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Interregional Seminar and Symposium on VIII. Summary of proceedings: session on information technologies and persons with a disability[141]
Mr. Frederick Tong, Director (Disability) Equal Opportunities Commission, opened the Special Session on information technologies and persons with a disability. He recalled that Chief Executive Tung Chee-hwa recently pledged to make Hong Kong a high-technology city. Thus, the topic of the session was of special interest to EOC, since accessible information and communication technologies is one of the key areas of its work in the new millennium. Information and communication technologies had become important factors in the lives and well being of all people in Hong Kong. EOC would be directing special attention to practical and cost-effective technologies, which can eliminate – or reduce – gaps in opportunities for all people in Hong Kong to access information resources that they need in their daily lives. Mr. Clinton Rapley of the United Nations Secretariat provided a brief introduction to pilot efforts by the Division for Social Policy and Development to design and produce accessible Internet-based services. He noted that the Division and its predecessor unit at the United Nations Office at Vienna had been concerned with accessible information goods and services for more than 10 years. These efforts involved client-side fixes to bring a visually impaired colleague into an electronic work group to enable him to be self-reliant in the conduct of his duties. The pilot work was done in cooperation with specialists at the Technical University of Vienna (Austria). With the transfer of the Division to the New York Headquarters and the roll out of United Nations Secretariat-wide Internet services in the second-half of the 1990s, the question arose of how well this new technology would serve the specialised constituencies of the social development programme of the United Nations. Creation of digital content was not a sufficient condition for the provision of accessible information services. There was a need to rethink information goods, constituencies and channels of their delivery and feedback. Involving persons with disabilities as agents and beneficiaries of accessible information goods and services has a basis in international norms and standards; relevant precedence is available in national law; a practical reality is the importance of building “market share” by better service to under-served constituencies. The relevant international norm is Rule 5 - Accessibility - of the United Nations Standard Rules, which urges Governments to “develop strategies to make information services and documentation accessible for different groups of persons with disabilities.”[142] Governmental policy experience comes from Canada, which states in its Guide to the Internet[143] that “It is every Canadian’s right to receive Government information or service in form that can be used, and it is the Government of Canada’s obligation to provide it.” Information can be both driver and facilitator in re-engineering processes; it also is a basic right. The pilot Internet accessibility initiative of the Division for Social Policy and Development had a single value proposition and two performance requirements. The value proposition was to achieve the “best possible total solution to Internet accessibility,” since the focus of the work was not on any one category of persons with disabilities - or with persons with disabilities alone. Performance requirements were: (1) creation of user-friendly Web sites based on universal design principles and which were consistent with the international accessibility standards of the World Wide Web consortium;[144] and (2) production of content that was text-based or included low-density graphics in order to serve users in low bandwidth (telecommunications capacity) settings. Strategic planning was an essential part of the Internet accessibility initiative, since once necessary managerial approvals were obtained the time frame to implement final products was four months. A five paragraph one-page strategic plan was drafted: (1) Vision. Formulation of a vision statement is essential to build awareness of the initiative and promote a consensus for first principles and changes to be introduced. The vision statement emphasised the need for provision of timely, relevant and accessible social development information resources for all. (2) Scope and priorities. The scope of the Internet accessibility initiative was, first, persons with disabilities in countries. The second concern was to be able to support two time-bound priority activities of the Division: the 1999 observance of the International Year of Older Persons and preparations for the year 2000 special session of the General Assembly to consider progress in implementing the commitments of World Summit for Social Development. In short, Internet accessibility would benefit all. (3) Feasibility and strategic components. The time frame for planning, testing and developing accessible Internet content ruled out any original research and design efforts. Instead the initiative made maximum effective use of open source design tools and Web accessibility validators on line, in particular the resources of the Center for Applied Special Technology.[145] The Microsoft Corporation provided a CD-ROM of a collection of Web accessibility guidelines and tools, which also are available at its Web site, at http://www.microsoft.com/enable. The international consultant team for Internet accessibility prepared a “Primer” [146] on accessibility on the Internet, which provides a concise and comprehensive set of Internet accessibility principles and tools. (4) Implementation plan. The Internet initiative was outsourced to the private sector since the requisite technical resources were not available to the United Nations Secretariat. The team was headed Vision Office Support Services, Ltd. (Canada) in cooperation with Communications for Development (Spain).[147] (5) Monitoring and evaluation. On-line validators[148] were used extensively to check beta-versions against international accessibility standards as well as to ensure that page designs would load in less than one minute with slow modems. A great deal of input -- solicited and otherwise – came from beta testers, which enriched the design process: flames and contributed insights were an invaluable part of the accessible Web design process. Implementation of the prototype accessible Internet presence was only part of the task. The second challenge was to build awareness and strengthen skills for design, preparation and maintenance of accessible Internet content. Two tracks were followed: initially, resident staff training workshops were organised, although this was associated with an observed fall-off rate once the subject matter became technical. To expand the reach of the training experience, content was placed experimentally on an Internet site by the sub-contractor for training in Internet accessibility. Publication of training resources in cyberspace as well as conducting practicals by means of distance collaboration added considerable value to the training experience as well as opening it up to a larger and non-traditional community than United Nations staff.[149] A second training track – building national capacities of requesting Governments - emerged as a result of a request of the Government of the Philippines for sub-regional training in Internet accessibility concepts, issues and methods, which led to the “ASEAN Seminar on Internet Accessibility and Persons with Disabilities” organised by the Secretariat of the Association of Southeast Asian Nations and the National Institute of Development Administration of Thailand, from 12-16 July 1999 at Bangkok.[150] Since any initiative in technological innovation entails considerable risk, a strategic plan and clear priorities are essential to guide the work and to assess outcomes. There are several lessons on how to proceed from the Internet accessibility effort: (1) Define clearly the need for action, the probable constituencies and stakeholders; identify the relevant policy frameworks for the initiative; and formulate a clear and concise vision statement. (2) Identify priorities for action that correspond with specific policy imperatives as well as relevant organisational goals and programmes; formulate outcomes that are consistent with available resources (including time) and have reasonable expectation of attainment and sustainability. (3) Do not proceed alone with the initiative; minimise risk by identifying sponsors and alliance partners for implementation; and involve beta testers through the project cycle. (4) Do not develop content alone: use the power of the Internet to add value to your proposition and to promote dialogue and exchanges of ideas and experiences. (5) Seek to recover the costs of development and operations, in terms of financial or political resources. (6) Communicate regularly during the project cycle throughout the operational phase of the activity; and document each result or problem encountered to have a visible record of achievement; and do not proceed too far afield from your constituencies in terms of designs, content or functionality. Internet accessibility is a process of continuous innovation better to serve specialised constituencies. This does beg the question of what are the “next big things” that will influence or affect accessible information goods and services. First, the next big thing will not be associated with platforms, devices or performance benchmarks. The next big thing would be associated with telecommunications since technological advances, and wide spread, low-cost and reliable access represent key enabling factors in promoting accessible ICT for all. Moreover, the open-standards that define the Internet have facilitated its rapid expansion around the world. Internet access - Web tone - requires predictable and low-cost telecommunications services. Those services should be supported by policies that support IP (Internet Protocol)-based solutions. Telecommunications capacity determines functionality; and bandwidth should be reasonably available on demand in a predicable and scaleable manner. Secondly, applications increasingly will be delivered by portals to desktops rather than by means of individual desktop applications seeking content and plug-in applications from cyberspace. This later factor perhaps poses the greatest challenge to accessibility, since most portal-based services require special applets to function and such applets are rarely compatible with the current generation of assistive devices. Mr. Graham Brant, General Manager, Microsoft Hong Kong, thanked the organisers for providing Microsoft with the opportunity to participate in this special session on information technology. Computer technology now affected practically all aspects of our daily lives and making computers and their associated technologies accessible to every member of society was now critical. He reported that meeting the needs of people with disabilities had always been a priority for Microsoft, which has been involved in accessibility issues for more than decade. People with disabilities were uppermost in the company's product development strategies. Microsoft took pride in its position as a leader in making products accessible to disabled people and raising standards for the whole computer industry. Accessibility options, features and controls had been built into Microsoft software and operating systems, and a large number of accessibility aids had been developed to help people with more severe disabilities.[151] Some of the ways in which computer needs of people with disabilities are being met include the following:
Microsoft continued to research and develop products, which would make computer technology increasingly accessible to all members of our communities worldwide, no matter what their disability or difficulty. Dr. Lu Qin, Associate Professor, The Chinese Computing Laboratory, Department of Computing, Hong Kong Polytechnic University, gave an account of a computer software programme “Access with Speech and Braille for Chinese Windows 98” (ASAB 98v1.1) developed by the Department of Computing, Hong Kong Polytechnic University in collaboration with the Hong Kong Society for the Blind and funded for the last three years by the Hong Kong Jockey Club, supplemented by the Polytechnic University (Annex VII). ASAB 98 is the first general-purpose Chinese computer interface for the visually impaired. It is an add-on software application, which helps the visually impaired access Microsoft Windows and its applications. ASAB 98 provided both Cantonese and English output as well as Cantonese and English Braille input and output. Instead of producing a specialised word processing software, which could only be used by the visually impaired, ASAB 98 enabled a totally blind person to handle Chinese processing with the regular Microsoft Window's graphic user interface environment (GUI). When GUI was first introduced and popularised by the Microsoft Windows platform, it brought some unforeseen problems for the visually impaired. Although a Windows bridge programme released in 1992 allowed Windows to be used via voice synthesisers and subsequently with Braille equipment, these products did not support the use of Chinese on the Windows platform. Before ABAS 98, visually impaired people in Hong Kong and other parts of China could not enjoy full access to various software packages, which have long been used by the visually impaired in the Western countries. Only a few stand-alone software packages were available to do simple Chinese word processing. The development of software to help the visually impaired use a Chinese Windows platform was not easy given the complicated nature of Chinese Braille. Due to the ideographic nature of Chinese characters and the sheer size of the Chinese character set (more than 13,000), Chinese Braille input and output was phonetic-based rather than character based, unlike English Braille systems. Since it was phonetic-based, different dialects had their own specific Braille encoding system. ABAS 98 allowed the visually impaired person to work with the commonly used Chinese Windows 98 application for the sighted, such as Microsoft Word and Excel, with only an additional speech synthesizer and/or Braille device. This system helped the visually impaired use computers comprehensively. Most importantly it increased their ability to integrate into the mainstream of society by opening up employment opportunities and increasing opportunities for social interaction. Mr. Chong Chan-yau, Vice-chairperson of the Joint Council for the Physically and Mentally Disabled, President of the Hong Kong Blind Union, pointed out that access to information determined social inclusion or social exclusion (Annex VIII). He warned of the need to be vigilant if we were to avoid the information divide, which comes with the information age. People with visual impairments had long faced the reality that printed matter were alien and that paper form filling was simply an insurmountable hurdle. However, in the past few decades speech synthesizers, refreshable Braille display, optical character recognition and smart screen software had helped overcome this hurdle. Information technology had opened up new opportunities for people with visual impairment in employment, education and daily life. The Internet provided an exciting possibility of closing the information gap between people with visual impairments and their sighted counterparts. “E-info” and “e-services” could literally be accessible right at their fingertips. However, Mr Chong warned the threat of social exclusion came in the form of Web site designs that did not take into account users with disabilities. Accessible Web site design did not mean higher cost or sacrificing efficiency or quality. The major problems with Web site design were with graphics, pictures, images and tables, which were not readable by speech and Braille software and hardware. Simple guidelines for good design practice could be followed, e.g. the “Web accessibility initiative” documented and reviewed by the W3C group.[153] In general, good design discouraged excessive use of images, which are irrelevant to the information provided. Accessibility for people with visual impairments also benefited people who access the Internet through text-based browsers, dial-up modems and computers with limited processing capacities. In fact, the principles of good design were adopted by Web sites with the highest visitor rates. Hong Kong did not yet have an official code of practice or policy that protects the right to equal access to information. Both in public and private sectors, awareness of Web accessibility was low. The majority of Hong Kong Web sites, including those of the Government, currently were inaccessible to people with visual impairments. However, following requests by the Hong Kong Blind Union and the Equal Opportunities Commission, several Government Departments had improved their Web accessibility. As the Government in Hong Kong was keen to make Hong Kong a leader in the application of IT (information technologies) and was vigorously working on projects to deliver public service electronically and encourage IT applications in the private sector, Mr. Chong expressed his concern that these projects should be carried out with accessibility in mind. Web accessibility was an equal opportunity issue. In some countries the right to equal access to information was a civil right guaranteed by the constitution or other legislation. In Hong Kong the Disability Discrimination Ordinance provided a right to equal access to goods and services, which might be applicable to Internet access and access to e-services. However, to safeguard persons with disabilities, Mr. Chong urged the Government of the Hong Kong SAR to introduce mandatory policies to protect the right to equal access for public services and information delivered through electronic means. He also called on Internet service providers, Web designers, business and public bodies to take up the challenge of Web accessibility. [141] Products mentioned in these proceedings are trademarked / registered by the respective owner / manufacturer. [142] General Assembly resolution 48/96, annex of 20 December 1993 <http://www.un.org/esa/socdev/enable/disacc.htm>. [143] Government of Canada. Guide to the Internet, third edition (Ottawa, 1998). [145] <http://www.cast.org/bobby>. [146] < http://www.un.org/esa/socdev/disacc00.htm>. [147] A summary of the project implementation report is available at http://www.visionoffice.com/spd. [148] See for example, State of Connecticut (USA), “CMAC Web Site Accessibility Committee; accessibility tools” <http://www.cmac.state.ct.us/access/tools.html>. [149] Seminar on “Internet Accessibility 1998” <http://www.un.org/esa/socdev/enable/access2000/index.html>. [150] < http://www.worldenable.net/iaasean/Default.htm>. [151] < http://www.microsoft.com/enable/>. [152] < http://www.microsoft.com/enable/training/windows98/SoundSentry.htm>. |
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