Cairo - The visually impaired secondary students in the Delta Governorate of Kafr el-Sheikh suffer from terrible conditions and neglect in their school -" El-Noor School for Blind Students. The students, who study and board at the school for five days a week, complain that the Education Ministry has let the school fall into complete disrepair. "The conditions are appalling. Dust covers everything and insects have taken over the class rooms and living spaces," said Heba Mohamed, a secondary student. "Waters leaks through the roofs. There is no maintenance and cleaning, not even in the bathrooms. In the morning, the female students need to cross the courtyard if they want to go to the bathroom, which is totally inadequate considering that they are blind," she added and expressed her frustration that the teachers and the Ministry ignored their demands. "Why does our society ignore the plight of blind people and expect them to put up with anything, regardless how bad?" Mohamed wanted to know. Ahmed el-Sawi, also a secondary student, complained about the administrative crisis. "We don't only suffer from terrible conditions, but the administration is simply not up to its task. Reda Ali, the headmistress, is indifferent and ignores the students' complaints. She was even transferred to another school, but now she's back," he explained. "The blind students have started a strike in the school's courtyard, asking for safe premises and an efficient administration," he asserted. An MP has also called on the Ministry to establish a modern school that meets the blind students' needs. "The students suffer from many problems. I want to give only one example: they have to sleep in bunk beds. How can they possibly climb up and down?" MP Hassan Abou She'esha wondered. "These students need a well-equipped modern school. The Government must listen to their demands," he added. A Ministry official said that they were going to implement the blind students' demands. "The Ministry will renovate the school, and there is already a judicial ruling on the head mistress," Attia Abdel-Fattah, the Secretary-General of the Education Ministry in Kafr el-Sheikh, told Al-Horriyya wa Al-Adala newspaper. "However, the students will continue to strike until their demands are met," el-Sawi asserted.
