JEDDAH, 9 July — Saudi Arabia yesterday announced the formation of a supreme council to deal with affairs of the disabled under the chairmanship of Crown Prince Abdullah, deputy premier and commander of the National Guard.
The announcement was made by Custodian of the Two Holy Mosques King Fahd in a Royal Decree. "Prince Abdullah has been appointed chairman of the Supreme Council for the Affairs of the Disabled," the king said in a brief decree.
The establishment of the new council headed by Prince Abdullah reflects the government’s keenness to take care of the handicapped in various parts of the country.
Prince Sultan ibn Salman, secretary-general of the Supreme Commission for Tourism and a board member of Prince Salman Center for Handicap Research, said the new council would bring about a quantum change in caring for the handicapped.
Speaking to Asharq Al-Awsat, a sister publication of Arab News, Prince Sultan said the newly approved law on looking after the disabled was the outcome of a study conducted by Prince Salman Center. He said the study, which was financed by Prince Sultan Charitable Foundation, had proposed the establishment of a supreme council for the handicapped.
He said the new council will include a number of ministers related to the affairs of the handicapped in addition to prominent personalities and businessmen, who are actibe supporters, and two members from among the handicapped.
Prince Sultan disclosed the plan to publish a national research on handicap conducted by Prince Salman Center. The research, which took three years to complete, contains a lot of facts and figures.
Meanwhile Prince Abdullah, the regent, held talks with UN Secretary-General Kofi Annan by telephone on the situation in Palestine and the ongoing efforts to revive the Middle East peace process. "They also discussed ways to bring back normal life for the Palestinian people who are now facing murder, siege and destruction at the hands of Israeli forces," the Saudi Press Agency reported.
SPA said Prince Abdullah also discussed Middle East peace and bilateral issues with Sheikh Hamad ibn Isa Al-Khalifa, king of Bahrain.
Prince Abdullah earlier arrived in Abha accompanied by a large number of princes. He is scheduled to open the fourth armed forces exhibition in the Southern Province today.
