Cousin Marriages Declared A Leading Cause Of Disabilities In Pakistan

Marriage within families has been declared the top most reason for impairment according to Dr. Zulfiqar Asghar,  Mental Health Association President.

Dr Alsam, a psychologist with visual impairment said that cousin marriages being allowed in our country is a huge regret. It is even glorified in daily television dramas like Humsafar.

He reported that one billion out of eight billion suffer disability and many go unreported due to lack of owning ID cards and B-Forms , hence 90 percent people living with disability are unregistered.

He further added that disabilities can be biological, psychological and accidental. Impairment is biological but disability is a combination of biological and ‘societal’ conditions. Persons with disabilities should not be pitied, they can still do many jobs if they enable their environment like Stephen Hawking did. 

According to him and other mental health experts, disabilities in children can come down by 40% by bringing a stop to the practice of cousin marriages.