News and issues on the disabled 16 Nov 2024
Azmi Anuar
Contents
1. KSNW USA - Meals on Wheels expands services for visually impaired customers
2. 3News Ghana - Dec 7 elections: Persons with Disabilities lament exclusion from electoral processes
3. The Citizen South Africa - Visually impaired youths graduate at TUT Mbombela
4. In-Cyprus - Pancyprian Organisation of the Blind condemns ableism in transport system
5. CEOWORLD - ALECSO Hosts Inaugural Conference on Education for the Visually Impaired in Arab Countries
6. County Down Spectator UK - Blind Holywood woman’s sporting success on the court
7. Vibes Of India - Empowering Visually Impaired: International Delegates Take Part In Accessibility Summit
8. The Times of India - Visually impaired boy singing in TSRTC bus gets TV show offer
9. The Nation Newspaper Nigeria - Banks accused of discrimination against blind customers
10. Business Standard India - Give priority to 'absolute blindness' over 'low vision' in jobs: K'taka HC
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1. KSNW USA - Meals on Wheels expands services for visually impaired customers13 Nov 2024
WICHITA, Kan.— Meals on Wheels, which serves thousands of homebound seniors nationwide and in our state, is adding a new tool to better serve its clients.
The nonprofit added a telephone reader service for visually impaired people. Clients can call and request to hear the menu for the month.
Those with the program say the service greatly benefits people who are losing sight over time.
“So people don’t have to rely on, you know, their neighbor or their caregiver to read all that stuff because, you know, there’s so much printed material that comes into your life on a daily basis,” said Martha Kehr, communications and listener outreach, audio reader.
The senior services incorporated in Wichita deliver meals to homebound seniors. They say the telephone reader service benefits their clients.
Officials with the program say they are working on the December menu and hope to have it ready by the first.
To learn more about Meals on Wheels, click here.
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2. 3News Ghana - Dec 7 elections: Persons with Disabilities lament exclusion from electoral processes13 Nov 2024
As the world strives for inclusive democracy, one community that often faces significant barriers are Persons with Disabilities (PwDs).
In this special report, I explore the challenges PwDs encounter during elections and the need to advocate for inclusive democracy.
In many low-income countries, People with Disabilities are excluded from political and social engagements, unable to cast their vote or stand for election. Lack of accessibility, stigma, and inadequate policies hinder participation.
The President of Ghana Blind Union Dr. Peter Obeng Asamoa said persons with disability are relegated to the background such that participation in elections, which is their civic right, is denied them.
He said there are certain conditions that Persons living with Disability go through, specially those who are visually impaired.
“There is a device like a card that we use our thumb to feel and identify which candidate we are voting for, but one must be trained by the Electoral Commission, till date we have not received any information as the Federation keeps waiting to hear from the EC,” he said.
He added that the EC in the 2020 elections trained Persons with Disability in the various regional capitals, which did not transcend to the disability community in the districts. This deprived a lot more of the persons with disability from voting.
Dr. Obeng-Asamoa said the Federation has complained to EC on several occasions for measures to be instituted to help members take part in the electioneering process, but the help is not forthcoming.
This notwithstanding, it is left with a few days to the 2024 December 7th elections and the EC is silent about their plight and we are worried Persons with Disability would not participate in the elections,” he stated.
Some individuals in the Ghana Federation of
Persons with Disability shared their challenges during elections.
Peter Anoma Kodie, Programs Manager at the Ghana Disability Federation
Organization indicated a number of challenges that are a major setback for
voting.
He said there are other times that ballot boxes are placed over staircases where physically challenged persons on a wheelchair find it difficult to climb to vote and it is discouraging the community from participating in major elections.
Helena Ama Narh Pernuku, a person living with albinism, indicated that their vision is low and the ballot papers are not bold and clear enough, thus it is difficult to choose their candidates.
“Provision must be put in place to allow albinos vote without waiting too long in the polling station,” she appealed.
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3. The Citizen South Africa - Visually impaired youths graduate at TUT Mbombela13 Nov 2024
The Tshwane University of Technology (TUT) Mbombela Campus, in collaboration with SboBlessed Consulting, gave 15 visually impaired young people from Nsikazi an opportunity to compete in the workforce with vast skills development.
The participants, identified from the Mpumalanga Blind Skills Development Hub based in Pienaar, graduated from the TUT Skills Development Programme for People with Disabilities during a graduation ceremony at the campus on Friday, November 8.
They participated in a basic computer literacy course of two to three weeks to enhance their skills.
The director of transformation employment equity and diversity at TUT, Dr Khosana Tladi, said this programme forms part of the transformation of community engagement and upliftment at areas served by the university. “We made an analysis that young people should be trained in courses such as safety and health, communication and language and computer literacy, and this programme aims to help those who cannot take a fully fledged course. This is a continuous project that we started three years ago, rotating at all TUT campuses. We want to ensure that the skills we have in the university are available for everyone outside the university as well, for their benefit and upliftment. We hope the new graduates put their qualifications into good use and penetrate the workforce,” he said.
One of the graduates, Nomfundo Nkosi, said she is excited to enter the market with her qualification. She said she became visually impaired in 2020 after falling ill and being hospitalised.
“One thing I always say is that I am able. I am not disabled as the world identifies us. I can do anything just like anyone who has all their senses working. I am proud of myself that I managed to listen and apply myself to pass this course. I would like to make a call to the community to stop discriminating against people who are living with less than the norm. We are capable of anything,” Nkosi said.
At Caxton, we employ humans to generate daily fresh news, not AI intervention. Happy reading!
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4. In-Cyprus - Pancyprian Organisation of the Blind condemns ableism in transport system14 Nov 2024
According to the Pancyprian Organisation of the Blind, public transport accessibility does not meet basic human rights standards despite international obligations.
The organisation claims the Ministry of Transport, Communications and Works has failed to implement both international conventions on disability rights and EU regulations requiring accessible buses.
This impacts disabled passengers’ ability to live independently and participate fully in society.
Rather than adopting a human rights-based approach to disability, the ministry continues to support outdated policies and terminology, including participating in charitable fundraising events that disability organisations have called to end, the organisation says.
Despite widely publicised upgrades to make the bus fleet more accessible, the ministry has shown “unprecedented indifference” to reports from disabled passengers of harassment, discrimination and ableist behaviour, according to the organisation.
Multiple complaints have been raised directly with the Transport Minister but appear to have gone uninvestigated.
These include buses failing to stop for visually impaired passengers, drivers preventing disabled passengers from using designated priority seating, and the failure to activate already-installed stop announcement systems – a requirement under EU law that has cost hundreds of thousands of euros to implement.
The organisation also reports that bus companies have cancelled stops in city centres and peak-time services, forcing some disabled workers to rely on expensive taxi services that can cost up to €40 per day – nearly a full monthly salary for many earning around €1,000.
“Driver behaviour is often degrading, offensive and even aggressive towards passengers with disabilities, showing a complete lack of respect for their dignity and rights in general,” the organisation said in their statement.
The organisation argues these practices have become a barrier to employment, with some disabled people having to decline public sector positions due to unreliable transport.
It calls on the Republic of Cyprus to implement an accessible public transport programme that recognises visually-impaired people as equal citizens with rights adopted by the United Nations almost 80 years ago.
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5. CEOWORLD - ALECSO Hosts Inaugural Conference on Education for the Visually Impaired in Arab Countries14 Nov 2024
Under the patronage of H.E. Dr. Mohamed Ould Amar, Director-General of ALECSO, the first ALECSO Conference for the Visually Impaired in Arab Countries began on November 4, 2024, at the organization’s headquarters. The conference focused on “Ways to Develop Education for the Visually Impaired and Promote Policies for their Advancement.”
The two-day event included representatives from Tunisia’s Ministry of Education, Ministry of Social Affairs, and Ministry of the Family, Women, Children, and the Elderly, as well as experts and officials from various Arab countries. It served as a platform to highlight the efforts of participating nations in improving educational opportunities for the visually impaired and supporting their integration into mainstream schools.
The conference commenced with a framework study by Dr. Walid Zidi, which outlined strategies to enhance education for the visually impaired. The study addressed several areas, including policy development, teacher training, learning environments, and increasing access to open educational resources for visually impaired students.
The goal of the conference is to produce recommendations that would raise awareness of the importance of developing education for the visually impaired in Arab nations and encourage advocacy for their rights. These efforts are aligned with the broader objectives of achieving Goal 4 of the Agenda for Sustainable Development, which focuses on quality education for all.
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6. County Down Spectator UK - Blind Holywood woman’s sporting success on the court14 Nov 2024
A HOLYWOOD woman who is completely blind has spoken of finding new meaning in her life thanks to the game of tennis.
Lisa McLaughlin took up visually impaired (VI) tennis six years ago and is already 11th in the world for the sport.
She has just returned from the Visually Impaired (VI) Tennis World Championships in Lignano Sabbiadoro, Italy, where she reached the quarter finals.
She and her opponent now also hold the world record for the longest tie-break.
Encouraging other partially-sighted and blind people to take up the sport, Lisa admits she was ‘pretty down and bored sitting in the house’ following her diagnosis of retinopathy of prematurity.
However, with a friend’s encouragement she gave VI tennis a tentative go six years ago.
Said Lisa: “It sounded ridiculous in my head, ‘how does a blind or visually impaired person play blind tennis’? So, I decided to come along to the taster sessions, and from then on I fell in love with the sport.”
Vl tennis has a number of differences to normal tennis to make it easier for visually impaired of blind players to succeed.
These include a larger, softer ball with ball bearings inside that makes a noise when it bounces’ a smaller court and lower net; shorter rackets and tactile lines to help players navigate.
Lisa’s love of tennis has led to her to representing her country and the achievement of getting to the World VI tennis Championship’s is not lost on her.
She said: “To go out and represent my country and to have the Team Ireland jersey on my back was a feeling that I honestly can’t put into words; and the fact that I actually made it through to the quarter finals was a big achievement for me.”
Lisa has found that sport has a way of reducing barriers through the common language of competition and shared experience, and for her, the championships were as much about the people she met, as they were about the competition.
She continued: “It was great just to meet other team players from all around the world, to hear their story and find out how they’d come to visually impaired and blind tennis and to know that I’m not alone here.
“I’ve got other team players who have come from the same background, and are in love with the sport as much as I am.”
Lisa says her involvement in sport has been great for her mental health and would encourage other visually impaired people to get involved.
“Not only will it build your confidence”, she explained, “but it will get you out of the house. It will get you socialising with other people who are like yourself, and it will build your fitness levels.
“But I would definitely encourage, if you’re afraid and you’ve never played tennis before, don’t worry, we’re a very welcoming and friendly bunch here.”.
Lisa’s coach Simon McFarland, who is also the head coach for Ireland Blind and VI Tennis, is convinced of the benefits of the sport.
He said: “There are massive benefits of blind and visually impaired tennis. A lot of the players, especially the completely blind ones, haven’t had much chance to play sports if they’ve been blind from birth or develop blindness.
“But also, for the visually impaired guys who’ve gradually lost their sight, it gets them back in this sport if they’ve had to quit sport because of their loss of sight.”
For more information, or to get involved in VI tennis, or any other sport or activity for blind and partially sighted people, contact olive....@rnib.org.uk from the RNIB NI Community Connection team.
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7. Vibes Of India - Empowering Visually Impaired: International Delegates Take Part In Accessibility Summit14 Nov 2024
“The government of Zimbabwe is promoting the concept of inclusive development and the slogan- ‘No One Is Left Behind,'” said Marcy M Dinha, deputy minister, Zimbabwe, at a conference held on the theme: “Inclusion in Diversity: Equity and Accessibility for All” in Ahmedabad.
The four-day conference began on Thursday with 410 participants from 60 countries. She also endorsed the idea of Nothing About Us Without Us and counselled the blind or visually impaired to maintain their strength and fortitude in the face of hardship.
Accessibility in education is the primary goal of the First World Conference and General Assembly organised by the International Council for Education of People with Visual Impairment (ICEVI). The event is hosted by the Blind People’s Association (BPA), Ahmedabad. Sense International India, a leading organisation developing services for deafblind people in India, Bangladesh, and Nepal, co-hosted the event. It is being organised in collaboration with Dr Babasaheb Ambedkar Open University.
Bhushan Punani, chair of the Host Committee, mentioned that this is the first time that ICEVI is organising its World Conference in India. This is the first time ICEVI, World Blind Union, Deafblind International, Perkins International Sense International and Sight Savers have come together, he added.
Dr Ami Upadhaya, Vice Chancellor of Dr Baba Saheb Ambedkar Open University, explained the role of Universities in promoting inclusive education. She described the National Education Policy on 2020’s role in promoting inclusivity at all levels of education.
Three hundred eighty top specialists in teaching individuals with visual impairments from 62 nations attended the conference. These experts included professionals, caregivers, individuals with visual impairment, deafblind people, and people with multiple disabilities from 61 different countries.
The Office Bearers of the world’s five most significant organisations in the field, World Blind Union, Deafblind International, Sense International, Perkins International and International Council for the Education of People with Visual Impairment, represent their respective international organisations in this event.
To guarantee high-quality education for all children with visual impairments, Dr Aubrey Webson, Ambassador of Antigua, stressed the significance of early intervention, an inclusive atmosphere, and encouraging equity, accessibility, and collaboration. Deafblind International President Mirko Baur emphasised humanism and acknowledged the diversity of human beings. The World Blind Union’s president, Martin Able-Williamson, highlighted the need to empower those who are visually impaired.
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8. The Times of India - Visually impaired boy singing in TSRTC bus gets TV show offer15 Nov 2024
Hyderabad: A visually impaired boy, who was spotted singing while travelling on a TSRTC bus, has now been given a chance to perform in a Telugu TV show by music director SS Thaman.
The offer came after TSRTC managing director V C Sajjanar posted a video on X of the boy, identified as Raju, singing in the bus with passengers listening in rapt attention. Sajjanar had tagged Oscar-winning music director MM Keeravani, requesting that a chance be given to the boy to sing in films.
While Keeravani, who is not very active on the social media platform, is yet to respond, music director Thaman expressed his interest on Wednesday night. "I will make sure he performs in Telugu TV show. He will have his special performance and I will perform along with him," Thaman said, appreciating his ‘perfect pitch'. On Thursday, on the occasion of Children's Day, Sajjanar also felicitated the boy and his family.
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9. The Nation Newspaper Nigeria - Banks accused of discrimination against blind customers15 Nov 2024
The Centre for Infrastructural and Technological Advancement for the Blind (CITAB) has accused Nigerian banks of perpetrating discriminatory practices against visually impaired persons in the country.
This was contained in a press release issued in Lagos by the Executive Director of CITAB, Jolomi Fenemigho.
CITAB therefore urged the Central Bank of Nigeria (CBN) and the National Commission for Persons with Disabilities (NCPWD) to urgently address the situation faced by visually impaired customers within banks in Nigeria.
Fenemigho expressed dismay over the treatment meted by banks to visually impaired customers in Nigeria, adding that the practice was unjustified and a serious infringement on their right to access banking services.
The CITAB leader criticized the discriminatory practice among banks, which deny visually impaired individuals access to ATM cards and require them to fill an indemnity form. He described this attitude as an affront to all visually impaired people in Nigeria.
“In this situation, I can’t help but question the glaring disparity between a visually impaired individual and an illiterate person trying to open an account or obtain an ATM card. Illiterate individuals manage to open accounts and receive ATM cards, often relying on third parties for transactions just like some visually impaired individuals, without facing any bureaucratic bottleneck. Meanwhile, most visually impaired persons are immediately isolated and forced to fill an indemnity form, whether to open a bank account or get an ATM card at certain banks. This attitude is not only discriminatory but also demeaning. It denies persons with visual impairments the rights they deserve as individuals with disabilities,” he explained.
Fenemigho urged the apex bank to abolish all discriminatory policies among Nigerian banks and direct that all banks in Nigeria should treat individuals with visual impairments fairly and justly.
Said he: “Our efforts to persuade these banks to understand our perspective is often futile.”
He continued: “We may engage in discussions with one bank today, only to face discrimination by another tomorrow; each introducing new discriminatory policies that entrap the visually impaired in a vicious cycle.”
He advised that rather than squandering its efforts on individual banks that appear to revel in their ignorance, the CBN should take a firm stand adding that by exercising its regulatory power, the CBN can direct all banks in Nigeria to abolish their discriminatory policies and treat visually impaired customers with the fairness and justice they righfully deserve.”
Fenemigho wondered why the National Commission for Persons with Disabilities has been reluctant to address the discriminatory attitude of banks towards visually impaired persons adding that the commission should be more proactive in discharging its responsibilities.
According to him: “The NCPWD needs to stop dragging its feet and become proactive in its duties. Letters and petitions from individuals and organizations have been written to the commission without response.
“Petitions by the Nigeria Association For the Blind (NAB) have been filed and submitted to the NCPWD regarding this issue, yet, for reasons known only to the commission, they have refused to act. This inaction is unfortunate on the part of a commission supposedly established to cater for the welfare of the disabled.”
He further advised the management of Nigerian banks to take inspiration from their foreign counterparts which embrace complete inclusion.
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10. Business Standard India - Give priority to 'absolute blindness' over 'low vision' in jobs: K'taka HC15 Nov 2024
The Karnataka High Court recently upheld a ruling prioritising candidates with "absolute blindness" over those with "low vision" for specific employment opportunities, provided the disability does not affect their job performance.
The division bench, comprising Justice Krishna S Dixit and Justice CM Joshi, delivered this decision while dismissing an appeal by the Department of School Education against an earlier ruling by the Karnataka State Administrative Tribunal (KSAT).
Background of case
The case centres on H N Latha, a Scheduled Caste (SC) candidate with complete blindness from Periyapatna taluk, Mysuru district. Latha applied for a Kannada and social studies teaching position at a government primary school in 2022, and her name appeared on the selection list on March 8, 2023. However, her application was later rejected on July 4, prompting her to approach KSAT, which ruled in her favour, granting Rs 10,000 in costs and directing the education department to reconsider her application within three months.
The Department of School Education challenged the KSAT order, arguing that candidates with "absolute blindness" and "low vision" should be treated as distinct reservation categories. However, the High Court bench disagreed, noting that Latha met the educational qualifications required for the teaching role and stressing that employment decisions should focus on candidates’ capabilities rather than arbitrary distinctions in disability categories.
In its judgement, the High Court highlighted the positive attributes often associated with individuals who are blind, such as resilience, adaptability, and strong memory, and referenced several inspirational figures who excelled despite blindness, including Helen Keller and Louis Braille.
The court further noted the importance of inclusive hiring practices, suggesting that the education department should reserve posts for candidates with absolute blindness or enable them to compete for roles with those who have low vision.
Prevalence of blindness is India
As of November 2024, the most comprehensive study on blindness in India was recorded in the National Blindness and Visual Impairment Survey (2015–2019). The survey reported a 0.36 per cent prevalence of blindness in India’s population, with a 1.99 per cent prevalence among those aged 50 and above.
Despite an overall decline in blindness rates, India has yet to meet the World Health Organization (WHO) target of reducing blindness prevalence to 0.3 per cent.
Causes of blindness in India include untreated cataracts, corneal opacity, and glaucoma. A significant proportion of blindness (92.9 per cent) and visual impairment (97.4 per cent) is due to avoidable causes.
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This Google Group news service has been made possible by courtesy of the Society of the Blind in Malaysia