‘Seven workers at Karak care centre suspended over abuse allegations’

AMMAN — The Ministry of Social Development on Wednesday suspended seven employees over violations committed at the Karak Centre for Disability.

Fawaz Ratrout, the ministry’s spokesperson, said the employees were also referred to Karak prosecutor Maamoun Dmour and were “accused” of negligence, and the abuse of a disabled person at the centre.

Earlier this month, a disabled person at the centre was abused and “referring these employees to court was a result of this incident”, Ratrout told The Jordan Times.

Meanwhile, Social Development Minister Reem Abu Hassan stressed that the ministry will not be lenient with any violation or abuse of any person with a disability at any care centre.

In a statement sent to The Jordan Times, she added that the ministry has signed agreements with Save the Children and Protection of Victims of Violence to conduct regular checkups on beneficiaries at disability care centres and train their staff.

Last week, the ministry launched an investigation to look into complaints about violations at a Jerash disability care centre.

“The investigation is still ongoing and we have not received any report from the committee yet,” Ratrout said on Wednesday.

Although the ministry spokesperson was reluctant to comment on the type of violations, he said some of them are related to abuse of centre residents.

The centre, which is affiliated with the ministry, houses 200 people with moderate to severe mental disabilities, he added.

According to population and housing data for 2004, the disability rate in the country stands at 1.23 per cent of the population. The 2005 World Bank report on international disability rates, however, puts the rate at a minimum of 4-5 per cent or 194,000 people.

Last year, the Social Development Ministry shut down eight care centres and issued warnings to 14 others.

The ministry stepped-up its efforts to inspect care centres in 2012 after a documentary aired by the BBC featured children being abused in several special education centres, turning the matter into an issue of public concern.

Following the documentary, His Majesty King Abdullah paid unannounced visits to several special education centres and issued directives to the government to investigate all facilities providing services to people with disabilities and hold accountable every person involved in violations.

To this end, the Social Development Ministry formed a committee to investigate the alleged violations, which is continuing to examine the situation of orphans and disability care centres across Jordan.

Several centres have been closed down or received warnings since then, while legal action has been taken against staff members found responsible for violations.