Today's Weather
Partly Cloudy
High: 70º F
Low: 56º F |
Ad Hoc Committee Meeting
Today's Schedule
9 AM - 12 PM
Agenda Item 6
Expert Panel Discussion: The Principle of nondiscrimination and equality from a
disability perspective: critical issues concerning special measures and disability
3 PM - 6 PM
Agenda Item No. 5
Review of progress in the elaboration of a convention |
The standard of leadership depends not only
on the qualities and beliefs of our leaders but also on the expectations we have of them. |
Creating A Barrier Free Society by World Blind Union
Creating a barrier free society for persons who are blind and partially sighted is a
goal of the World Blind Union.
In more recent years a movement known as "Universal Design" has evolved.
Universal design is based on the principle that the built environment, communication and
products should be accessible to the widest range of people possible. Universal design is
different from accessible design in that accessible design creates products and
environments for people with disabilities, which often tend to segregate people [by]
creating separate systems. Universal design is considered to be usable and inclusive to
all, including people with disabilities.
Although the concept of universal design is well documented, the unique design needs of
persons who are blind and partially sighted have not always been fully considered or
incorporated into the built environment. |
Lithuania - People with Disabilities
The 1991 Law on Integrating Disabled People provides for a broad category of rights and
public benefits to which disabled people are entitled legally. Legal provisions for access
to buildings for the disabled are in place but are not widely enforced; the vast majority
of public buildings re-main inaccessible to the disabled.
More than 350,000 disabled persons live in the country-10,000 of them children. A
project in Kaunas to build an apartment building for persons with disabilities has not
been completed due to a lack of funds and to the fact that the pending privatization of
the state institution that was to have supervised the project is still not complete. A
center for deaf children and a program for children with special orthopedic problems have
been created. |
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ACCESS: Think About It
We hear the term "Convention process" a lot. What does this mean? Today's
access to the UN buildings and the accommodations that have been made are a good example
of process. Process is about change and it is fair to say that since last year's Ad Hoc
Committee meeting, there has been change. For example, this session, unlike the last, we
have from the beginning a more accessible meeting room and some communication
accommodations.
As with any process, there is considerable room for improvement. Were it not for the
Convention process, there would not have been this level of understanding at the UN
Headquarters about the issue of access for persons with disabilities. Similarly, the
international human rights framework can benefit from this understanding.
When we talk about the Convention, we say we need it:
- To provide an immediate statement of international legal accountability regarding the
human rights of people with disabilities
- To clarify the content of human rights principles and their application in the context
of people with disabilities
- To provide an authoritative and global reference point for domestic law and policy
initiatives
- To establish independent mechanisms for more effective monitoring of the rights of
people with disabilities, including reporting on the enforcement and implementation of the
new convention as well as existing international instruments
- To ensure public dialogue and accountability for human rights situations
- To ensure that the human rights of persons with disabilities are equally prioritized
- To provide a tool for advocates to help bring about changes in legislation and
implementation of progress in human rights
- To contribute to the prioritization of the rights of persons with disabilities in
national and international agendas
However, what our experience today has shown is that there are important benefits to
the process. Principally, it is an opportunity to raise awareness about the human rights
of persons with disabilities and place this on the agendas. This in turn, provides
opportunities for government, disability organizations and people with disabilities to
build knowledge that results in the improvement of the lives of people with disabilities.
It is about education, and the evolution of understanding.
Interview With Robert H. Nagel, Ph.D.
Dr. Robert H. Nagel, member of the UNESCO Experts Council on People with Special Needs
and chairman of the UN's Central Communication Committee's Subcommittee on Communication
for Persons with Disabilities, knows full well the value of technology to persons with
disabilities. Dr. Nagel has experienced first-hand how much accessible technology can
vastly improve the quality of life of persons with disabilities. It wasn't until halfway
through his life that he learned that he had a disease which would eventually leave him
completely without vision, but as he says, "I've been a technologist all my
life." Through the upcoming World Summit for an Information Society, he hopes to
promote the importance of integrating accessibility into the fundamental design of
technology - both as a cost-effective measure and an indispensable part of equalizing the
rights and opportunities of persons with disabilities. For example, the actual cost of the
captioning systems that are automatically included in the design of modern televisions is
a mere penny per television produced. The integration of the system into the fundamental
design of the product means that accessibility is incredibly cost-efficient, as opposed to
the installation of captioning systems into already-existing equipment, which may take
thousands of dollars. Nagel points out that such integration will provide persons with
disabilities with access to the rights they are entitled to and help make it possible for
persons with disabilities to be viewed as assets, rather than liabilities, as their access
to working opportunities is improved and the cost of such access is lowered. Nagel was a
participant in last summer's convention process and emphasizes that a convention is
essential to raising awareness for these issues.
World Summit on the Information Society
Geneva 2003-Tunis 2005
REPORT OF THE ASIA-PACIFIC REGIONAL CONFERENCE FOR WSIS
(Tokyo, 13-15 January 2003)
Document WSIS/PC-2/DOC/6-E 22
January 2003
Original: English
Note by the WSIS Executive Secretariat
The Tokyo Declaration - the Asia-Pacific perspective to the WSIS-Preamble
Representatives of the governments of 47 countries, 22 international organizations, 54
private sector entities and 116 non-governmental organizations (NGO) of the Asia-Pacific
region gathered at the Asia-Pacific Regional Conference, held in Tokyo from 13 to 15
January 2003, to develop a shared vision and common strategies for the "Information
Society". The objective of the conference was to discuss how best to work together to
contribute to the region's effective transition to an Information Society that will
accelerate and enhance regional economic, social, cultural and technological development.
Disability issues: There are an estimated 400 million persons with disabilities in the
Asia-Pacific region. The majority are poor and have been excluded from the benefits of ICT
development due to the lack of appropriate or affordable technology for persons with
disabilities. More effort, including implementation of disabilityconcerned regional plans
of action and programmes, should be made to ensure equitable access to ICTs for persons
with disabilities.
Letters to Your Leaders
(This column is provided for your amusement during the meetings of the Ad Hoc
Committee.)
Dear Mr. President:
I know that we have disability legislation in our country that mandates that people
with disabilities should have access to all forms of public transportation, schools, and
public buildings. I have asked our Finance Minister when funding will be available to
implement this law, but he tells me that our country cannot afford to fund such things for
the disabled. What is your position on this?
Sincerely,
Still Waiting for the Bus
Dear Still Waiting:
Thank you so much for your very gracious letter.
I am afraid that our Finance Minister is right. You see, our planning and budgeting
processes only allow us to consider one budget period at a time. Providing equal access to
public transportation, schools and public buildings for the disabled would incur great
cost in the short-term. We also realize that spending money on such things now would
result in minimal spending in the future on social support programs, while at the same
time increasing income tax revenues as many more people would be employed and paying
taxes. However, we simply cannot embrace this type of visionary leadership. We are not
visionary by nature and cannot plan for such an undertaking. Perhaps in the next election
there will be a candidate running for office that has the leadership and vitality to
undertake such an ambitious plan for our country and our people.
Thank you again for taking the time to write.
Yours truly,
Your President
Speaker of Ghana's Parliament Promises Disability Law
By Kay Schriner (kays@uark.edu)
Peter Ala Adjetey, the Speaker of Ghana's Parliament, said last month that he would
secure the passage of a bill that would provide anti-discrimination protections and ensure
access for people with disabilities.
Disabled Ghanaians feel the need for such a law because, despite the provisions of the
1992 Republican Constitution (which guarantees their rights), they continue to face
significant barriers to social and economic equality. New Metro buses are inaccessible,
individuals with physical disabilities cannot hold a driver's license, and buildings and
streets are being built with no concession to the need to make them accessible.
In 2002, a National Disability Policy document was issued, which raised expectations
that a law would soon follow. But at this writing, there is no new law. The Speaker's
promise has raised expectations in the disability community in Ghana, and disabled
citizens wait to see if the promise is fulfilled. |
Supporting Organizations
 American Association of People with Disabilities
American Council of the Blind
Center for International Rehabilitation
China Disabled Persons' Federation
ouncil of Canadians with Disabilities
Disabled Peoples' International
European Disability Forum
Inter-American Institute on Disability
Landmine Survivors Network
Mental Disability Rights International
People Who
Rehabilitation International
Support Coalition International
United States International Council on Disabilities
World Blind Union
World Institute on Disability
World Network of Users and Survivors of Psychiatry
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PHYSICAL ACCESSIBILITY, ACCOMMODATION, AND HEALTH CARE
The Council of Canadians with Disabilities (CCD) A Voice of Our Own Newsletter:
In 2001, consumers active in the disability rights network alerted CCD to a significant
obstacle to consumer mobility in the air transportation system-the replacement of
accessible transportation equipment with inaccessible equipment. For example, airlines
replaced the more accessible Dash 8s with the smaller, inaccessible Beech 1900D aircraft.
Previously hard won accessibility was being taken away from people with disabilities.
Airlines explain that they are moving to smaller planes in order to remain competitive. On
14 August 2001, CCD filed a complaint about this erosion of service with the Canadian
Transportation Agency (CTA). The CTA reached its decision on 14 March 2003. Despite
recognizing that there is an obstacle, the Agency was not prepared to find that the
obstacle was undue. In its decision the Agency explains the concept of "undue",
"A balance has to be struck between the various responsibilities of transportation
service providers and the rights of persons with disabilities to travel without
encountering undue obstacles and it is the weighing of this balance that the Agency
applies the concept of undueness." At CCD we thought the access standard was based
upon what is called for in Section 15 (1) of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms: equality
before and under the law for persons with disabilities.
Not A New Argument--In the 70s when our organizations were first
established and began to advocate for accessible urban public transit, the founders of our
organizations were told it was not practicable to provide accessible bus transportation on
regular city routes. Consumers did not accept this argument and continued to advocate for
integrated transportation, with vehicles built according to universal design principles.
Today, we have accessible buses, equipped with ramps, transporting wheelchair users
alongside nondisabled travelers.
The CCD Council has made a commitment to seek regulation that would govern the access
provisions for each mode of transportation.
We welcome submissions to the Daily Bulletin. Please provide your
submissions to:
ebelmear@att.net
and
k_guernsey@yahoo.com |
