willingness to help, given that in my personal case it wasn’t resources that were of vital importance but the desire to help. By this I don’t mean resources are unnecessary but without the desire to help or even the desire to do things, absolutely nothing would be possible. Without the existence of organisations to defend the rights of people with disabilities, nothing would be achieved. The contribution of organisations such as ASNIC, Los Pipitos and ADIFIN (Nicaragua’s disability organisation) amongst others has been to work on projects that raise the spirit of improvement and self-worth of children, young people and adults.

Currently, projects are underway to change the general public’s views, in which people with disabilities teach awareness raising workshops in order to promote equal rights.

I want to finish by sharing with you what my family used to say to me when I was little; it’s what showed me the path to becoming the person I am today – “Let’s make an Eynar for the world and not a world for Eynar!”

Many thanks to the people who have given me the opportunity to express what a person with a disability feels, needs and deserves, which is to experience the inalienable rights of any human being.

• Written by Eynar Alexander Mendoza Vásquez, translation from the Spanish by Gill Holmes.

•• ASNIC is a Nicaraguan development organisation supported by CODA International (a UK-based organisation that enables the participation of excluded groups in decision-making processes).