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Interregional Seminar and Symposium on Annex VOpening Ceremony Keynote AddressAnna WU, Chairperson It is my great honour this morning to welcome you all to the Opening Ceremony of the Interregional Seminar and Symposium on International Norms and Standards relating to Disability held in Hong Kong. A year ago the United Nations Division for Social Policy and Development convened a Consultative Expert Group Meeting in Berkeley [California, USA]. The Meeting reviewed the existing international norms and standards relating to disability and considered ways whereby these norms and standards may best be implemented in the national context. The Berkeley Meeting recommended, among other things, that regional or interregional forums should be organised to develop strategies for practical action to promote the rights of people with disabilities. The Hong Kong Seminar and Symposium is a follow up of the Berkeley recommendation. It will examine a wide range of issues relating to policy design, legislation, planning and evaluation, capacity building and new approaches to definitions of disability. The deliberations are expected to contribute significant insights and outline new approaches to disability actions. The Hong Kong Equal Opportunities Commission (the "EOC") is proud to have been entrusted by the United Nations Secretariat with organising this important project in collaboration with the Centre for Comparative and Public Law of the Faculty of Law of the University of Hong Kong. As a statutory body set up in 1996 to work towards the elimination of discrimination and to promote the equality of opportunity between persons with and without a disability, we are pleased to partner with the United Nations and contribute to the world effort to equalise opportunities for persons with disabilities, and to the Asian and Pacific Decade of Disabled Persons (1993 - 2002). A feature of the Hong Kong Seminar is the emphasis on accessible Internet technologies. We consider this to be an important element of present-day disability actions. This is because the issue of information accessibility not only concerns basic human rights but also is fundamental to the empowerment of people with disabilities. In this information era one will quickly become disadvantaged if one cannot access the large amount of information, which is available to everybody else. For people with disabilities, especially people with sensory disabilities, the lack of equal opportunities in accessing information has long been a major barrier to their full participation in society. The advancement in information technologies, particularly the emergence of the Internet and its rapid popularisation, is giving a new perspective to this issue of information accessibility. On the one hand, because information available in the Internet is free and can be obtained at one's home, it should be most accessible to people with disabilities and can be used as a useful tool of empowerment for them. On the other hand, if the Internet or the information therein is not in an accessible form, it will be of little benefit to them and may actually work against them. As society becomes more and more digitalised, electronic communication through the Internet will soon become the norm rather than the exception. Inaccessibility of the Internet will therefore result in people with disabilities being quickly marginalised. During the Seminar a two-day training workshop on disability rights advocacy will be conducted, with on-line interaction between the workshop participants and a trainer based outside Hong Kong. This is an experimental approach to national capacity building by using accessible Internet technologies for distance collaboration. A special session on information technology is also arranged to address the question of accessibility of information technology. Raising this question has particular relevance for Hong Kong at this point in time as the Government is about to widely promote the use of information technology, both in the provision of public services and in commercial activities. Taking into account the needs for people with disabilities and other disadvantages at the design stage in the development of new technologies is much easier and more economical than taking remedial actions subsequently. Our vision is to create a barrier free society for all, irrespective of disability. By barrier free I do not just refer to physical barriers, but also barriers to access to education, to health care services, to other social services and facilities, and, equally if not more importantly, to information. Let us join hands in achieving this vision together. Before I close I wish to thank, on behalf of the EOC, the Division for Social Policy and Development of the United Nations Secretariat, the University of Hong Kong's Faculty of Law, and the Joint Council for the Physically and Mentally Disabled, for the opportunity to work with them in organising this Seminar and Symposium. Last but not the least, I must also thank all of you for your presence and support for this initiative. The week to come will prove to be a full and challenging programme. However, with the distinguished expertise and rich experience that is among us, I have no doubt that the Interregional Seminar and Symposium will fulfil its mission. Thank you. |
