Manzar Gardezi
There are countless ways to communicate in the world. We express our thoughts through speech and writing, and we receive information through hearing and sight. Even when people lose their vision or hearing, they can remain connected with the world through Braille, sign language, and various assistive technologies. But imagine a person who can neither hear nor see. How would they communicate with the world? How would they express their feelings, thoughts, and needs? How would they receive an education or recognize danger in an emergency?
This is where Tactile Sign Language emerges as an essential means of communication.
Tactile Sign Language is a communication system that uses touch instead of sound or sight. A deafblind person places their hands on the hands of another person and feels the movements of their fingers, palms, and hands to understand words, sentences, and ideas. In this remarkable form of communication, hands become both the voice and the ears.
In Pakistan, people with deafblindness—the combined loss of hearing and vision—remain deprived of adequate government attention and essential services. There is no reliable national data establishing their exact number, while formal and effective public-sector facilities for the education, training, and rehabilitation of deafblind children are also lacking. As a result, these children are deprived not only of their fundamental rights to education and communication but also of opportunities for personal development, independence, and meaningful participation in society. This is not merely a shortage of services; it is also a problem of recognition. This community needs a clearly defined place in national policy and planning.
When a particular group is not properly identified and reliable statistics are unavailable, it can easily be overlooked in policymaking. Deafblind people may be counted among persons with visual impairments in some instances and among those with hearing impairments in others. Consequently, their distinct needs often remain invisible.
The problem extends far beyond statistics. Access to information is essential in education, healthcare, public services, courts, employment, and everyday life. If a deafblind person visits a hospital, approaches a government office, or wishes to present their case in a legal matter, they need a communication system that enables them to understand information directly and express themselves effectively. Depending solely on family members or a few people willing to assist cannot serve as a permanent substitute for equal access to public services.
Various institutions and organizations in Pakistan have made valuable contributions to the development of Pakistan Sign Language (PSL). However, tactile communication, trained interpreters, and assistive communication services for deafblind people need to be organized and expanded more systematically at the national level. Early intervention, education, training, and rehabilitation are particularly essential for deafblind children. These services can help them realize their potential and become empowered citizens rather than being perceived as a burden on society.
This need becomes even more urgent when we look beyond education and employment to emergencies and natural disasters. During earthquakes, floods, storms, or fires, warnings are commonly communicated through sirens, public announcements, telephone messages, television broadcasts, and warning signs. However, these methods are ineffective for someone who can neither see nor hear. Disaster preparedness must therefore include accessible communication, early warnings, and specialized arrangements for the safe evacuation of deafblind people.
With this understanding, the Asia-Pacific Meeting on Disability-Inclusive Disaster Risk Reduction was held in Sendai, Japan, in April 2014. The meeting focused on reducing disaster risks and ensuring the meaningful inclusion of persons with disabilities in disaster management. I had the privilege of attending the meeting as a delegate from Pakistan. One of the central concerns was that disaster planning should not be designed exclusively around the needs of the general population. Instead, it must also account for the specific requirements of people with different disabilities, particularly the deafblind community. Without accessible information, appropriate communication methods, and meaningful participation in emergency planning, no disaster management strategy can be considered complete.
At this meeting, Ms. Akiko Fukuda, identified as the Secretary-General of the World Federation of the Deafblind, helped move the discussion beyond the narrow framework of assistance and sympathy. As a woman who is herself deafblind, she emphasized that modern technology has undoubtedly created new possibilities for persons with disabilities, but technology alone is not enough. What truly matters is communication between people, mutual trust, and a willingness to care for one another. Rather than viewing persons with disabilities merely as people in need of help, she argued for recognizing them as active agents of change.
This experience further reinforced my understanding that disability cannot be addressed adequately through a purely charitable or educational approach. It is also a matter of rights, accessibility, equality, and human dignity. When a person cannot access information, they may also be deprived of fundamental opportunities in education, healthcare, employment, justice, and emergency protection.
The global concept of inclusion emphasizes that persons with disabilities should not be treated merely as people dependent on assistance, but as equal citizens. From this perspective, educational institutions, government departments, courts, hospitals, and other public services must provide accessible means of communication. Trained interpreters and assistive communication systems for deafblind people are essential components of this right to access.
Tactile Sign Language also reminds us of a fundamental human truth: communication is not limited to sound, words, or sight. At its heart, communication is the human desire to reach another person, express oneself, and understand someone else. When society recognizes an individual’s specific needs and develops appropriate means of communication, disability no longer has to remain a barrier to human connection.
Pakistan needs to take concrete steps to ensure that deafblind people are explicitly recognized in national policies, statistical systems, and public services. Reliable data must be collected about their numbers and needs. Educational and rehabilitation centres should be established for deafblind children, training programmes in tactile communication and interpretation should be introduced, accessible services should be provided in educational institutions and government offices, and the specific needs of this community should be formally incorporated into disaster preparedness and response plans.
The progress of a society cannot be measured solely by its towering buildings, modern roads, or economic growth. Another important measure is how much space, how much voice, and how much dignity it offers to citizens whose needs remain invisible within ordinary systems.
As early as 2014, deafblind women such as Akiko Fukuda were raising an essential question at international forums: How can a disaster warning reach someone who can neither see nor hear? Yet in Pakistan, reliable national data on people with combined hearing and visual impairments, specialized educational facilities, and a comprehensive rehabilitation system remain major gaps.
Pakistan’s deafblind citizens are among us. They may not see or hear as we do, but they feel, think, learn, love, and have dreams of their own. They do not need pity. They need equal opportunities, accessible information, education, rehabilitation, and the means to communicate with dignity.
And perhaps this is the most beautiful message of Tactile Sign Language:
When the voice falls silent and the light fades away, human beings can still reach one another—through a single touch.
The writer is a Director Legal & Admin(Rtd.) at Directorate General of Special Education Islamabad.
