First disabled school opens in Zuwara
Libya Herald
By Taziz Hasairi.
Children at the new school in Zuwara
Children at the new Najmi ALgandouz School in Zuwara
Tripoli, 2 January 2014:
The first school in Zuwara to cater to children with disabilities has opened.
The Najmi Algandouz School, named after a local social activist involved in helping disabled children and who died not long ago, started its first classes last Monday. It is being run by a charity organisation of the same name.
Many of the 27 children attending the school, which is being funded by the Ministry of Education, are suffering from autism or have psychological disorders. All are locals, except for two Iraqi children. The age range is from 5 years to 12 years when they are expected to move on to local normal schools.
The biggest issue is helping children with psychological problems or with autism, according to the founder of the “Intissar Anaal” charity, is that many parents of such children are in denial. Others have been sending their children to private schools in Tripoli.
The eight teachers at the school were given specialist training in Janzour for a year. Most majored in psychology or sociology.
The school building is rented by the Ministry of Education. Daily classes include pronunciation, social integration and competency.
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://www.libyaherald.com/2014/01/02/first-disabled-school-opens-in-zuwara/
Nigeria: Society Advocates Policy Inclusion of Impaired Persons
AllAfrica.comThe Disability Policy and Advocacy Initiative (DPAI) in partnership with the Nigerian Association of the Blind (NAB), has advocated the inclusion of blind persons in HIV/AIDs intervention programmes in order to promote access of persons with disabilities to health services and mainstreaming disabilities in all policies.
Speaking during the sensitisation of blind adolescent youths and disabled persons on HIV/AIDs policy, DPAI Coordinator, Mr. Ejiro Okotie noted that discrimination and stigmatisation have hindered visibly impaired and other persons with disabilities to unequal access to information and policy making on HIV/AIDs programme.
Okotie said the HIV pandemic has been a major setback to human civilisation and persons with disability were not carried along. "People with disability are 22.5 million and visually impaired are 15% population of the country and valuable information are not addresed to these groups. Sexual abuse and rape in disability makes them more vulnerable to the disease," he said.
According to EJiro, "Disability causes some kinds of hard poverty on us and has slowed down many policies especially in education. In order to have an all encompassing success in our fight against HIV free generation, we must stop stigmatisation of the disabled".
A representative of the Africa Union of the Blind (AUB) Nairobi, Mr. Julius Kamiya said that the reason why they have come together is to encourage each other that the loss of sight is not the end of the world.
"They should be included in all development sectors both in government and private ownership and this development is cutting across proper information on HIV/AIDs services. Blind and disabled persons should not be absent. What the visible can do, the visibly impaired person can do even much better," he said.
Also speaking on mainstreaming disabilities in all policies, Mr. Ella Akinola of Heroes Media, who spoke on mainstreaming disability issues in media reportage on HIV/AIDs and reproductive health issues, said that the problem confronting the disabled is a big challenge and as such, adequate awareness is needed.
A member of the Civil Society Organisation (CSO), Ifesinachi Sam-Emuwa said inclusion of persons with disability on HIV/AIDs and reproductive health intervention information is critically important in all national initiatives to combat the pandemic and improve health. Sam-Emuwa added that "people with disability should be aware of cultural practices that expose them to sexual abuse and the risk of contacting this disease".
While addressing guests at the event on mainstreaming disability issues, Dr. Dan Onwujekwu of the Nigerian Institute of Medical Research (NIMR) said if disabilities were not included in HIV/AIDs policy, the country coud not get to zero prevalence level. "We need just to make sure infrastructure are built and also a home-based care, especially for disabled persons are in place," he noted.
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://allafrica.com/stories/201401020326.html
Eritrean National Association of War Disabled Veterans Provide Assistance for 140 Members
AllAfrica.com-
5 JANUARY 2014
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Mendefera - The Eritrean National Association of War Disabled Veterans provided assistance worth over 1.4 million Nakfa for 140 of its members.
Mr. Tesfaldet Mengistu, Head of the Association in the region, indicated that the assistance provided for the members is the continuation of similar endeavors to enable war disabled veterans become self-supporting citizens.
He also explained that training programs have been conducted for the beneficiaries on diary farming, and called for turning the opportunity they have been provided for their advantage.
Mr. Tesfaldet further reiterated that 31 water pumps, 24 bee hives and 10 washing machines have been provided for members engaged in vegetable and bee farming.
The women beneficiaries from the program indicated that they have been engaged in diary farms for it does not ask heavy investment and could bring result in a short period of time, and the training they have been provided has helped them in their activities.
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://allafrica.com/stories/201401060076.html
Focus on Disability: Enabling full participation in science
AfricanBrains
Posted by SciDev.Net
By Sue Coe - SciDev.Net
Today is the International Day of Persons with Disabilities. It’s a day of celebration and challenge for the world to consider issues concerning its citizens with impairments. This year’s theme is ‘Break Barriers, Open Doors ? for an inclusive society and development for all’.
A recent SciDev.Net news story reported plans to mentor women in developing countries to increase their participation in science and technology work by providing more funding for qualifications, fellowships and travel to relevant conferences. If science and technology organisations - all the way from schools and universities to workplaces - adopted a similar approach (with government support) to increase the participation of disabled people of all impairment groups too, it would be highly beneficial. Not only for disabled people themselves but also because of the diverse knowledge and life experience they would bring to improve the quality of science and technology outputs, such as research findings and technological solutions.
The article outlined a number of factors inhibiting women from progressing in a science career. Disabled people face multiple barriers too.
Education opportunities are largely denied to them ? shockingly only two per cent of disabled children are estimated to attend school in developing countries. [1] This is largely due to multiple layers of discrimination and stigma; from school authorities, teachers, parents of non-disabled children and sometimes parents of disabled children seeking to protect them from abuse in school environments. [2]
Inadequate buildings where research takes place and the ways scientists communicate are other barriers. Steps and small toilet cubicles exclude people in wheelchairs. Science labs could easily be designed to be fully accessible to physically impaired people. Written and visual briefings present challenges to those with sensory impairments. Technical, jargon-ridden language excludes people with intellectual impairments.
A further barrier is organisational policies preventing disabled people securing science-based jobs. For example, many job descriptions require candidates to be “physically fit and able” - often interpreted by recruiters to exclude disabled people.
The gender issues mentioned in SciDev.Net’s report also apply to disabled women, who face the double barriers of disability and gender. I have met many young, disabled women in Africa and Asia who aspire to become scientists but feel they have no prospects or hope of working in the field.
Mentorship programmes could help tackle some of these problems. For example, they could help promote science-focused education for disabled people and, importantly, challenge discriminatory attitudes in the science and technology sector towards them.
Today’s event has extra significance in 2013 due to the landmark commitments made at the historic UN High Level Meeting on Disability and Development on 23 September. State parties were urged to implement disability-inclusive national development strategies in their ‘post-2015’ agenda work. [3] Including mentoring programmes for disabled people to increase their participation in science and technology work would be a valuable part of that.
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://africanbrains.net/2014/01/03/focus-disability-enabling-full-participation-science/
African disability foundation to hold screening
Citizens Voice
Published: January 6, 2014
ARTICLE TOOLS
Photo: N/A, License: N/A, Created: 2012:07:07 10:49:42
Courtesy of Jerry Cebulski African Disability Foundation Sister Sponsa Beltran, OSF, a native of Wilkes-Barre and Misericordia graduate, has spent nearly 40 years taking care of the poor and the handicapped in Liberia.
The Jerry Cebulski African Disability Foundation (JCADF) is presenting the film "The Triumph" at 2 p.m. Saturday at R/C Movies 14, 24 E. Northampton St., Wilkes-Barre. The film is about a young addict named Ben, who receives many blessings in his life following a pilgrimage to Medjugorje.
JCADF provides food, clothing, education, medical care and the basic necessities of life to many disabled individuals in Liberia, West Africa. This is the continuation of the life's work and vision of Sister Sponsa Beltran OSF, a native of Wilkes-Barre and Misericordia graduate, who spent almost 40 years of her life caring for the poor and handicapped of Liberia. All proceeds from ticket sales will go toward the continuation of JCADF's work in Liberia.
Tickets are $15 for adults and $12.50 for seniors. For information, contact Eileen Rockensies, JCADF president, at 570-675-3397 or erockensies@epix.net. For more on JCADF, visit www.africandisabilityfoundation.org.
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://citizensvoice.com/news/african-disability-foundation-to-hold-screening-1.1612085
Kenya: Kakamega Disabled Get Crutches From World Bank
AllAfrica.com-
BY SHABAN MAKOKHA, 6 JANUARY 2014
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The World Bank has partnered with the government to donate devices to persons living with disability in Kakamega county. Through the Western Kenya Community Driven Development and Flood Mitigation Programme, the bank gave out 12 pieces of elbow crutches, six crutches, eight wheelchairs and four tricycles to members of Lubinu Differently Abled Group in Mumias East.
Speaking during the event at Shibinga on Saturday, the programme's Butere-Mumias branch director David Olang' said they will continue to assist people with disability.
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://allafrica.com/stories/201401061179.html
Kenya: Disabled Persons Threaten Court Action Over Parastatal Job
Capital FM-
BY JEMIMAH WANGUI, 6 JANUARY 2014
RELATED TOPICS
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Nairobi - The Association of the Physically Disabled Persons of Kenya has called on President Uhuru Kenyatta to revoke the appointment of Alex Chemtai as the new chairman of the Kenya Medical Laboratory Technicians and Technologists Board.
The association's chairman Churchill Owano explained that the appointment should be revoked because the current chairman Abel Onyango's term has not expired.
"The replacement of one of our members as chairman of the KMLTTB is both insensitive, discriminatory and does not conform to the provisions of the Bill of Rights in the Constitution."
"Onyango was legally and duly appointed as chairman in September 2012 for a three year term that is expected to end in September 2015."
"The purported replacement of the chair with Alex Chemtai did not comply with the rights and interests of disabled persons," observed Owano.
Addressing a press conference on Monday, the chairman added that they will move to court if the appointment is not revoked.
The association further urged the President to consider more of their members in future appointments to ensure they are well represented across the government sectors as stipulated by the Constitution.
"Article 54 of the Constitution elaborates that the State shall ensure that at least five percent of the public in elective and appointive bodies are persons with disabilities."
"With his replacement, the State disregards the rule of law and demeans persons with disability contrary to provisions of the constitution," he added.
The President's appointment of 26 Parastatal heads has sparked major controversy with many accusing him of sidelining the youth.
The National Youth Council last Monday urged President Kenyatta to revoke the appointments.
The council argued that majority of those appointed do not represent the youthful majority in the country, arguing that most of them are political losers and recycled retirees.
The council chairman Clement Ayungo said Kenyatta and his deputy were going against their own manifesto which propelled them to power.
"The Cabinet has no single youth, there's no single youth holding Permanent Secretary position and now the parastatal heads are being appointed in total exclusion of the youth," he complained.
The council officials said unless the new appointments are revoked, the youth stands to lose because and are likely to lose hope of getting jobs under the new government.
The Deputy President has since defended the appointments, insisting that all factors, including regional balance were considered.
"We urge the President to implement to the letter the Jubilee Manifesto on the basis of which the youth elected them to office,"
Most notable on the list of appointments is the former Head of the Civil Service Francis Muthaura who has been named the LAPPSET Corridor Development Authority Chairman who's appointment stirred controversy.
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://allafrica.com/stories/201401062336.html
No disability policy - Nzimande
2014-01-16 23:03
Blade Nzimande (File, Beeld)
Blade Nzimande (File, Beeld)
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Johannesburg - There is no national policy on disability to guide education and training institutions in the post-school domain, Higher Education Minister Blade Nzimande said on Thursday.
"The management of disability in post-school education remains fragmented and separate to that of existing transformation and diversity programmes at the institutional level. Individual institutions determine unique ways in which to address disability, and resourcing is allocated within each institution according to their programme."
Nzimande was speaking in Pretoria at the launch of the white paper on post-school education and training.
He said levels of commitment toward people with disability varied considerably between institutions, as did the resources allocated to addressing disability issues.
"Technical and Vocational Education and Training [TVET] colleges [formerly FET colleges] in particular lack the capacity, or even the policies, to cater for students and staff with disabilities."
Nzimande said data from 22 of the 23 public universities showed that 5807 students with disabilities were enrolled in higher education institutions in 2011, accounting for only one percent of the total enrolment.
"The low numbers of people with disabilities in universities and colleges is despite the fact that bursary funding for learners with disabilities is available."
A bursary scheme was introduced in 2008 to complement department of labour funding provided through the national skills fund (NSF).
"The Department of Higher Education and Training's disability funding was, however, under-utilised in 2010 and 2011, at levels of only 47% and 55% respectively of available funding. "
Nzimande said the low uptake of bursaries was a matter of serious concern, given the continued inequities in access.
Universal access
"It is most likely related to the fact that many learners with disabilities do not qualify for university education, but research is required to fully understand this problem."
The department made available an amount of R130m, with universities providing an additional R52m, towards ensuring universal physical access to university infrastructure and facilities.
"Allocation to each university was based on whether addressing disability was a priority and whether capacity existed. In TVET colleges, there is still no ring-fenced funding to improve the accessibility of buildings, although the norms and standards for funding these colleges do provide for additional funding for learners with special needs."
Greater attention would be given to ensuring that the colleges improve their capacity to accommodate and serve students with disabilities.
"A strategic policy framework is necessary to guide the improvement of access to and success in post-school education and training [including in private institutions] for people with disabilities."
He said the framework would create an enabling and empowering environment across the system.
"The framework will set norms and standards for the integration of students and staff with disabilities in all aspects of university or college life, including academic life, culture, sport and accommodation.
"Through this white paper policy framework, we will seek to integrate recognition of prior learning into the post-school education and training system."
Such recognition must not be ad hoc, but must form an integral part of the whole system, said Nzimande.
- SAPA
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://www.news24.com/SouthAfrica/News/No-disability-policy-Nzimande-20140116
No policy on disability: Nzimande
Sowetan
No policy on disability: Nzimande
2014-01-17 07:07:42.0 | SAPA |
There is no national policy on disability to guide education and training institutions in the post-school domain, Higher Education Minister Blade Nzimande said on Thursday.
"The management of disability in post-school education remains fragmented and separate to that of existing transformation and diversity programmes at the institutional level. Individual institutions determine unique ways in which to address disability, and resourcing is allocated within each institution according to their programme."
Nzimande was speaking in Pretoria at the launch of the white paper on post-school education and training.
He said levels of commitment toward people with disability varied considerably between institutions, as did the resources allocated to addressing disability issues.
"Technical and Vocational Education and Training [TVET] colleges [formerly FET colleges] in particular lack the capacity, or even the policies, to cater for students and staff with disabilities."
Nzimande said data from 22 of the 23 public universities showed that 5807 students with disabilities were enrolled in higher education institutions in 2011, accounting for only one percent of the total enrolment.
"The low numbers of people with disabilities in universities and colleges is despite the fact that bursary funding for learners with disabilities is available."
A bursary scheme was introduced in 2008 to complement department of labour funding provided through the national skills fund (NSF).
"The Department of Higher Education and Training's disability funding was, however, under-utilised in 2010 and 2011, at levels of only 47 per cent and 55 per cent respectively of available funding. "
Nzimande said the low uptake of bursaries was a matter of serious concern, given the continued inequities in access.
"It is most likely related to the fact that many learners with disabilities do not qualify for university education, but research is required to fully understand this problem."
The department made available an amount of R130 million, with universities providing an additional R52 million, towards ensuring universal physical access to university infrastructure and facilities.
"Allocation to each university was based on whether addressing disability was a priority and whether capacity existed. In TVET colleges, there is still no ring-fenced funding to improve the accessibility of buildings, although the norms and standards for funding these colleges do provide for additional funding for learners with special needs."
Greater attention would be given to ensuring that the colleges improve their capacity to accommodate and serve students with disabilities.
"A strategic policy framework is necessary to guide the improvement of access to and success in post-school education and training [including in private institutions] for people with disabilities."
He said the framework would create an enabling and empowering environment across the system.
"The framework will set norms and standards for the integration of students and staff with disabilities in all aspects of university or college life, including academic life, culture, sport and accommodation.
"Through this white paper policy framework, we will seek to integrate recognition of prior learning into the post-school education and training system."
Such recognition must not be ad hoc, but must form an integral part of the whole system, said Nzimande.
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://www.sowetanlive.co.za/news/2014/01/17/no-policy-on-disability-nzimande
Nzimande: No education policy for disabled kids
eNCA
South Africa Friday 17 January 2014 - 6:58am
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There is no national policy on disability to guide education and training institutions in the post-school domain, said Higher Education Minister Blade Nzimande (pictured). Picture: WERNER BEUKES
Pretoria - There is no national policy on disability to guide education and training institutions in the post-school domain, Higher Education Minister Blade Nzimande said on Thursday.
The Department of Higher Education and Training's disability funding was, however, under-utilised in 2010 and 2011, at levels of only 47 percent and 55 percent respectively of available funding.
"The management of disability in post-school education remains fragmented and separate to that of existing transformation and diversity programmes at the institutional level. Individual institutions determine unique ways in which to address disability, and resourcing is allocated within each institution according to their programme."
Nzimande was speaking in Pretoria at the launch of the white paper on post-school education and training. He said levels of commitment toward people with disability varied considerably between institutions, as did the resources allocated to addressing disability issues. "Technical and Vocational Education and Training [TVET] colleges [formerly FET colleges] in particular lack the capacity, or even the policies, to cater for students and staff with disabilities."
Nzimande said data from 22 of the 23 public universities showed that 5807 students with disabilities were enrolled in higher education institutions in 2011, accounting for only one percent of the total enrolment. "The low numbers of people with disabilities in universities and colleges is despite the fact that bursary funding for learners with disabilities is available."
A bursary scheme was introduced in 2008 to complement department of labour funding provided through the national skills fund (NSF). "The Department of Higher Education and Training's disability funding was, however, under-utilised in 2010 and 2011, at levels of only 47 percent and 55 percent respectively of available funding. " Nzimande said the low uptake of bursaries was a matter of serious concern, given the continued inequities in access. "It is most likely related to the fact that many learners with disabilities do not qualify for university education, but research is required to fully understand this problem."
The department made available an amount of R130 million, with universities providing an additional R52 million, towards ensuring universal physical access to university infrastructure and facilities. "Allocation to each university was based on whether addressing disability was a priority and whether capacity existed. In TVET colleges, there is still no ring-fenced funding to improve the accessibility of buildings, although the norms and standards for funding these colleges do provide for additional funding for learners with special needs."
Greater attention would be given to ensuring that the colleges improve their capacity to accommodate and serve students with disabilities. "A strategic policy framework is necessary to guide the improvement of access to and success in post-school education and training [including in private institutions] for people with disabilities."
He said the framework would create an enabling and empowering environment across the system. "The framework will set norms and standards for the integration of students and staff with disabilities in all aspects of university or college life, including academic life, culture, sport and accommodation. "Through this white paper policy framework, we will seek to integrate recognition of prior learning into the post-school education and training system."
Such recognition must not be ad hoc, but must form an integral part of the whole system, said Nzimande.
-Sapa
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://www.enca.com/south-africa/nzimande-no-education-policy-disabled-kids
Disabled toddler killed in CT blaze
iAfrica.com
Mon, 20 Jan 2014 3:51 PM
Article By: Rahima Essop, EWN
An 18-month-old disabled boy has died in a shack fire in Grassy Park.
Seven people were left homeless in the Phumlani Village informal settlement when the blaze ripped through several shacks on Sunday night.
The City of Cape Town says the boy's mother has been arrested and is in custody at the Grassy Park Police Station.
Disaster Risk Management's Wilfred Solomons Johannes says, "The cause of the fire remains unclear. The police have opened an inquest docket."
Meanwhile, a Cape Town professor has written to the City of Cape Town asking it to find solutions to stop shack fires.
Several people have lost their lives in shack fires in the last few months.
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://news.iafrica.com/sa/894463.html
Mampong-Akuapem Deaf School Supported With Computers
spyghana.com-
By Business & Financial Times
Societe Generale Ghana has donated 20 computers to the Senior High School for the Deaf, Mampong-Akuapem
The computers are purposed to help develop the School’s Information Technology (IT) infrastructure.
The Akwapem Senior Technical School for the Deaf, founded by Rev. Jackson Foster 56 years ago, is under the supervision of the Ghana Education Service and funding of Government. This important facility, the only Senior High School that caters solely for the deaf within the country, had no Computer Lab or ICT Curriculum for the children till the bank’s timely intervention.
The Managing Director of Societe Generale Ghana, Mr. Gilbert Hie in presenting the computers to the Headmaster, Teachers and Students of the School, reiterated on the importance of developing Informational Technology in education.
Mr. Hie stated that the Bank supports the sustainable development of many less endowed educational institutions under its CSR programme, and the Mampong-Akuapem School for the Deaf will now be one of the institutions receiving its support.
The Headmaster, Mr. Nathan K. Pecku, in his response - touched by the Bank’s actions, stated that the School never dreamt of receiving computers for its ICT Programme but that the bank had changed their impression through its actions and made their dream a reality.
Mr. Pecku went on to state that the School is still facing a lot of challenges despite all the assistance it has received in recent times from Societe Generale Ghana and other institutions.
He said that the school urgently needs dormitories, classroom blocks and laboratories.
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://www.spyghana.com/mampong-akuapem-deaf-school-supported-with-computers/
Disability Is Not Inability And This Is Proof!
Ghafla!Kenya
Wednesday, 22 January 2014 12:07 , Written by Liatema Munyu
Disco for Youth with Special Needs is BACK!!! Yes this Saturday on 25th Jan bring your friend,sister,brother,cousin,auntie,your child!! Everyone with special needs this the ultimate party for you!! Come lets have some fun! Disability is NOT inability!!
The Sarakasi Trust, in conjunction with the Special Education Professionals, has brought back the Dance For Youth With Special Needs. Performing acts will include All Star Djs.
Entry is free and the evnt runs from 2pm to 5 pm.
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://www.ghafla.co.ke/news/events/list/item/15158-disability-is-not-inability-and-this-is-proof
Deaf Group Urges Members To Overcome Challenges
Nigerian Observer-1
Last Modified: 01/22/2014 09:36:21
LAGOS - MR. Okikiade Adeyemi, the National Coordinator, Deaf Supporters Group of Nigeria (DSGN), has urged people living with disability to live their normal life as every other person.
Adeyemi, who spoke in Lagos at a forum organised by DSGN for its members, said they should do away with whatever that inhibits their social life.
He urged deaf persons to maximise their talents and achieve their goals in life.
“This is an environment that is tough for people that are able-bodied. It is even tougher for the deaf.
“The deaf face a lot of challenges, especially with communication and trying to be understood.
“Against all odds, the deaf should rise and try to overcome their challenges through some of their God-given talents, Adeyemi said.
“We should live up to expectation despite all disabilities and contribute to the socio-economic and political development of our nation.
“Technology has made things easier, so, we should channel all efforts to pursue and achieve personal and corporate goals.’’
The association’s coordinator, urged members who engaged in street begging to think of other less demeaning ways of earning a living.
He also called on the government to put in place things that would help to improve communication and lives of deaf people by giving them enlightenment.
The President of DSGN, Mr. Afolabi Dahunsi, said that more could still be done by the government and individuals to reduce the challenges of the deaf in the society.
“The average deaf person in his effort to widen his gifted social skills often approaches the hearing world with trepidation.
“Unemployment is higher among the deaf. We want the Federal Government and well-meaning individuals to intervene and encourage us in schools and at work.
“Despite our hearing limitations, we need employment. Establish skills acquisition centres where we can learn hairdressing, computer, shoe- making and sewing. People should come to the aid of the group,” Dahunsi said.
He commended the efforts of people who showed care and compassion to the deaf in the society.
“We appreciate those who contribute to the welfare and development of deaf people.
“Since the inception of DSGN, there have been major changes that improved the quality of lives of many deaf people.
“Some local government chairpersons and some other individuals have engaged the services of some deaf people in their workforce and we appreciate these gestures,’’ Dahunsi said.
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://nigerianobservernews.com/22012014/news/latestnews2.html#.UuBf1RCAa70
Kenya: Clinic for the Deaf Launched
AllAfrica.com-
BY BENSON NYAGESIBA, 25 JANUARY 2014
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A Norwegian NGO has set up a Sh2 million clinic for the deaf in Kisii county.
Teigen Clinic established by Deaf Aid is situated at Gianchere School for the Deaf. The clinic will provide an environment for effective prevention, care and treatment for the deaf. Kisii Governor James Ongwae pledged to staff the facility.
Speaking during the launch yesterday, Deaf Aid Africa regional director Jean Claude Adzalla said 97 per cent of deafness is caused by preventable illnesses like malaria, measles and meningitis.
The clinic is equipped with modern diagnostic equipment and facilities and will aid in the prevention and rehabilitation of persons suffering from this disability.
Kisii is a malaria prone area.
"It costs a parent ten times more to educate a deaf child than a normal one. The goal of this project is to empower deaf children who are neglected and stigmatized in society because deafness is an invisible disability.
Previous interventions have dwelt on rehabilitation but now focus shifts to prevention of post-natal deafness," said the director
Adzalla noted that the country has only 58 Ear, Nose and Throat (ENT) experts concentrated in Nairobi and a few other towns leaving rural populations at a disadvantage.
Governor Ongwae lauded the intervention by the Norwegian NGO saying Public, Private Partnerships were crucial in the quest to promote an inclusive society.
"Parents face challenges in raising children especially if they are from low socio-economic status. The challenge is even greater if the child has a disability and that is why we commend efforts to help the disadvantaged," said Ongwae.
He urged the Kisii community to shun stigma against deaf children and asked parents to take such children to special schools.
"Let's care for these children. We intend to gather data on existing institutions that cater for the disabled and children living with disability. We shall introduce a bill on persons with disability in the county assembly to effectively handle their challenges," said Ongwae.
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://allafrica.com/stories/201401260139.html
Nashiru Abdulai: The needs of deaf Muslims
Aljazeera.com-
The president of the Global Deaf Muslim organisation discusses the main challenges facing the hearing impaired.
There are 70 million deaf people around the world. And many of them lack basic assistance, in places like hospitals and schools, and even in religious communities.
Nashiru Abdulai, who was born in Ghana and lives in the United States, became deaf as a child because of an illness.
As a Muslim, he says his needs were often not understood, especially in the Muslim world. So he became an activist. And now Abdulai is the president of the Global Deaf Muslim organisation (GDM).
Deaf Muslims have not yet had the chance to learn about Islam; we have a lot of catching up to do.
Nashiru Abdulai, the president of the Global Deaf Muslim
For deaf Muslims, accessing Islamic information still remains a challenge, Abdulai says. So the GDM was established in 2005 aiming to address the rights and needs of this community.
"[At a mosque] everything will happen in spoken language. Obviously a deaf Muslim won't know what is happening around them. They may ask themselves 'who do I turn to?', 'who supports my cause?'. This is where an organisation for deaf Muslims is necessary," he says.
"When a group finally does have an organisation representing their specific needs, it becomes an inspiration for that community."
Abdulai says many deaf people grow up with ideas about Islam based on information passed from one family member to another, and these explanations are often riddle with cultural bias or misinformation.
He says that although many people believe reading the Quran in their native language is sufficient for deaf Muslims to understand the religion, the concepts are sometimes not clear enough for a full understanding. Abdulai feels that because deaf people have a visual language, and acquire meaning by seeing, it makes more sense to show them pictures that explain things in a visual language.
The GDM's goal is to be able to screen out cultural misinformation, and to make sure the correct meanings of concepts are understood, he says. The lack of accessible materials and support were identified by the GDM as a growing problem that the organisation needs to address.
"Deaf Muslims have not yet had the chance to learn about Islam; we have a lot of catching up to do," Abdulai says.
So are Muslim societies actively excluding their deaf members, or is this simply about a lack of awareness surrounding the needs of this community? Why is this happening? And what solutions can be implemented?
In this episode of Talk to Al Jazeera , Sami Zeidan speaks to Nashiru Abdulai, the president of the Global Deaf Muslim organisation, about religion, inclusiveness, and the challenges facing deaf Muslims today.
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://www.aljazeera.com/programmes/talktojazeera/2014/01/nashiru-abdulai-needs-deaf-muslims-2014124131926756911.html
Ghana: Don't Neglect People With Intellectual Disability
AllAfrica.com-
28 JANUARY 2014
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A cross section of health practitioners drawn from Kwabibirem and Denkyembuo districts in the Eastern Region have launched a passionate appeal to parents and families not to neglect children with Intellectual Disabilities (ID).
Intellectual disability, from a clinical perspective, involves impairments of general mental abilities which are generally recognized as an IQ below 70, that impact adaptive functioning in the conceptual area such as skills in language, reading and writing.
The social and practical area of intellectual disability has the components of empathy and social judgment and self-management in areas such as personal care respectively.
According to the health practitioners, people with ID are not contagious and are equally normal as other human beings who need care and love, despite their relatively genetically challenged condition.
They called on Ghanaians, particularly families or parents with children with ID, to seek early treatment since the condition is not spiritual but medical condition which cannot be treated at church or the premises of juju men.
According to them, often times, instead of parents seeking for early medical treatment for their children, they rather spend their time at prayer camps and premises of juju men for solution, because of superstition.
They made the observation during a three day workshop organized by Inclusion Ghana, in collaboration with Talent Search International, all Non Governmental Organizations (NGOs), on people with Intellectual Disabilities (ID) at Kade, on Tuesday.
Speaking with The Chronicle, the Executive Director for Talent Search International, and also Board chairman of Inclusion Ghana, Festus Buetey Longmatey, said the workshop would stimulate the urgency of health practitioners coming into understanding with people living with Intellectual Disability (ID).
According to him, a research conducted by Inclusion Ghana in 2013 on access to health care by people with ID revealed that, the latter face discrimination and other deeply entrenched barriers when accessing health care.
According to him, the research further shows that persons with ID are excluded from general health care, via numerous obstacles, including the interplay between cultural and social environments, physical inaccessibility and communications barriers.
The resource person at the workshop, Mrs. Nana Akua Owusu, Speech and Language Therapist, disclosed that the workshop was not only to find means for people with ID to access health, but also how best parents and families with ID children could be supported in reducing their burdens.
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://allafrica.com/stories/201401281276.html
Kenya: Swaminarayan Gadi Temple Donates to Blind, Deaf Societies
AllAfrica.com
BY MONICAH MWANGI, 28 JANUARY 2014
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Swaminarayan Gadi Temple at Parklands in Nairobi has donated Sh500,000 to both the blind and deaf societies. The presentation held at the temple was presided over by his holiness Acharya Purshottam Priyadasji Swamishree Maharaj last weekend. The event brought together Hindus and representatives from the blind and the deaf societies. Speaking during the event, the national chairman of the Kenya Society for the Deaf Francis Ng'ang'a urged parents to join KSDC to make a mark in the lives of needy, hearing-impaired children.
The Kenya Institute for the Blind chairman Martin Kieti said plans to establish cyber cafes for visually-impaired people are underway. "This will happen this year," he said.
【付記】
上記ニュースのURL
http://allafrica.com/stories/201401280862.html
Kenya Society for the Deaf children
http://deafchildrensociety-kenya.org/
South Africa: Disability Conference to Map Out Plan for Jobs
28 JANUARY 2014, all Africa
Pretoria - The North West Provincial Disability Rights Conference is expected to develop a clear plan that will enable the province to accelerate the revised Job-Access Plan targeting employment for people with disabilities.
The two-day conference, hosted by the North West Provincial Government through the Office on the Status of Persons with Disabilities (OSPD), will start on 30 January.
During the conference people with disabilities will be offered a platform to share their experiences with all sectors and map the way forward on how their challenges could be addressed.
Speaking ahead of the conference, North West Premier Thandi Modise said: "We are confident that delegates at this conference will emerge with a clear plan that will enable the province to accelerate implementation of the revised Job-Access Plan, which is targeting employment of over 1 200 additional people with disabilities by the provincial administration within the next seven months."
She said the conference will also endeavour to create alignment between Disability Plans and the National Development Plan (NDP) and generate a Five-Year Disability Rights Plan for the province.
The NDP acknowledges that many persons with disabilities are not able to develop to their full potential due to various barriers, resulting in them often being viewed as being unproductive and a burden.
The NDP also highlights physical, educational, communication and attitudinal barriers as challenges that need to be addressed.
The conference, which will be attended by all major provincial role players, is scheduled to be held at Mmabatho Convention Centre, Mahikeng.
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://allafrica.com/stories/201401281210.html
Gambia: Disability Digest
AllAfrica.com
Gambia: Disability Digest
BY YAHYA MUHAMMED BAH, 29 JANUARY 2014
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Acquiring impairment in the natural world, at birth or adventitiously later in life can place any animal's survival at risk even at the best of times. In the social world, however, experience in managing human frailty has provided us with an amazing cornucopia of interventions that make possible the survival of those possessing the greatest physical and mental deficits. But the body of knowledge gained in progress of this advancement has been the property of a narrow assembly of practitioners and academics. In time, this has crystallised into institutional menus of good practice expected from medical staff in rehabilitation centres, occupational therapists in social services, remedial teachers in special education, and so on. In all these activities, the volume of understanding has increasingly rested on what, until recently, has been unchallenged dogma: that the possession of impairment leads to social vulnerability. This is in spite of the fact that history teaches us the opposite: that the natural vulnerability of human beings has significantly shaped development of all the machinery of modern life.
Far from being a burden, our imperfections in relation to other animals might be regarded as one of the essential characteristics that make us human. In this respect persons with disabilities are the most of human beings. The segregation of persons with disabilities from our non- disabled peers, then, is not only an inhuman event, owing more to exigencies of the natural world than to social world, but the hiatus between specialist knowledge confined to "disablement" and public knowledge concerned with "normality" is no less than the emergency of a profoundly disabling pedagogical barrier in the evolution of human understanding.
Introduction
Fundamental to any discussion of disability is the recognition that persons with disabilities are human beings like anybody, secondly they have disabilities that affect some but not necessarily all their abilities. Acknowledging the fact that words are powerful tools in communication, I have in this discussion decided to use a phrase like persons with disabilities instead of words, such as cripples, deaf and dumb, as the latter confirm the common view that persons with disabilities are different from the rest, and thus seem to lack dignity, rights and responsibilities.
People in different parts of the globe, attaches importance to different types of disabilities, simply because some are common in the area than the other, however, local beliefs also affect how people view different disabilities. In places where people'sbeliefs that fits, for example are the work of devils, thus a child with fits may be feared, teased or kept hidden. But in areas where everybody perceive fits just something that happens to certain people, a child with fits may sometimes participate fully in the daily activities of the family and society. Both of these children need help to live grow to be productive citizen. With later kind of attitude, the integration of persons with disabilities into the mainstream of the society will be easier.
Mainstreaming in this discussion refers to making persons with disabilities to feel and be part and parcel of the society, thus interacting with all other persons in all form of life activity, for example being brought up in the same family and society, getting educated in the same schools, colleges and universities as the rest, getting vocational training and employment within the same settings with the rest.
Also living in the same localities (villages, towns, cities, etc) with others, and equally enjoying the social facilities and services with the rest. In a nut shell, that is, to live together in the same communities and participate in all activities on equal basis from childhood to old age. Disability
The term disability is viewed and defined in different number of ways, by scholars of different orientations. Because it is essential for anyone who works with or for the persons with disabilities to understand the history of disabilities, I would like to spend some time in this part of the discussion.
Ndaka M.A. (1991) defined persons with disabilities as those whose prospects for obtaining and developing in a meaningful employment greatly reduced due to physical and/or psychological impairment.
Weisman A. (1974) observed that the meaning of being disabled includes the recognition that organs and body parts are no longer conspicuous compliant instruments that carry out their owners intentions. International Labor Organization (ILO) 1993, defined disability as loss of functions, because of a damaged to the body or mind through disease or injury.
During the early 1970s, there was a strong reaction amongst persons with disabilities, representatives of the organization for and/or of persons with disabilities, professionals in the field of disability against the definitions and terminologies of the time. That is the terms disability and handicap have been used in an unclear and confusing manners, which to some extent help the negative attitudes people hold towards disabilities and persons with disabilities, worst of all it gave poor guidance to policy makers, opinion leaders, politicians, etc.
The terminology reflected a medical and diagnostic approach, which ignored the imperfections and deficiency of the environment. Therefore, some professionals and advocates have expressed concerns that the classifications, in it definition of the term "handicap", for example, can still be considered too medical and too centered on the individual, and does not adequately clarify the interaction between societal conditions or expectations and the ability of the individual. In 1974, Handicapped Persons in the Community lobbied for a change in gear in the way persons with disabilities are viewed and defined. Firstly, there is anatomical, physiological or psychological abnormality or a loss. Therefore, we think of the person with disabilities as a persons first who has lost a limb or part to the various system through surgeon or in an accident, becoming, for example, visually impaired, hard of hearing or physically impaired in some aspects, usually in observable ways.
Secondly, there are chronical clinical conditions altering or interrupting normal physiological, psychological processes such as bronchitis, arthritis, etc and manic depression. For any meaning of disability the clinical reference object is the normal human body, of like sex and age. Thirdly meaning is functional limitations of ordinary activity, whether that activity is carried out on alone or with others. The simplest example is incapacity for self care and management, in the sense of being unable to or finding it difficult to walk about, negotiate stairs, wash and dress.
Fourth meaning is a pattern of behavior with particular elements of a socially deviant kind. This pattern of behavior is in a part directly attributable to impairment or pathological conditions such as regular physical tremor or limps, or an irregular occurring fits.
Finally disability means a socially defined position or status. The actor doesn't just act differently. He occupies a status which attracts a mixture of difference, condescension, consideration and indifference. Therefore, disability is an empty inferiority as well as different status.
Persons with disabilities share with non-disabled persons, fears, ideals and superstitions, thus, as a group they cannot be characterized low in intelligence, or less sensitive than the others. Therefore, there are more similarities than differences between persons with disabilities and the able bodied. But factors that are related, and they provoke a reaction to a persons with disabilities, those factors include, his economic position, his social environment, nature of his disability, the point at which disability occurred in his life, the circumstance of its onset, the treatment procedures that are required, and course and the progress of the disabling process, and all those that have an effect on him. In this discussion, I referred the World Health Organization's 1980 international classification of impairments, disabilities and handicaps, in which impairment is abnormality of psychological, physiological or anatomical structure or function; disability the restricted ability to perform an activity, and handicapped restriction faced by a person with disability in fulfilling normal roles due to social barrier.
Historical Background of Disability
The development of policies and practices has been found very helpful in understanding the history of persons with disabilities. Though they may not make a reading for most of us, I have decided to adapt them in searching for a better understanding of disability and its evolutionary history. The development of policies and practices pertaining to persons with disabilities can be divided into three fundamental approaches resuming a long history of attitudes and conceptions in relation to disablement. Historically, the longest periods to "the traditional model", second "the r/habilitation model", and third "the independent model". The three approaches partly reflect the views of different age periods, but many elements of all paradigms live together in the attitudes and apprehension towards persons with disabilities not only to a particular nation or region but the world over.
Attitudes towards persons with disabilities have been influenced by a range of phenomena including human's struggle to survive, religious beliefs, economic changes, literature and art, scientific discoveries, medicine, philanthropy, politic, law, etc. The development of children with disabilities for example, has a history of vacillating attitudes. That is extreme cruelty alternating with protection, neglect alternating with enlightened provision, exploitation alternating with respect, etc.
In the early period of history, persons with disabilities were often abandoned and even killed. Decisions and practices of such cruelty were based on the erroneous beliefs that societies need to survive, so those who were considered weak were cast aside in case they held back the strength of the group. The ancient Greeks for example, aiming to create a "perfect race", always killed deaf children; the Spartans threw children with impairments into pit latrines.
More merciful religious ideals began to teach that persons with disabilities should be treated with compassion; the Bible and the Quran contain texts that say they should be protected. Protection could mean that a child with disability received special attention for example, Bede (672-735) recorded that St John of Beverley taught a dump youth to speak. This is believed to be one of the first recorded examples of an aphasic child being educated.
Other group of children with disabilities were called "cripples" and depicted as ugly and evil in art and literature. Fourteen-century frescos by Masaccio showed young persons with disabilities manoeuvring themselves about on little wheeled sledged in Florence, their faces avaricious and threatening as they begged for alms.
Victor Hugo's early nineteenth century novel "the hunchback of Notre dame" created a negative image of persons with spinal disorders. Robert Louis Stevenson's book "treasure island" suggested impairment as connected with evil and crime. Persons with disabilities therefore, were often consigned to circuses, regarded as little figures of fun and not expected to have any "normal" feelings or to want a "normal" life.
At different times in history, children with learning disabilities have been regarded as possessed by devils, and at other times and some places as "blessed". Indian American often called them "children of great spirit". Edward ii of England (1307-1328) placed "imbeciles" under his protection by law though in medieval palaces they were sometimes kept to amuse the family, but nonetheless attitudes continued to vacillate. Persecution flared up in the reformation, when Luther and Calvin denounced persons with learning disabilities as "filled with Satan". They were subsequently whipped, tortured and even murdered.
This deadly episode was followed by another period of protection. In the mid seventeen century, a group of persons with disabilities were gathered together in the bicette in Paris, a former chateu turned into a hospital. In 1801, a French physician, itard, published an account of a boy with disabilities found living rough in the aveyron woods. This story created interest in children's learning, inherited intelligence, and environmental influences. By the middle of the nineteen-century, interest in learning difficulties had developed in England. Due to the growth in institutions, there was then a captive population of children with learning disabilities that can be observed and described. Urban society expanded as industrial revolution developed. Poverty and diseases assumed shocking proportions in crowded unsanitary cities. Persons with learning disabilities were blamed for variety of urban illnesses such as laziness, immorality, sexual promiscuity, crime, pauperism, and prostitution. Persons with disabilities therefore, were seen as threat to society. However, one must not lose sight of the fact that these unpleasant moments in the history of persons with disabilities were also punctuated with good efforts that could merit highlight. For example, in the fourth and fifth centuries, hospitals for the visually impaired were opened caesaria and Syria, and in 1260 an asylum in France housed 300 visually impaired soldiers in the crusades. A hospital for 100 visually impaired men opened in London in 1329. Attempts were made to assist deaf and hard of hearing children in the sixteenth century, led by Italian, geronomo cardona, who recognised that they used sight to compensate for their lack of hearing. However, the majority of the deaf and hard of hearing children were labelled "deaf dumb" until the twentieth century.
The Traditional Model
Its is paradox that throughout history, the problems of persons with disabilities have not been lack of integration alone, but, rather an unfulfilled form of "integration", with limited possibilities for accessing education, work and social life. Persons with disabilities had always had a place in society, but a place that the misconceptions of leaders of the community and the community itself prescribed for them. Mainly, the roles given to persons with disabilities had negative characteristics. In antiquity, for example, deafness was regarded as a kind of disease that made the deaf person unable to develop the skills that were necessary to function as a responsible citizen. Following, the Roman law and derived system treated deaf persons as special cases. Occasionally, a disability is linked with a special ability. For example, visually impaired persons have often had special skills attributed to them, particularly with regards to music and poetry, and "seeing" into the future. Old Greece, Rome and Egypt represent examples, both of rejection (sometimes physical elimination) and sacralisation. In the extreme, even a hierophant. With the rise of Christianity, the focus changed. Persons with disabilities who were crippled, sick, blind, or deaf were regarded as object of "charity", and persons who were mentally retarded regarded as "innocent". It was thought proper that they should beg, in order to give others the opportunities to offer charity, or to be taken under care of the church. The task of the church was not only to provide care, but also to gain the person's entrance to heaven. For example, if the person was not confirmed, s/he should not be saved. This was the reason for the church to undertake to teach the deaf persons to speak and learn the catechism. These complementary roles of the church and the persons with disabilities may be regarded as the first step of the later development towards institutional care.
In the fifteenth and sixteenth century, during the constitution of the modern European states, poor and persons with disabilities became subject of administration as an aspect of public order. The time of enlightenment during the eighteenth century, transformed persons with disabilities into subject of care. At the same time, the "normal" citizens were step-by-step obtaining civil rights through confrontation with the ruling class. The word "normal" appeared in this time in France.
The positivism of the nineteenth century led a new emphasis. The persons of disabilities became problem subject, and object of study for psychology, medicine, and education. Thus, techniques for the education of the visually impaired and hard of hearing in the previous period became consolidated source. New categories of disabilities were studied at the same time as the differentiation between the asylum and the hospitals were reinforced, the later being a centre with socio- scientific functions. For example, the first school for America, which was founded in 1807, was called "the asylum".
The time had not come, however, to discuss the education of the children with severe disabilities. Therefore, the available resources and efforts were directed towards children who posed minor problems for the teachers. Segregation in education was introduced to provide children with disabilities with a possibility to learn, and this initial segregation no doubt had positive effects if one disregards the fact that, with the exception of the hard of hearing children who were dependent on a signing environment, non-segregated special school would have given the same results at that time.
The order of the church was replaced with the order of the bourgeoisie. The age of the enlightenment had led to a growing educational focus, but while the general concern of the society was on work and production, persons with disabilities were not yet regarded as able to play a part in industrial production. They were still to a large extent, deprived the role of workers, and thereby also denied the possibilities of obtaining a reasonable status in society. The functions of the persons with disabilities were to be the subject of protection by a liberal and progressive society, with control lying within the society.
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://allafrica.com/stories/201401291546.html
Kenya: Kisii to Form Database of the Disabled
AllAfrica.com
BY BENSON NYAGESIBA, 30 JANUARY 201
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THE Kisii County government has assured people living with disability of material and financial support.
Youth and Social services executive Marcella Otuke said the disabled persons have a role to play in the county's development and thus the need to support them.
Addressing representatives of people living with disability in her office on Tuesday, Otuke said the county government has started profiling people living with disability to help them.
She said the county government has set aside funds to cater for the needs of those groups because it is their constitutional right.
Otuke said the National Fund for the Disabled in Kenya, Kisii county coordinator Isaac Rogito will oversee the exercise.
She said a database will provide information about the persons easily.
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://allafrica.com/stories/201401301221.html
Salone National Association for the Deaf pays courtesy call on SLRTA boss
Sierra Express Media
By: SEM Contributor on February 3, 2014.
The National Association for the Deaf on Friday 31st January 2014 paid a courtesy call on the Executive Director of Sierra Leone Road Transport Authority (SLRTA) Dr. Sarah Finda Bendu at the SLRTA head quarter at Kissy Road in Freetown.
While making a statement the President of the Sierra Leone National Association for the Deaf, Mr. Alhaji Mohamed Rahman thanked Dr. Sarah Finda Bendu and her team for popularizing road safety in the country. He noted that we are losing a lot of lives as a result of gruesome road traffic crashes and that these road crashes cannot be unconnected to lawlessness on the part of drivers, bike riders and pedestrians.
He also noted that they are facing a lot of challenges as a result of their impaired hearing ability as he puts it while using the roads and this has resulted to the death of many of their membership. He called on the SLRTA to conduct road safety training for his entire membership as that would help them to know how to use the road responsibly to minimize the spate of road crashes in the country.
“We have lost many of our members/colleagues in road crashes simply because of their impaired hearing ability and we must not allow such to continue any longer. We are kindly asking for a road safety training for our entire membership this will help us to know the road signs and marking and thus help us to use the roads responsibly ” Mr. Rahman said. In her response Dr. Sarah Finda Bendu expressed her appreciation to the president and the entire membership of the National Association for the Deaf. She noted the SLRTA do have plans to take road safety to the disable that is the blind, the deaf etc because road safety is not only a global concern but also a collective responsibility.
She however empathizes with them taking into consideration some of the constraints they undergo while using the roads. She promised that request of the National Association for the deaf would be given due consideration and some of their members would be incorporated in the road safety advocacy team.
By SLRTA Communications Unit
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://www.sierraexpressmedia.com/archives/65012
Chamisa blasts website on fabrication about Mangoma disability slur
The Zimbabwe Mail-
Staff Reporter 15 hours 53 minutes ago
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EnlargeMDC-T national organising secretary, Nelson Chamisa
MDC-T national organising secretary, Nelson Chamisa
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HARARE - MDC-T national organising secretary, Nelson Chamisa, has denied insulting senior colleague Elton Mangoma about his disability at a heated meeting on the party's leadership last week.
“I never made any statement disparaging anyone. I believe in dealing with facts and factors - not actors,” Chamisa said responding to fabrications made by the website newzimbabwe.com.
Party sources said Mangoma came under vicious attack at a meeting of the Harare province which discussed his explosive letter calling for Morgan Tsvangirai’s immediate resignation as party leader.
The province met ahead of a gathering of the party’s national executive council over Mangoma’s divisive letter.
The former energy minister is said to have been blasted as a traitor with Chamisa allegedly saying he could have done a better job representing the disabled in Parliament.
But Chamisa, a key member of the party leadership backing Tsvangirai to stay in post, said the allegations were fabricated and a complete misrepresentation of what “I stand for”.
“To insinuate that I made that kind of attack is a complete misrepresentation of me and what I stand for. I may have many challenges as a human being but being an idiot is not one of them,” he said.
“I respect the maker of all mankind and would not presume to pass judgement on people created by God ? however they were created.” The former ICT minister said his address to the meeting had instead focussed on the political and economic situation in the country.
“I spoke about the political and economic crisis in the country and, with all due respect, my colleague Mr Mangoma does not constitute the political and economic situation in the country.”
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://www.thezimbabwemail.com/zimbabwe/20639-chamisa-blasts-website-on-fabrication-about-mangoma-disability-s.html
Mwenezi DA convicted for assaulting handicapped farmer
SW Radio Africa-
Posted by Mthulisi Mathuthu on Tuesday, February 4, 2014 in Judiciary | 0 Comments
Stanley Chamisa was found guilty of assaulting William Strander and fined $80
By Mthulisi Mathuthu
SW Radio Africa
04 January 2014
A Mwenezi District Administrator was last week convicted for assaulting a handicapped white commercial farmer, whom he later evicted from his farm, the Daily News reported Monday.
According to the report Masvingo magistrate Oliver Mudzongachiso, found Stanley Chamisa guilty of assaulting William Strander and fined him $80. Chamisa’s son, Watson, was acquitted for lack of evidence.
The report said the assault took place while Chamisa was evicting the farmer off his property under the so-called land reform programme.
The case against Chamisa was that on October 27th last year he and his son, accompanied by two police officers, drove to Strander’s homestead at Benjani Ranch Farm. They are said to have met Strander driving in the opposite direction and stopped him. When Strander refused to drive back to his homestead the DA then insulted his victim and punched him.
Chamisa was later restrained by police officers after he allegedly tried to pick up a boulder in an attempt to smash Strander’s car. The farmer sustained injuries on the neck and the arm and had to be treated at Masvingo General Hospital. He reported the matter to the police, leading to Chamisa’s arrest.
Strander has since approached the Constitutional Court over the seizure of his farm.
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://www.swradioafrica.com/2014/02/04/mwenezi-da-convicted-for-assaulting-handicapped-farmer/
HIV survey among the deaf commences in Kampala
New Vision
Publish Date: Feb 04, 2014A deaf person communicating during the inauguration of the workshop at Grand Imperial Hotel .Photo by Agnes Kyotalengerire newvision
By Agnes Kyotalengerire
A programme to survey the HIV/AIDS status among the deaf people in Kampala has been inaugurated. The Crane Survey; a collaborative activity between ministry of health, Makerere University School of Public Health and the United States Center for Disease Control and Prevention (CDC) kicked off yesterday and will last for six months. The survey funded by PEPFAR; a US Government’s HIV assistance programme is the first of its kind in Uganda. It will cover the greater Kampala region; Kampala, Mukono, Wakiso and Mpigi districts. A total sample of 1,500 deaf people aged above 18 years will take part in the survey.
This was revealed during an inauguration workshop at Grand Imperial Hotel in Kampala on Friday.
Speaking during the workshop, Associate Professor School of Public Health, Dr. Rhoda Wanyenza said deaf people in Uganda are often disadvantaged, lack access to health care and have challenges in attaining proper health knowledge.
“Due to their disability, many are more vulnerable, putting them potentially at increased risk of getting HIV/AIDS,” Wanyenza said.
She said what aggravates the problem is the lack of data about the health needs of the deaf, their risk for HIV and their access to HIV services, such as treatment.
Participants making deliberations during the inauguration of the HIV and health survey among the deaf at Grand Imperial Hotel Kampala. Picture by Agnes Kyotalengerire
The chairperson finance and administration committee National Council for Disability, James Aniyamuzala is optimistic that the survey will help shed light on the health needs of the deaf and improve health literacy and access to health services among the deaf.
Aniyamuzala said the survey creates an opportunity to influence policies on issues to do with people with disabilities.
George William Lubwama the Crane Survey project manager said using a video-based sign language questionnaire, the survey will examine respondent’s general health status, alcohol, tobacco and drug use as well as access to health care, HIV testing, care, treatment and HIV related diseases.
Lubwama said during the survey respondents will be tested for HIV and syphilis. Treatment for syphilis will be provided at the survey offices at Reev House Bombo Road, Wandegeya. Those found with HIV will be referred to HIV care and treatment providers.
Respondents will receive pre and post-test counseling for HIV and which will be aided by computer technology. Ambrose Murangira the executive director Uganda National Association of the Deaf urged researchers to include deaf people in the research. “For the research to be successful, you need to work with the people you are researching about. When you involve one or two deaf people, the deaf community feel free and get committed to participate in the survey,” Murangira said.
He commended Crane Survey for choosing an appropriate method; video-computer based sign language to collect data. “The biggest problem with deaf people is communication; it starts right at home and continues to the health facilities which affects their access to health services. Using video-computer based method to conduct interviews will help reduce the gap of communication.
Another deaf person communicating during the inauguration of the HIV and health survey among the deaf at Grand Imperial Hotel
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://www.newvision.co.ug/news/652121-hiv-survey-among-the-deaf-commences-in-kampala.html
Sierra Leone: Ahead of African Deaf Nations Cup in Abidjan
AllAfrica.com
BY SAHR MORRIS JNR., 4 FEBRUARY 2014
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The Sierra Leone national deaf team has been paired alongside Nigeria, Tanzania and Algeria in Group C of the maiden edition of the African Deaf Nations Cup (ADNC). The tournament will be hosted in Abidjan, Cote d'Ivoire later this year.
In the other groups, Cote d'Ivoire, Mali, The Gambia and Egypt are in Group A, while Group B consists of Libya, Cameroon, Liberia and Niger. In Group D are Ghana, Kenya, Zambia and Guinea.
Meanwhile, former President of the Sierra Leone National Association of the Deaf (SLNAD), Ramatu Sesay, has been appointed to serve as one of the Planning Committee members for the tournament.
Madam Sesay got her appointment following a meeting in Abidjan where she shared her experience with the other members on the rules and regulations governing deaf football.
Other members of the Committee include Jonathan Amuah (Vice President), John Stephen Yusuf (General Secretary), Emhemed Khalifa Emsiri (President of the Libya Deaf Sports Federation), Nouhoun Keita (President of Mali Deaf Sports Federation), and Mrs Ramatu Sesay (Chairperson of Sierra Leone Deaf Sports Federation).
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://allafrica.com/stories/201402051067.html
Disability-friendly home gives new hope
Independent Online-
February 6 2014 at 10:00am ct Gxowa_5277 done
INSLA
ONE STEP AT A TIME: Noxolo Gxowa hugs her disabled daughter, Wendy, 16, after they received their new home in Delft yesterday. Next on the dedicated mother's wish list is that Wendy goes to school. Photo: Bheki Radebe Siyavuya Mzantsi
FOR most of her life, 16-year-old Wendy Gxowa lived in a one-roomed hostel in Mfuleni with six other families.
Her mother, fearing for her safety because the girl was disabled, later moved the family into a shack in Delft.
Gxowa suffered a stroke when she was five months old and she now has meningitis.
But being moved from pillar to post is no longer Gxowa’s story. Now, she and her family will move into their own home.
The family was the first to receive an RDP house in Delft yesterday where Wendy and her mother received a disability-friendly home as part of the N2 Gateway project.
Her mother, Noxolo Gxowa, 32 said they had been waiting for a home for all their lives.
“Since she became disabled, it has been difficult for us because there were so many people around her all the time, so she did not get enough rest. My father, whom we stayed with, was the only one working and I had to look after her.”
Wendy uses a wheelchair and is unable to attend school and spends most of her time in the care of her mother.
“We sent her to a school for the disabled and it was difficult for her because she can’t talk or communicate. The environment she was in was not good for a disabled person like her. She needs lots of attention because she can’t do anything by herself.
Noxolo Gxowa said she had come to terms with her daughter’s disability.
“I love her, she is my daughter and I will always take care of her, no matter what her condition is. I accepted this a long time ago because if I hadn’t, no one would have. My worry was the fact that anything could have happened to her in that shack and she would be trapped there,” she said.
“Now that we have secured a place that we can call home, I have no words to describe how I feel.
“I never thought this day would come. “
Wendy and her mother will live in the house with another three relatives.
None of the family is employed and they live off social grants.
“The most important thing is that she gets all her needs seen to. Now my wish is that she goes to school.
I know it will be a challenge, but that is what I hope will happen,” Gxowa said.
siyavuya.mzantsi@inl.co.za
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://www.iol.co.za/capetimes/disability-friendly-home-gives-new-hope-1.1642784
Ahead of African Deaf Nations Cup in Abidjan…
Sierra Express Media
By: SEM on February 6, 2014.
Former SLNAD Prezy appointed as Planning Committee Member
Former President of the Sierra Leone National Association of the Deaf (SLNAD) Mrs. Ramatu Sesay has been appointed to serve as one of the Planning Committee members for the maiden edition of the African Deaf Nations Cup (ADNC) to be hosted in Abidjan, Ivory Coast later this year.
Ramatu got her appointment following a meeting in Abidjan, last year where she reportedly impressed and shared her experience with the other members on the rules and regulations governing deaf football.
The Sierra Leone national deaf team, she updated her colleagues, had engaged the Liberian and Gambian deaf national teams on several international matches.
Speaking to this press, she stated that she felt elated over the appointment and thanked members for reposing confidence in her. She promised to be dedicated and serve the committee selflessly to promote deaf football in Africa
Other members of the Committee include, Mr. Jonathan Amuah (Vice President), Mr. John Stephen Yusuf (General Secretary), Mr. Emhemed Khalifa Emsiri, (President of Libya Deaf Sports Federation), Mr. Nouhoun Keita (President of Mali Deaf Sports Federation), Mrs. Ramatu Sesay (Chairperson of Sierra Leone Deaf Sports Federation).
A meeting among the members was held to harmonise and coordinate the draws.
Group A, Cote D’ivoire, Mali, The Gambia, Egypt,
Group B, Libya, Cameroon, Liberia and Niger,
Group C, Nigeria, Tanzania, Sierra Leone and Algeria,
Group D Ghana, Kenya, Zambia and Guinea.
Mrs Sesay says however noted that the association is in dire need of $10,
000 to register for the tournament. She therefore appealed to well-
wishers, the Ministry of Sports, other organisations, and individuals for financial support.
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://www.sierraexpressmedia.com/archives/65097
Sekondi School for the Deaf needs accommodation
GhanaWeb
The Sekondi School for the Deaf (SEKDEAF) is accommodating both girls and boys on a one-storey block because of inadequate accommodation facilities for them. The boys occupy the top floor while the girls are on the ground floor.
The headmaster of the school, Mr Kofi Oti Frimpong, who made this known to the Ghana News Agency last Tuesday, has, therefore, appealed to the Ghana Education Service (GES) to provide separate accommodation for the two different groups of pupils to avoid any untoward occurrence, stressing that the situation “is not the best.”
“The students are human beings and they have emotions and feelings and if a student cannot control his feelings and enters the girls’ dormitory, what do you think will happen?” he queried.
The school currently has a student population of 328. He said there was a girls’ dormitory project by the GETFund which had stalled since 1992 and appealed to authorities concerned to fast-track its completion to accommodate the girls separately from the boys.
The only deaf and dumb school in the Western Region, established in 1971, has no administrative block, assembly and dining halls, while the only school bus has broken down.
Mr Frimpong said the school had not received the school feeding grant for the second term, adding that, “we recently received about GH¢2,500 from the government being the arrears for the first term.”
“Even that money has been used to pay our creditors because we have been crediting food to feed the children for a very long time.”
He, therefore, appealed to philanthropists, non-governmental organisations and corporate bodies to come to their aid.
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/regional/artikel.php?ID=299890
Foundation provides free hearing aid for the deaf
Ghana News Agency
Friday 7th February, 2014
Hearing Foundation
Nana Oye Lithur with one of the Doctors and a patient Accra, Feb 6, GNA
- Starkey Hearing Foundation (SHF) in collaboration with the National Council of Persons with Disability (NCPD) is organising a five-day hearing aid programme for over 2500 deaf people.
The programme, which started on Februaryb 5 in Accra, is aimed at providing a gift of hearing to the deaf across the country which would enable them to hear sound.
SHF is based in United States and seeks to travel globally to deliver a gift of hearing to people in need and its national program is a movement that makes the world to hear.
The nine institutions participating in the program include Mampong, Cape Cost, Volta Region, Agyei Kojo, Abomoso, Ashanti, Winneba Schools for the deaf, among others.
Mr Bill Austin, The Founder of the Foundation, brought a team of doctors from the USA to collaborate with some otolaryngologists in Ghana to provide health care for the deaf.
Over 550 people who were taken care of on Wednesday were taken through counseling and they were also provided with hearing aids with battery which would help them hear well.
Mr Wilson Abgesi Yao, the National Coordinator of SHF in Ghana, said over 5 million dollars had been pumped by the Foundation into the project.
He said otolaryngologists would do follow ups to check on the patients to see how they are doing and to also provide them with batteries for their hearing aids.
The Minister for Gender, Children and Social Protection, Nana Oye Lithur, said she was grateful to the Foundation for such initiative which had helped some of the deaf people to hear for the first time.
She said the Ministry was the government machinery responsible for ensuring gender equity, the welfare and protection of children, adding that persons with disability as well as empowering the vulnerable in the society through the use of social protection interventions to achieve national development.
“That is why we are happy at this global initiative which will ultimately contribute to the reduction of isolation, poverty illiteracy and inequalities” she said.
The Minister said it was of great importance that they recognized the efforts and benevolence to put a smile on the face of the people with hearing disabilities or less privileged to improve their lives.
“For me, this is the power that partnership has to change situations and champion positive social change, I urged you to deepen your collaboration with government for a sustainable national development because these initiative contribute to restoration of the dignity of life.” she said
Nana Oye Lithur explained that, in line with the Ministry’s mandate and to harmonize their obligations under both local and international Law, the Ministry was reviewing the provisions of the Person with Disability Act 2006 (Act 715) to realign them with those of the Convention on the rights of persons with disabilities.
She said the ministry was going to collaborate with Starkey to make sure such a programme was organized yearly to replace damaged hearing aids.
She asked for financial and technical support from the foundation to train more personnel for early diagnosis, treatment and managing of hearing impairment cases to improve the livelihood and opportunities especially for children.
Some of the patients who spoke to GNA through interpreters expressed gratitude to the Foundation for making them to hear sounds for first time in their entire life.
Partners of the program are the Ministry of Gender, Children and Social Protection, Korle-Bu and Tamale Teaching Hospital,
GNA
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://www.ghananewsagency.org/social/foundation-provides-free-hearing-aid-for-the-deaf-70441
H4P crew organises inter-schools disability games
GhanaWeb-
H4P (Here For Perfection) crew, a non-governmental organisation advocating issues of persons with disability has, for the second time, organised fund games for students in special schools, a responsibility education authorities have ignored over the years.
The organisation said it had taken upon itself the responsibility to remove systemic barriers hindering persons with disability (PWDs) from contributing their quota to the economic prosperity of the nation.
Speaking at the opening of the 2nd edition of the H4P inter-schools disability fun games anchored by the theme: “ability in disability” on Friday, Ms Elorm Asiseh, a Member of H4P Crew said the event offered the students a unique opportunity for them to demonstrate their potentials in sports for total social integration.
She said the occasion sought to develop the abilities of PWDs in sports, foster unity and cooperation among special schools and create the enabling environment for them to contribute to societal progress.
The fun games also served as a viable ground to identify athletes for the Special Olympics as well as encourage parents of children with special education needs to enroll them in schools and not to lock them up in homes.
More than 600 special students, representing 13 schools from Upper West, Eastern, Greater Accra, Central and Western regions, on Friday, competed in various games.
The participating schools engaged in a tug of peace, three-legged race for the blind, table tennis, lime and spoon race, volleyball, sack race, seven-aside football and musical chairs.
Mr Joel Akperika, Assistant Sports master of Wa Methodist School for the Blind, told the Ghana News Agency that, the event had given the students a refreshing exposure and an opportunity to share experiences with sister schools.
He expressed worry that despite the “special nature of special schools, ” they were largely neglected in terms of educational materials and sporting equipment.
Mr Akperika appealed to the Ghana Education Service to provide sporting equipment to special schools and consider organising similar events for them yearly, as pertaining in the regular schools.
The H4P crew organised the maiden sporting event for seven special schools, covering three regions last year, and managed to scale up to five regions this year.
Ms Asiseh said the organisation faced funding challenges but expressed the hope that they would spread the event to cover all the regions next year for fuller participation of PWDs in sporting activities.
The Dzorwulu Special School in the Greater Accra emerged the overall best for the Intellectually Disabled category while Akropong School for the Deaf in the Eastern Region topped in the Visually Impaired Category.
The Hearing Impaired category was swept by the Demonstration School for the Deaf in Akuapim-Mampong, also in the Eastern Region.
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/SportsArchive/artikel.php?ID=300156
Sudan: Teachers, Classrooms Needed for 265 Deaf Students in South Darfur
AllAfrica.com-
10 FEBRUARY 2014
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South Darfur - Educators in South Darfur have appealed to the responsible authorities to make provision for some 265 hearing-impaired students and pupils.
Directors of Special Education complain of a lack of trained teachers in sign language, teaching aids and appropriate classrooms.
The Director of special education in South Darfur, Adam Ali says that there are 127 deaf pupils in basic schools and 97 students in secondary schools.
Director of special education for Kass locality, Alameer Abdulrahman Ibrahim, reports 41 deaf pupils in basic schools.
They have appealed for the provision the necessary special education aids, special education teachers and to increase their capacities.
Sudan Govt Should Use Sinai Security Operations to Suppress Trafficking Traffickers have kidnapped, tortured, and killed refugees, most from Eritrea, in eastern Sudan and Egypt's Sinai … see more ≫
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://allafrica.com/stories/201402110853.html
Let members’ welfare be your priority? Leadership of persons with disability in Oyo, tasked
Nigerian Tribune-
Written by Wednesday, 12 February 2014 00:00
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The new leadership of the Joint National Association of Persons With Disabilities (JONAPWD) in Oyo Zone has been charged to team up for the welfare of members.
The advice was given by the chairman of the association in Oyo State, Mr Oluola Obe, at the inauguration of the executive members for the four local government areas in Oyo zone.
Mr Obe tasked the new executive council members to give priority attention to the well-being of people with disabilities in the four local government areas of the zone.
He also congratulated them on their election and admonished them not to give room for bickering in their rank and file Earlier, the secretary of the body, Mr Olayinka Babatunde, had thanked the state governor for giving them a sense of belonging through employment opportunities and various assistance.
In his acceptance speech, the chairman, Mr Lasisi Jelili, promised not to betray the trust reposed in him.
He assured that he would work with the executive council members to educate and train members of the association to be self-reliant.
He thanked members for giving them the mandate to lead the association.
Other members of the new executive council included Mr Omoni Femi, vice chairman and Mr Bello Lekan, general secretary.
Facing widespread neglect, disabled Somalis seek government assistance
Sabahi Online
By Osman Mohamud in Mogadishu
February 13, 2014
Disabled Somalis say they have been overlooked in recent years and are asking the government to address their needs by improving access to public buildings and providing job training.
Dahir Mudey, 45, who lives in Mogadishu's Siyad Camp for internally displaced people, was severely injured in a landmine explosion in Bulo Burde district in Hiran region in 2007. [Osman Mohamud/Sabahi]
Disabled army veterans attend a memorial service on September 12, 2009, for comrades who were killed by a mortar shell fired by militants that struck a hospital for army veterans in Mogadishu. [Mustafa Abdi/AFP]
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Mohamed Yahye, 56, who lost both legs in a mortar attack that hit his house during tribal clashes in Mogadishu in 1996, said disabled people have not receive the assistance they expected from the government after the security situation began to improve in Mogadishu.
"It looks as though the government and the public have forgotten about helping us as there is no group yet that has officially assumed responsibility for doing the things that are important for disabled people such as when we go to the ministries, police stations and the centre that issues national identification cards," he told Sabahi.
Yahye said people usually stand in long queues when they are applying for national identification cards, but it proves more difficult for people like him.
"There is no special place where the disabled people like me enter. They treat us like they treat the people who are not disabled, and it is an issue we are still waiting for the government to address," Yahye said.
Shamso Yusuf, a 38-year-old mother of five who lost both legs in 2012 when al-Shabaab attacked a wedding party at a house in Hodan district, told Sabahi she has not received any government help since that time.
"I have not received any care, and even the wheelchair that I use was donated to me by relatives who collected money for me," she said. "I have children whose father has died. I feel heartsick because I am not able to work like I used to when I was healthy."
Getting job training, raising awareness
Dahir Mudey, 45, an internally displaced person at Siyad Camp in Mogadishu, became disabled in 2007 after the car he was travelling in hit a landmine in Bulo Burde district in Hiran region. He lost one of his legs from the knee down and his other leg was severely injured. He has been confined to a wheelchair ever since.
"In other nations around the world, people like us get regular care and continuous monitoring of their situation, such as getting trained in job skills and receiving aid in the form of equipment to work with, but we are waiting for all that from our government," he told Sabahi.
Kamal Muse, 37, who studied business and administration at Kampala International University, was crippled by polio in one hand and leg when he was 5-years-old and is looking for work with the government.
"I sent several job applications to the ministries of the Somali government and I am now hopeful that I will get a job at the Ministry of Interior Affairs," he told Sabahi. "If I get the job, I hope to especially work towards securing the rights of disabled people because when a person finds a job working for the government, it is possible to get the freedom to speak up about what is of interest to him."
Aside from the general unemployment that exists in Somalia, Muse said it is more difficult for a disabled person to get a job.
"Disabled people like us do not have the presence we should have in businesses and the government because I think the public believes a disabled person would not be able to perform in the job if they are given work," he said. "But I have seen people whose limbs are intact yet disabled people work harder than them."
Muse said there were civil society organisations and diaspora Somalis who sometimes help disabled people, but it is not enough.
"What is more important than the assistance is improving the knowledge of disabled people, particularly by providing skills, and [raising awareness at] government ministries, the airport and police stations about welcoming disabled people in designated areas," he said.
Sabahi reached out on several occasions to Somali government spokesperson Ridwan Haji Abdiweli and the office of the Minister of Women and Human Rights Khadijo Mohamed Diriye to comment for this article, but those attempts were unsuccessful.
Giving disabled Somalis a voice Abdullahi Hussein Osman, head of the Institute of Education for Disabled People in Somalia, a civil society organisation that has been working in Somalia since 1993, said he has not seen any tangible assistance from all the previous administrations and is waiting to see if the current government will include people with disabilities in its agenda.
"Somalis generally put all their efforts in politics, but there are no social welfare programmes that have been implemented in the country until now," he told Sabahi. Osman blamed the Somali government for not including disabled people when it consults various sectors of the public.
"I do not know what this current government will come up with, but I believe that it will also behave the same as the previous transitional government because when they were forming the government they conducted consultations with sections of the public and they never consulted us or asked us what our thoughts were," he said.
He said it would be difficult for disabled people to overcome their problems if the government does not come up with a plan to help them.
"We feel that we have been forgotten and there is no specific group at the moment that we can say has added us to their agenda to give services to the public, whether it is an international organisation or the Somali government…," Osman said.
One exception is the African Education Trust, which provided training for 115 disabled Somalis at four centres in 2012, he said. The disabled men and women were trained for a year on how to read and write, sew clothes, and do cosmetic work.
"The people who took advantage of those skills are all working today," he said.
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://sabahionline.com/en_GB/articles/hoa/articles/features/2014/02/13/feature-02
Deaf woman raped by two men in Morocco
Emirates 24/7
By Staff
Published Monday, February 17, 2014
Two men abducted an unmarried 50-year-old deaf woman in Morocco and raped her in an isolated area before fleeing the place, newspapers reported on Monday.
They quoted police as saying Fatima, who lost her virginity, was found in bad condition and taken to hospital in the northwestern Moroccan town of Sidi Slimane.
Human rights in the small city called on authorities to arrest the two men and severely punish them after they violently raped the woman and caused her “severe physical and psychological pains,” according to the Saudi Sada daily, which published her picture.
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://www.emirates247.com/crime/world/deaf-woman-raped-by-two-men-in-morocco-2014-02-17-1.538491
Teacher arrested over defilement of deaf and dumb
GhanaWeb
A teacher has gone on trial at the Juaso Circuit Court over the defilement of a deaf and dumb girl at Akokobenom, a farming community in the Asante-Akim South District.
Francis Arhin, 25, who had impregnated the 15-year-old girl, denied wrongdoing, insisting that she is his girlfriend.
The court presided over by Mr Alex Obeng Asante ordered that he should be kept in prison custody to make his next court appearance on Thursday, February 27.
The accused teaches in the very community where the victim lives with the mother.
Police Inspector Manasseh Obimpeh said the mother had for some time observed marked changes in the victim, something that heightened her suspicion that the girl might be pregnant.
He said upon prodding, she revealed that Arhin had had sex with her, a claim he did not deny, when confronted.
The prosecution said the accused later prepared a concoction, gave it to the victim, ostensibly to terminate the pregnancy, but the mother intercepted the substance.
She took it to the Banka police station to make a formal report.
Pregnancy test conducted by doctors, who attended to her, established that she was carrying a 14-week foetus.
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/crime/artikel.php?ID=300971
Angola: Labour Ministry Controls Over Nine Thousand Disabled Persons
AllAfrica.com
18 FEBRUARY 2014
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Luanda - About 9,752 disabled persons countrywide are under the control of the Ministry of Public Administration, Labour and Social Security (Maptss), as well as in the records of the Disabled Persons National Association (Anda).
The information was given on Tuesday, in Luanda, by Anda's chairman, Silva Lopes Etiambulo, in the ambit of the theme "Situation of disabled persons in Angola", having revealed that Cuando Cubango is the only province whose data on this issue needs better analysis, taking into account its big geographical dimension.
The same source explained that out of the mentioned number controlled by Maptss and Anda it is included citizens with congenial and acquired deficiency, 25,000 of whom are former soldiers, besides some still on military duty.
In March this year, he said, it is scheduled a registration of disabled people who are in military quarters, so that they can get support from Maptss and Anda, instead of depending only from the Angolan Armed Forces (FAA).
Silva Lopes Etiambulo informed that the fifth phase of the "Vem Comigo" project, promoted by Maptss for disabled persons, expects to include also former soldiers who, for various reasons, do not get any support from the Institute for the Social Reintegration of Ex-Soldiers (IRSEM), with a view to improving their living standards.
"The fifth phase of the project will not be restricted to catering for physically disabled people only, since it will equally include ex-soldiers that suffer from post-war trauma and that also need help in terms of social integration", explained the source.
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://allafrica.com/stories/201402190264.html
Africa: View On Disability - Trials Exclude Vulnerable People
AllAfrica.com
18 FEBRUARY 2014
When working on technological products - from smartphones and websites to water pumps - designers should keep disabled users in mind from the outset, according to several speakers I heard at a conference last month.
Doing this means that products can be used by people with any disability, and that companies have the largest market possible for their wares.
A similar message needs to get through to the designers of clinical trials, to paraphrase Celia Fisher, director of the Center for Ethics Education at Fordham University in the United States, who I bumped into over coffee at the same meeting. Trials can - and should - be designed so people with disabilities are included, she told me.
They often aren't because of a misapplication of the principle of informed consent - the idea that participants in trials should understand the potential risks and benefits involved.
This is a priority for institutional review boards, the bodies that oversee the ethical conduction of trials, because it is seen as the best way to avoid pressurising or exploiting people.
"Many times, review boards think people with intellectual disabilities should be excluded so we can protect them from coercion or not really understanding the research they're in," says Fisher.
"Now the problem with that is that treatments for different health problems are not always effective in all populations, so if people with intellectual, or other disabilities, are not included then it violates the principle of justice, because they don't have the opportunity to benefit from information that can be derived from that research."
Fisher's solution is what she calls the 'goodness-of-fit' ethic, an approach she developed and which, she says, has gained approval among her colleagues.
The idea is that researchers should adapt the way in which they obtain informed consent to the intellectual strengths and vulnerabilities of the individuals they are recruiting. [1]
For example, Fisher cites her experience of asking intellectually impaired adults participating in a trial if they understood that their data would be kept confidential.
In one of her studies, researchers explained confidentiality using phrases like: 'we won't put your name on the data' and 'we won't tell anyone about it'.
"These adults would often respond: 'So you'll put it in a drawer?'" she tells me. "If we were going to do a straight test of whether they understood what we said, we might say they got it wrong. But for them, that's how you keep something secret. We should understand that fact, not denigrate their comprehension."
References
[1] Celia B. Fisher The Goodness-of-Fit Ethic for Informed Consent (Fordham Urban Law Journal, 2002)
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://allafrica.com/stories/201402190625.html
Disabled School Children Injured In Taxi Accident
Yahoo South Africa
SA Breaking NewsBy Staff Reporter | SA Breaking News
Johannesburg - Twenty four disabled children were injured when their school taxi overturned on the N14 near Diepsloot on Tuesday morning. According to ER24, the driver lost control of the taxi while transporting the children, aged between seven and eleven, to school.
Two adults were also travelling in the taxi, both sustained only minor injuries.
“The children were treated for injuries ranging from minor to moderate. None had any fractures but most had lacerations and abrasions,” said ER24′s Luyanda Majija. All patients were taken to Thembisa Hospital for further care.
In a separate incident 15 taxi commuters in KwaZulu-Natal were injured after two taxis collided along Edendale road in Pietermaritzburg.
“Paramedics arrived at the scene and found that one taxi rear ended another, the wreckages were obstructing the roadway, and the injured were found at the side of the roadway,” said Netcare 911 spokesperson Chris Botha.
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://za.news.yahoo.com/disabled-school-children-injured-taxi-accident-074128653.html
Kenya: Shanzu Disabled Group Protests Eviction
AllAfrica.com
BY MARTIN MWAURA, 20 FEBRUARY 2014
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PEOPLE living with disabilities yesterday protested over encroachment of their property by a businessman in Shanzu.
They accused businessman, Joseph Kilonzo of harassing them and using money to influence the police to evict them from the disputed property.
Chairman Simon Otieno said police allowed Kilonzo to put up a filling station next to their hardware.
"In December there was a fire at the shop next to the petrol station. We dragged ourselves there and managed to save the premises. We now want the government to demolish it," he said.
Otieno said the petrol station does not have underground fuel storage tanks.
"The diesel and petrol have been stored in drums outside and may catch fire anytime. We are surprised that concerned authorities can let this go on under their watch," he said.
Otieno said his group has written letters to Nema and the Mombasa municipal inspectorate board but their they have had no response.
"We went to see the subchief who directed us to complain to Nema. We have not received any response from either of them or the inspectorate department of the county council," he said.
Yesterday, Kilonzo dismissed the group as 'bitter rivals who are taking advantage of their situation to gain compassion.'
"I have been operating here for a while and it is only in December last year when they started complaining about my petrol station. They are just jealous of my business," he said.
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://allafrica.com/stories/201402200730.html
公開セミナー「南アフリカ障害者の日常生活と自立生活センターづくりに向けて」
2013年4月から、JICA地球ひろばの草の根協力事業のもと、南アフリカ共和国ハウテン州のソウェトとジャーミストンにおいて「障害者地域自立生活センター設立に向けた人材育成」事業を開始しました。この人材育成事業の一環として2月9日から23日に行われる「地域自立生活センター運営リーダー研修」に参加するため、二人の障害者が南アフリカから来日します。Kyambogo to start course for both blind and deaf
New Vision-
Publish Date: Feb 22, 2014
6,713 students graduated from Kyambogo University. Here, jubilant graduands celebrate their achievement. PHOTO/Eddie Ssejjoba
newvision By Innocent Anguyo KAMPALA - In light of ensuring that Ugandans who are both blind and deaf receive formal education, Kyambogo University is set to start a course in the discipline of Deafblindness.
The program is being developed by the university in collaboration with a Dutch institutional, Kentalis International, that promotes full participation of people who have difficulty in speaking, hearing and seeing.
The partnership also involves Sense International Uganda, a local NGO.
This development was revealed by the university’s acting Vice Chancellor Prof Elly Katunguka on the second, and last, day of the public institution’s 10th graduation on Friday.
“When completely developed, Kyambogo University will be the first university in sub-Saharan region to train students in deaf blindness,” said the VC.
Deafblindness is the condition of little or no useful sight and little or no useful hearing.
Educationally, individuals are considered to be deafblind when the combination of their hearing and sight loss causes such severe communication and other developmental and educational needs that they require significant and unique adaptations in their educational programs.
Deafblind people communicate in many different ways determined by the nature of their condition, the age of onset, and what resources are available to them.
Multisensory methods have been used to help deafblind people enhance their communication skills. These can be taught to very young children with developmental delays (to help with pre-intentional communication), young people with learning difficulties, or older people, including those with dementia.
However, the Deafblindness programme should not be confused with another existing course, the Bachelor of Special Needs.
For its part, the Special Needs program instructs students with, among others, visual and hearing impairment. Students interested in working with special needs people can also enroll for the course.
On Friday, the second-largest public university in Uganda wrapped up a two-day graduation ceremony which saw 6,713 students receive Masters Degrees, Diplomas, Postgraduate Diplomas and Undergraduate Degrees.
In a whole, 107 got first-class degrees while 43 attained first-class diplomas.
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://www.newvision.co.ug/news/652852-kyambogo-to-start-course-for-both-blind-and-deaf.html
Disabled Supporters Union to send 500 fans to Brazil
GhanaWeb
The National Disabled Supporters Union (NDSU) is planning to mobilise 500 disabled supporters across the country to back the Black Stars at the 2014 World Cup in Brazil.
The group plans to select 50 persons with all forms of disability from each of the 10 regions to make the number to provide a massive support for the Black Stars during the World Cup, as well as other sporting events.
Mr Eric Bannerman, founder and president of the group told the GNA Sports that, the initiative was part of efforts to provide an all-inclusive support for the Black Stars during the competition.
According to Bannerman, there had been a deliberate attempt to sideline people with disability from participating in international events, hence the need to provide persons with disability the opportunity to be part of the World Cup campaign and also to support the Black Stars.
“Persons with disability are always sidelined when it comes to mobilisation of supporters for international competitions and I think it is discriminatory.
“We want to offer them the opportunity to be part of history this time. That is why we have decided to form the group to serve as a platform for mobilising supporters to the World Cup,” he stated.
Bannerman, said the project which would be under the theme, “Equal Opportunity, Equal Distributions of resources” would be fully funded by Seasons Travel and Tours, adding that the supporters would not make any monetary contribution to the trip.
He, however, noted that they would accept contributions from individuals and corporate institutions that would be willing to contribute to the union to support the disabled supporters.
Umaro Sanda Salifu, Communications Director of NDSU, said their outfit was out to support persons with disability who had been relegated to the background.
“It is not going to be a one-off project but for subsequent sports events”, Salifu stressed.
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/SportsArchive/artikel.php?ID=301488
Children with disability must go to school
Vibe Ghana
February 24, 2014 | Filed under: Education | Posted by: VibeGhana
Parents of children with intellectual disability has been advised not to keep their children at home but to send them to school.
The parents were reminded that, such children also have the right to education as any other children under the laws of the country.
Mr Festus Buetey Longmatey , Executive Director of Talent Search International, a Non-Governmental Organization (NGO) with interest in children, gave the advice at a sensitization meeting with parents, teachers and opinion leaders at Obawale in the Yilo Krobo District.
He regretted that, in some instances, some parents for various reasons even refused to send their children with intellectual disabilities to hospitals when they were sick and pleaded with health authorities to be tolerant when such children were brought to their facilities.
Mr Longmatey urged the parents of such children to come together to speak on behalf of such children because often they could not talk for themselves because of their conditions.
He said , his organization was interested in bringing together parents, teachers and health personnel to help promote the health and wellbeing of children with intellectual disability in the district.
Mr Longmatey appealed to health authorities in the area to help identify children with such challenges for early treatment and provision of the necessary support for their development. GNA
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://vibeghana.com/2014/02/24/children-with-disability-must-go-to-school/
Angola: Discrimination Against Disabled People Declines in Country
AllAfrica.com-
24 FEBRUARY 2014
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The level of discrimination against disabled people in Angola reduced substantially after the holding of National Workshop on Disability in 2005.
The national director for the Integration of Persons with Disabilities of Social Welfare Ministry ( MINARS ), Andre Nzinga said Monday in Luanda.
He said that the current framework of discrimination against persons with disabilities in the country is not as bleak as in previous years.
Andre Nzinga put this comparative situation when speaking to Angop, on the topic "Status of Persons with Disabilities in Angola " .
The source stressed that the meeting held in 2005 under the aegis of MINARS, outlined a set of guidelines and key recommendations that contributed to the improvement of the situation recorded previously.
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【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://allafrica.com/stories/201402250233.html
Tanzania: Charity Hand From India for Handicapped
AllAfrica.com
BY LAWI JOEL, 24 FEBRUARY 2014
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THE Indian High Commission has once again participated in a charity ceremony to enliven the welfare of disabled schoolchildren of the nation with a promise for a hopeful future.
Beneficiaries of this benevolence from local representatives of Aryavarta as India is otherwise named, were schoolchildren of Uhuru Mchanganyiko Primary School in the city of Dar es Salaam.
Participating at the ceremony as a representative of the India's High Commission was First Secretary Arvind Singh Karki and his wife Mrs Diwpa Sehgal, 2nd Secretary to the commission. Such assistance as the Indian High Commission gave to the school early this year - January 19 - has reassured the disabled of the nation that they too can lead a largely independent and joyful life if only other members of mankind can provide them with some support and keep them in mind.
In the few disabled people of a nation lies idle manpower that is potential wealth of the country. And Tanzania with quite a number of these unfortunate souls, has invested a substantial amount of the nation's resources and time in the education of these not so lucky nationals.
The nation has therefore worked with various partners to improve the welfare of schoolchildren with various forms of disability. The Secretary General of the Tanzania League for the Blind, Emmanuel Simpungwe, in one of his recent reports, says that in 1988 there were 240,000 children with disabilities of school-going age, but only 3,452 were in primary school.
The situation in higher learning institutions, he adds, was much worse. Various stakeholders in the struggle to improve life for children with various forms of physical disabilities have worked with the government in that common goal. Sathya Sai Society Tanzania (SSST), as a chief player in that mission, is active in providing a promising environment for the country's handicapped community.
The SSST is a branch of the Sri Sathya Sai Baba of India started by an India guru Sathya Sai Baba born in 1926. In 1940 Baba, at the age of 14, declared the mission to his parents and said he had come to this world with a mission to re-establish the principle of Righteousness, to motivate love for God and service to fellow man.
Since then, he has consistently called on all mankind, "To Love All, Serve All and has repeatedly asserted that the essence of all scriptures is Help Ever, Hurt Never!" Since then Baba has served the poor worldwide through acts of charity. In India alone he has build over twelve super specialty hospitals. Many people have regarded these medical facilities with admiration.
"I have been to several hospitals of repute in various parts of the world, but I have not seen anywhere so magnificent a medical institution as Sri Bhagavan Baba's Institute. Another instance of his divine gift to our people," says Dr Manmohan Singh, Prime Minister of India. Baba did not establish particular faith, but in fact brought together humanity under the principles of the brotherhood of man and the fatherhood of God.
"He exhorted a Hindu to be a better Hindu, a Muslim to be a better Muslim and a Christian to be a better Christian," one report on him says. Baba himself clarifies on that by adding: "I have come to light the lamp of love in your hearts, to see that it shines day by day with added luster.
I have not come to speak on behalf of any particular religion; nor have I come to collect followers for any doctrine. I have no plan to attract disciples or devotees into my fold or any fold. I have come to tell you of this Universal unitary faith, this Atmic principle, this path of love, this duty of love, this obligation to love."
In Tanzania SSST, his religious mission he started decades ago has carried out many charity ceremonies like giving clothes, walking, learning aids and meals to the poor. With donor assistance and aid from various stakeholders like the Indian high Commission, the SSST has taken thousands of the poor sick to India for medical treatment.
An admirer of Sai Baba's service to the society, Dr A.P.J. Abdul Kalam, Former president of India explains why education is one of Sai Baba's chief areas of assistance. Healthcare is not just medical care. Medical care is one of components of what you all are doing.
Actually, health care is medical care, education and nutrition. Healthcare happens only when all these three are combined... An anti-ballistic missile has been launched by Baba against poverty: through education, water and healthcare," he says.
And so, with partners the SSST provided meals at a charity ceremony for the handicapped schoolchildren of Uhuru Mchanganyiko Primary School at the school's campus in Dar es Salaam on that grand day in January.
The ceremony, attended by various stakeholders and different donors to the cause of alleviating poverty for the handicapped children of the school, was graced by the presence of India High Commission First Secretary Arvind Singh Karki and his wife Mrs Diwpa Sehgal as chief guests. Such deeds of love have a significant impact on handicapped schoolchildren.
Giti Masule, Programmes manager for Action of Disability and Development, a non-governmental organization, says Tanzania has 135 primary and 10 secondary schools which admit people with disabilities, but studies indicate that most of them lack the necessary facilities, especially teaching equipment.
"The situation is just as pathetic at the higher levels of education, especially in vocational colleges that were initially designed for people with disabilities," his reports explains. According to Education Performance report 2010- 2011, In 2011, only 0.35 per cent of all children enrolled in primary school were children with disabilities.
In secondary schools, 0.3 per cent of boys and 0.25 per cent of girls have disabilities. One report says that fewer than five per cent of disabled children in Tanzania go to school. Even if they can get there, sustaining that vital education isn't easy: "Inaccessible buildings, a lack of suitable teaching materials and a shortage of teachers make a very difficult learning environment.
"They especially need teachers who know sign language and understand Braille. All this is compounded by the negative attitudes of education authorities and society in general," the reports adds. According to the report, "On average there is one textbook for every 5 students and 1 latrine for 54 and 51 boys and girls respectively.
"This is far below the normal pupil: latrine ratio of 25:1 for boys and 20:1 for girls and impacts especially on girls' attendance and performance." Indian High Commission in Dar es Salaam has played a big role in providing Braille and other teaching equipment for the Uhuru Mchanganyiko Primary School for the disabled.
Tanzania Tanganyika School to Host Google in Education Summit for East Africa THE International School of Tanganyika (IST) will host the upcoming Google in Education Summit for East Africa on the … see more ≫
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://allafrica.com/stories/201402240111.html
Foundation Shows Love To Disabled People
Leadership Newspapers
HOME / METRO / NEWS / FOUNDATION SHOWS LOVE TO DISABLED PEOPLE
DISABLED
ANTHONY ADA ABRAHAM, Chika Mefor
February 25, 2014
Karmajiji, a suburb in the Federal Capital Territory, habours a colony of disabled people that depend on government and well-meaning individuals for the livelihood of the inmates. For this group, it is a constant struggle to make ends meet. The economic situation in the country at present does not help their cause. Sometimes, mother luck smiles on them, but some other time, they may not be as lucky. Luck for them is when well meaning individuals and organisations come calling.
Recently, the two major religions in Nigeria united under the auspices of Christian Muslim Unity Foundation to show love and support for the disabled community. In what could be described as a passionate gesture in the spirit of the Valentine, the organisation donated relief materials and books to the community.
The president of the foundation, Grace Archibong Inyang said the organisation was out to show that the two major religions in Nigeria could unite to pursue a just cause. Saying Christians and Muslims live and work together in peace in the country, she explained that the formation of the group was to work together to visibly show that the similarities between the two religions were more and stronger than the differences.
“One of our aims is to show love to everyone irrespective of his religious background. And we are using the season to appreciate the good things of life. We decided to come show some love here.
“We met with the caretakers of the community as well as the children at the primary school located there and encouraged them to try to work on their mindset and remind them that though they have disabilities, they can achieve their full potential in life. We also want them to know that Christians and Muslims can work together and shun violence because it’s only with peace that we can achieve something.
“We found out that there are some of them who are tailors and are finding it difficult to work due to lack of power; we took it upon ourselves to buy a generator set so that they could go back to work. And take for instance the children, they accompany their parents to beg and also grow up begging; it’s our responsibility to help in their reorientation and provision of the necessary environment for them to feel loved”, she stated.
Answering a question on the associations’s source of funding, Inyang said the group had no sponsors and only raised funds by levying the members. She said the association could not solicit for funds because “ before you even call for support you should have done something significant”. She used the occasion to call on the government to come to the aid of the disabled community as promises made to the inmates by previous governments had remained unfulfilled.
The secretary, Karmajiji Disabled Emirate, Mohammed Dantini, who spoke on behalf of the emirate, expressed gratitude to the Christian Muslim group for finding time to come see them in the community and for the various gifts given them and promised that they would be utilised properly.
‘’We are very happy to see the Christian and Muslim Unity Forum come share love with us this day. We need this kind of organisation because they move the country forward. Anything you are doing without unity is useless. We are very happy at the gesture extended to us and pray that the unity and love continue,” he said.
He told their guests that the community is made up of both Christian and Muslims from all tribes of the country, pointing out that the peaceful cohabitation enjoyed by them could never be over emphasised. He prayed government to come to their aid to make life more meaningful to them.
“We urge the government to know that in every disability there is ability. For some of us, it’s not our aim to continue begging, but if we get more support, there will be less beggars on the streets,’’ he said.
Also speaking, the emir of the community, Alhaji Saluiman Mohammed Katsina and the chairman of the community, Alhaji Iliyasu Abdulrauf said if they could get support from the government, their world would be better, adding however that government had been trying, but that more needed to be done.
They asked to be empowered to live out their dreams, saying there were many vocations they could engage in like tailoring, welding, knitting, pettry trading as well as driving among others.
‘’We also need to be up to date like other Nigerians in technological advancement. There is a woman who is multi-talented that produces air freshener, soap, perfume, detergent, candle and others. The only thing we need is support. She can produce those items. If she could be encouraged, I know she would produce more for commercial purposes. This will help her and other women in this community a great deal”, they pointed out.
The head teacher of CAPA School of Disability, Karmajiji, Dinatu Salami who said materials would go a long way in aiding the students in learning, prayed for help on the issue of the welfare of teachers in the school.
“I’m very happy to receive these gifts, and writing materials. We are facing lots of challenges but the important ones are the school building and teachers to meet the increasing number of the pupils. Also the teachers’ welfare, they have not been paid under the federal government scheme. It is a herculean task ahead of us,’’ he said.
Another beneficiary, Afiz Shehu, a petty trader who deals in pens and wallets couldn’t hide his joy, as he told the guests that it was not their desire to beg but resorted to it due to lack of support. He called on the government to empower people with special needs to also contribute to the society.
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://leadership.ng/news/348675/foundation-shows-love-disabled-people
NSF: Coach Appeals For Inclusion Of Deaf Football
Nigerian Observer
Last Modified: 02/26/2014 09:17:02
THE Head Coach of Nigeria Deaf Football Team, Kamiludeen Oladimeji, on Tuesday appealed to the National Sports Commission (NSC) to include the sport in the itinerary of the 19th National Sports Festival.
The festival tagged ‘Paradise Games’ would hold from Nov. 23 to Dec. 3 in Calabar.
Oladimeji told newsmen in Lagos that the inclusion of the sport would enhance the competitive spirit of deaf athletes for major international competitions.
According to him, other deaf sports like table tennis, athletics have featured in previous events, saying that the inclusion of deaf football should not be an exception.
“We are appealing to the NSC to include deaf football in the next festival to boost the confidence of players.
“If other deaf sports are part of the festival, I see no reason why deaf football should be excluded in the festival.
“The inclusion of the sport will also encourage the players to be committed and enhance their skills,’’ he said.
The coach, however, that lack of funds might hamper the country’s preparation for the 4th West Africa Championship in Togo.
He said that the team was yet to commence preparations for the championship which would hold in June.
Oladimeji added that it was only through adequate preparations that the country could retain the title for the fourth time.
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://nigerianobservernews.com/26022014/sports/sportsnews2.html#.Uw5-Ifl_t8E
Consider The Disabled For Employment-SURE-P
spyghana.com
By Ghana News -SpyGhana.com
Spyghana.com is a premier news source that cover daily news of Africa, Ghana, all the World, about universities, culture and etc
From Chuks Collins, Awka
A board member of the Subsidy Reinvestment and Empowerment Programme (SURE-P), Chike Okogwu has appealed to industrialists, manufacturers and other employers of labour in the country to consider special arrangement for physical disability to work in their organizations .
Okogwu who made the passionate plea at Nnewi during an interactive session of the SURE-P officials and industrialists in Anambra state noted that there is urgent need to creat an enabling environment for people with physical challenges to work in institutions by removing most bottle necks that hitherto stood in their ways towards fcontributing their own qouta to national development.
The SURE-P chieftain pointed out that a number of the disabled currently begging on the streets can be useful to themselves and the society if such individuals are given room to express themselves and actualize their potentials.
Okogwu a celebrated broadcaster who said he got consigned to wheel chair after sustaining a spinal cord injury in an accident not long ago noted that he never allowed his situation to push him into frustration and self pity .
He therefore charged physically challenged individuals to take the bull of being useful by the horn and not allow themselves to be pushed to the background.
Assistant director SURE-P Graduate Internship Scheme , Chief Aremu Olaniran said the package was meant to reduce graduate unemployment in the country targeted at engaging fifty thousand (50,000)youths, aged between 18 and 40, expected to be empowered annually.
They would be engaged by interested firms on the bill of the SURE-P. Chief Aremu said that a thirty thousand naira monthly stipend would be given to the beneficiaries at no cost at all to the companies.
A reknowned transporter, Sir GU Okeke in a comment called on industrialists from the South East not to be afraid of keying into the scheme because it is something novel for government to pick the bill of people working in private institutions. He commended the administration of Dr Goodluck Jonathan for the initiative.
The convener of the interactive session represented by Colet Odenigbo praised the efforts of the Local Organising Committee headed by the duo Chief Ofili Nwosu and Prince Samben Nwosu for the quality attendance which according to him has made the Nnewi meeting the best so far.
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://www.spyghana.com/consider-disabled-employment-sure-p/
UN hails Uganda on disability action
New Vision
Publish Date: Mar 01, 2014
Uganda was represented by the state minister for elderly and disabled Sulaiman Madada. PHOTO/File
newvision
By Andrew Ssenyonga
The United Nations has awarded Uganda the "Innovative policy on accessibility 2014 award" for its efforts in enforcing accessibility to all venues for persons with disabilities (PWDs).
Uganda’s national accessibility standards were selected among the 15 most innovative policies on disability in the world and awarded the title of ‘innovative policy on accessibility 2014".
The award was unveiled at a press conference organised by Uganda National Action on Physical Disabilities (UNAPD) on Friday at Hotel Africana in Kampala by Martin Babu the UN representative on committee of experts on the Rights of PWDS.
Babu expressed gratitude to the parliament and the President for enacting the Building Control Act to enhance access of PWDs to structures.
“We are working with the architects and engineers to adopt the standards in their work,” he said, and hailed the government for playing a key role in the promotion of disability rights in the country and in Africa.
“Uganda was one of the first countries anywhere to ratify the UN Convention on the Rights of PWDS. You have enshrined the rights of PWDs in your constitution, which also recognizes sign language as a national language,” he said.
The UN representative noted that PWDs are well represented right from Parliament to the village level, and he commended the strong disability movement.
Babu, however, said there were challenges in addressing the welfare issues of PWDs as well as discrimination.
“Despite this progress, Uganda still faces a number of challenges when it comes to giving people with disabilities a chance to earn a living and building their own lives,” he said.
The UNAPD chairman Arthur Blick Snr. urged Government to integrate disability in all government programmes.
The awards at which Uganda’s efforts were recognized took place at the UN offices in Vienna, Austria through the Zero Project.
Uganda was represented by the state minister for elderly and disabled Sulaiman Madada.
The international summit on accessibility hosted over 400 experts on accessibility and disability worldwide.
The accessibility standards were designed by the gender ministry with the help of other stakeholders such as Uganda National Action on Physical Disability (UNAPD) with the aim of promoting a barrier-free environment for all including PWDs.
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://www.newvision.co.ug/news/653086-un-hails-uganda-on-disability-action.html
Visually Impaired Teacher-Training Project Trains 1, 273 Teachers
Ghana-
FEB 2014
A Visually Impaired Teacher Training Project (VITTP) which was launched in 2011 has trained 1,273 teachers of learners with visually impaired.
The teachers were supported to enable them enhance their competencies to support visually impaired children in the inclusive schools, Mr Charles Aheto-Tsegah, Acting Director-General of the Ghana Education Service (GES), told the GNA in an interview.
The training covered areas such as orientation and mobility, Braille literacy, brail mathematics, low vision one, computer literacy, advance mathematics and science, low vision two and multiple disability with visual impairment.
Among those who benefited from the training were three lecturers from the Department of Special Education of the University of Education, Winneba (UEW) to help the department to enrich the curriculum of the teacher trainees in special education needs, especially in pedagogy.
Mr Aheto-Tsegah said implementation of the inclusive education called for a strong multi-sectoral approach, saying, “the GES cannot deliver inclusive education all alone.”He commended Visio International for collaborating with the Special Education Division to build the capacity of its resource and mainstream teachers and extending the training to cover lecturers who train the special education teachers.
Visio International is a non-governmental organisation that supports persons with visual impairment in the area of education, care and rehabilitation.
Mr Seth Kwasi Nyame, Coordinator for VITTP, also at the Special Education Division of the GES, said the Division got funding from Visio International of the Royal Dutch Visio to implement the VITTP from 2011 to 2013.
He said the project was to build capacity of resource teachers, mainstream teachers and lecturers to support learners with visual impairment in the inclusive education setting.
“The VITTP has demystified the teaching and learning of mathematics and science by the visually impaired which led to the introduction of the study of these subjects at the Senior High School (SHS) last academic year,” he said.
Mr Nyame said the trainers also acquired the knowledge and skills of instructing the visually impaired to use Information Communication Technology (ICT).
He said the visually impaired children were benefitting from improved teaching and learning as a result of the VITTP which reflected in their academic performances.
“There has been a steady increase in enrollment of visually impaired children because parents have realized that their children could equally be educated in the mainstream schools,” he said.
Source: GNA
1,273 visually impaired teachers pass out
GhanaWeb A Visually Impaired Teacher -Training Project (VITTP) which was launched in 2011 has trained 1,273 visually impaired teachers.
The teachers were supported to enhance their competencies to support visually impaired children in inclusive schools.
Mr Charles Aheto-Tsegah, Acting Director-General of the Ghana Education Service (GES) disclosed this to the Ghana News Agency at Nungua in Accra.
The training covered areas such as orientation and mobility, Braille literacy, braille mathematics, low vision one, computer literacy, advance mathematics and science, low vision two, and multiple disabilities with visual impairment.
Among those who benefited from the training were three lecturers from the Department of Special Education of the University of Education, Winneba (UEW), to help the department to enrich the curriculum of teacher trainees in special education needs, especially in pedagogy.
Mr Aheto-Tsegah noted that the implementation of inclusive education called for a strong multi-sectoral approach, saying, “the GES cannot deliver inclusive education all alone.”
He commended Visio International for collaborating with the Special Education Division to build the capacity of its resource and mainstream teachers; and extending the training to cover lecturers who train special education teachers.
Visio International is a non-governmental organisation that supports persons with visual impairment in the area of education, care and rehabilitation.
Mr Seth Kwasi Nyame, Coordinator for VITTP, at the Special Education Division of the GES, said the Division got funding from Visio International of the Royal Dutch Visio to implement the VITTP from 2011 to 2013.
He said the project was to build capacity of resource teachers, mainstream teachers and lecturers to support learners with visual impairment in the inclusive education setting.
“The VITTP has demystified the teaching and learning of mathematics and science by the visually impaired which led to the introduction of the study of these subjects at the senior high schools last academic year,” he said.
Mr Nyame indicated that the trainers also acquired the knowledge and skills of instructing the visually impaired to use Information Communication Technology (ICT).
He noted that visually impaired children were benefiting from improved teaching and learning as a result of the VITTP which reflected in their academic performances.
“There has been a steady increase in enrolment of visually impaired children because parents have realized that their wards could equally be educated in the mainstream schools,” he added.
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/regional/artikel.php?ID=302158
Kenya: Bondo to Fund More Elderly, Disabled
AllAfrica.com-
BY RICKY OTIENO, 3 MARCH 2014
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THE department of social development in Bondo, Siaya county is set to increase the number of beneficiaries under its social protection programme.
This will cater to the high numbers of old people and persons living with severe disability in the region.
On Thursday, social development officer Stephen Omwenga said they intend to upscale the older persons cash transfer programme from the current 560 to 670 beneficiaries, while the persons with severe disability will be increased to 94 from the current 70.
He was speaking during the training of Locational Committee members in Bondo town.
Omwenga said they have received names of potential beneficiaries, who will be vetted and approved by Loc members.
He said LOC members and trained enumerators will visit the homes of those identified for the two programmes to assess their level of vulnerability and their livelihood status before they can be enlisted.
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://allafrica.com/stories/201403031076.html
Vile man in ‘mercy’ rape of deaf niece, 14
New Zimbabwe.com
05/03/2014 00:00:00
by Staff Reporter
A 46 YEAR-OLD Bikita man, who told a local court he forced himself on his 14 year-old deaf and dump niece out of mercy because no one could love her due to her disability, has been jailed for 36 years.
Godfrey Masunda pleaded guilty to three counts of indecent assault when he appeared before magistrate Lyn Manyika.
He was jailed for 36 years with five years suspended on condition he does not commit a similar offence of a sexual nature. Masunda, told the magistrate that he had to force himself on the minor since there was no man in the world who could love the disabled minor.
"It was out of love for my niece, she cannot speak or hear and there is no man in the world who could fall in love with her," he told the magistrate
The court was told that, early this year, Masunda was left in the custody of the teenager while the mother went to visit relatives in a neighbouring village.
Prosecutors said Masunda took advantage of the two-day absence of the minor's mother to rape her. On her return, the mother discovered the minor was sick and took her to the hospital were the rape was discovered and the medical staff encouraged the mother to make a police report.
In passing judgement, magistrate Manyika said, Masunda deserves a deterrent sentence since he did not show remorse did during the trial.
"You deserve to be put in custody for a long time. You did not even show regret for what you did to the minor instead you seem to brag and satisfied about this evil act," said the magistrate.
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://www.newzimbabwe.com/news-14710-Vile+man+in+%E2%80%98mercy%E2%80%99+rape+of+deaf+niece,+14/news.aspx
Meet The Amazing Deaf Rapper Who Raps Better Than Most Rappers (VIDEO)
Ghafla!Kenya
Thursday, 06 March 2014 11:36 , Written by Sue Watiri (Writer)
If you have received a success card with what we called 'melody', you probably removed the battery in a fit of rage to get rid of the ‘maddening noise’. Well that maddening, frustrating noise was the works of one of the greatest musicians ever, Beethoven.
It’s rather fateful not to forget tragic, that the success card industry had to massacre one of the greatest works ever written and shove it into a success card but that money had to be made right? Anyhow, Beethoven maestro composer and musician who created some of the greatest music pieces ever was actually deaf. Yes deaf, he could not hear and yet he created some of the most extraordinary pieces of music ever created.
http://www.martin-missfeldt.com/images-pictures/speedpainting-art/ludwig-van-beethoven.jpg
Ludwig Van Beethoven Photo/ www.martin-missfeldt.com
Following in the footsteps of Beethoven is deaf rapper from Butere.
Douglas Munyendo Lal Daggy is hell-bent on passing a conscious message and in the process making it in the music industry.His disability is not an impediment to his vision and he emphasizes that 'Disability is not inability.' He may not speak,but i guarantee that if you listen to his words he will inspire you.
Check out his recent release 'Proudly Kenyan'
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://www.ghafla.co.ke/news/music/item/16877-meet-the-amazing-deaf-rapper-who-raps-better-than-most-rappers-video
Nigeria: Director Laments Exclusion of Deaf Persons From National Conference
AllAfrica.com-
9 MARCH 2014
RELATED TOPICS
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Mr David Anyaele, Executive Director, Centre for Citizens with Disabilities (CCD) on Sunday lamented the exclusion of hearing impaired persons as delegates to the forthcoming national conference.
Anyaele made the observation in an interview with the News Agency of Nigeria (NAN) in Lagos.
He noted that although six slots had been provided for persons with disabilities, none of those selected has hearing impairment.
"The list of delegates showed that Persons with Disabilities in Nigeria has six slots, which presuppose the six major cluster groups.
"The groups are the blind, deaf, intellectual, leprosy, physically challenged and persons with spinal cord injury who will be represented at the conference.
"We observed that in the list of delegates presented by the office of the Secretary to the Government of the Federation, that the deaf community in Nigeria has no representation.
"We are concerned that this action of the government is in total variance with the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (UNCRPD) which Nigeria is a signatory," Anyaele said.
According to him, the exclusion of the deaf means that their views and opinions will not be captured at the conference.
He therefore advised the government to urgently correct the mistake, and to provide sign language interpreters throughout the event.
"We want the government to include four sign language interpreters and the deaf on the list of delegates.
"This constant discrimination and exclusion of persons with disabilities is possible due to none prohibition of discrimination on the grounds of disability in the 1999 Constitution as amended.
"This conference provides a platform to address these human rights abuses," he said.
Anyaele called on the Senate to urgently pass the Nigerian Disability bill as done by the House of Representatives.
"The passage of this bill will reduce discrimination, exclusion and isolation of Nigerians with disabilities among state and non-state participant," he said. (NAN)
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://allafrica.com/stories/201403100429.html
Miracle feeding at Sekondi School for the Deaf
GhanaWeb
Food Kenkey Sardine
Authorities of the Sekondi School for the deaf are desperately trying to re-enact the miracle of Bethsaida where Jesus fed 5,000 people with five loaves of bread and two fishes.
Their attempt at a miracle would however leave the students malnourished if steps are not taken as soon as possible.
Joy News TV's Joojo Cobbina shares a testimony of how students queue to feed on some kenkey and fish.
The students are entitled to 2 cedis 20 pesewas a day for breakfast, lunch and supper, an amount which is less than a dollar and they obviously do get their monies worth
15 students on a table jumble together for lunch. They are entitled to a ball of kenkey each, but they all have to share 3 fishes meaning five children to one fish. To paint the picture, one fish is about 6 inches long similar to a finger of banana.
The matron of the school, Mrs. Marian Ampiah who is in the “miracle” working business says it takes grace to feed the children daily.
“It is a very difficult situation considering the prices of groceries rising day in day out in the market. Feeding 328 students takes God’s grace. In fact we do magic in the kitchen”. She said.
The children have learnt to enjoy their meal and trained not to complain because the headmaster Kofi Oti Frimpong shared the budget government allocates with them.
“I have been telling them that, the money that government allocates for them daily is meager so they should eat whatever food we give them. We try to make sure they eat quality food”.
There is no budget for kitchen fuel and transportation to the market to purchase groceries so the school depends on the meagre allowance allocated to them.
Kofi Oti Frimpong may have succeeded in calming the students but his bone of contention is how the meager allowances delay.
He said food stuff creditors always besiege his office day in day out, to collect their money.
“Sometime my creditors become verbally abusive but I have conscientised them about how we run the school. I told them government delays before giving us the allowance so they should bear with me”.
Last term's feeding allowance was only released to him last month, yet he still owes 7,100 cedis.
This term's allowance has not been paid yet so, he still begs his suppliers to be patient with him.
Mr Frimpong is finding alternative means to support the school include an appeal for fund.
Pupils who communicate in sign language, [which was interpreted for me] appealed for government support.
While appealing for an increase in the allowance the headmaster also wants their term’s allowance to be disbursed on time to free him from creditors’ harassment.
Comments:
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/NewsArchive/artikel.php?ID=302725
We are sorry: Church leaders regret neglect of hearing-impaired
GhanaWeb
Religious leaders in the country have taken the blame for their long denial of hearing-impaired people from benefiting from the usage of sign language during religious ceremonies.
In admitting the blame, some of the religious leaders interviewed by the Daily Graphic said that very important aspect of communication had never crossed their minds.
Churches in the country often preach in one language or another and this is interpreted in other languages, including French, to reach a wider congregation. Yet, nearly 99 per cent of worship centres in Ghana have no sign language interpreters to reach out to the hearing impaired.
Ghana's current population stands at 25.37 million and out of this three per cent are living with disability.
Those with sight or visual disability form 1.2 per cent; those with hearing disability 0.4 per cent; speech 0.4 per cent; physical 0.8 per cent; intellectual 0.5 per cent; emotional 0.6 per cent, while those with other forms of disability form 0.3 per cent.
The Presiding Bishop of the Methodist Church, the Most Rev Emmanuel Asante, said, “It’s neglect on our part.”
The Metropolitan Archbishop of Accra, the Most Rev Gabriel Palmer Buckle, admitted: “The issue of deaf and sign language has definitely escaped us.”
Apostle General Sam Korankye Ankrah, the General Overseer of the Royalhouse Chapel International, said, “It has not occurred to us.”
Rev Gideon Titi Ofei of the Sheepfold Ministry described it as an “ almost unpardonable oversight on the part of the church”, while Rev Steve Mensah of the Charismatic Evangelistic Ministry maintained: “It’ s an omission and once we are no longer people-focused, then our relevance as a church fails to exist.”
In unison, they all said, “We are sorry!”, but Rev Eastwood Anaba, the President of the Eastwood Anaba Ministries, held that “the apology is not just ‘I am sorry’ but also repentance”.
Swami Ghananand Saraswati, the first-ever monk of the Hindu Faith on the African continent, said, “We are selfish. We apologise to them,” while the acting Ameer of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Mission admitted: "I must be frank with you, this has never occurred to me. We do not have a sign language interpreter and none of our mosques has that. It is worrying, but unfortunately that is the situation. Ever since I was born this has never occurred to me. It has escaped us totally. You can quote me anywhere; I don't mind because it is the truth."
Wilful neglect?
In spite of interventions to provide support for those living with disability at all levels of national life, appropriate communication using sign language to aid their understanding of what is communicated to all Ghanaians has been almost non-existent.
The support of various religious groups to those living with disability has, over the years, been encouraging, with a good number of them undertaking philanthropic activities even in rural areas and other deprived communities.
But all these laudable efforts notwithstanding, it appears religious bodies have done little to ensure the proper integration of people living with disability by way of communicating to them in the proper way.
Guilt
In the Christian society, the Pentecostals, Protestants, Catholics and the Charismatics are all guilty of this neglect.
But, quite ironically, Romans 10:17 of the Bible states: "Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God."
So the question is, how can the naturally deaf have faith when they are not enabled to hear in the many worship centres?
Mosques
This neglect of persons living with disability goes beyond the church, with evidence on the ground showing that the situation is the same in the various mosques across the country.
Razak Isifu is hearing disabled and visited two mosques in Accra - the Cantonments Police Mosque and the Asuma Banda Mosque at the Airport Residential Area - but did not comprehend any message as a result of the absence of a sign language interpreter.
The Quran [Hud 11:20] says: "They will not be able to escape in the earth, nor do they have any protecting friends apart from Allah; they will have punishment upon punishment; they were unable to hear, nor used to see.”
So another question pops up: How can the naturally deaf-blind escape this punishment when those who can hear and see have neglected them?
Hindu Faith
In the Hindu Devotional Book: The Spiritual Ascent of Man, by Swami Krishnanand Saraswati, pages 34 and 35 categorically admit that "the deaf are most unfortunate.... Deafness is the highest hurdle barring their way to progress".
It adds that in devotion, "the first lessons in language and other knowledge are received through listening...hence listening is the first step of devotional worship and divine love which is Bhakti".
Swami Saraswati conceded that those who were able in Hinduism in Ghana had not enabled those who had deaf disability.
Cause of neglect
Lack of statistics on the deaf population in Ghana was, in some cases, cited by some religious leaders to have contributed to the neglect.
But, on the contrary, the 2012 census released by the Ghana Statistical Service revealed that persons with disability formed three per cent of the 25.37 million Ghanaians. Those with hearing and speech disability together form 0.8 per cent. This figure is equal to the percentage of people who belong to other religions such as Hinduism, Buddhism, among others.
The census revealed that 110,625 people have hearing challenge, while 101,096 have speech challenge.
This number is bigger than the population in some metropolises in Ghana. In fact, with the exception of the Accra, Kumasi and Tamale metropolises, the population of our people with hearing and speech challenge is greater than the number of people living in any settlement in Ghana, including Sekondi-Takoradi, Cape Coast, Sunyani, Koforidua and Ho.
Can the lack of statistics be an excuse?
For Rev Anaba, even the global statistics should push the church to act immediately.
Coincidentally, Rev Anaba has an elder sister who is a sign language interpreter, yet he confessed that it had escaped him to utilise her services. Similarly, the Most Rev Palmer Buckle has a nephew who is deaf, yet he too admitted that the idea of using a sign interpreter in his parish had never crossed his mind.
Violation of Constitution
It is also worth noting that it is not just the religious bodies that have neglected the deaf in the Ghanaian society.
The entire country has violated Article 17 of the 1992 Constitution on non-discrimination, as even at important national gatherings such as Independence anniversaries, sign language is absent, leaving the deaf in wonderland.
Even on national television, with the exception of Ghana Television which interprets its news and a few programmes in sign language, no other television station reaches out to the deaf.
All not lost
All hope of remedying the situation is, however, not lost. When contacted, the Minister for Gender, Children and Social Protection, Nana Oye Lithur, gave an assurance that beginning this year, a sign language interpreter would be provided at every Independence Day celebration and other national events.
True to her words, for the first time in the history of this country, a sign language interpreter was used at this year’s Independence anniversary parade at the Black Star Square in Accra last Thursday.
For his part, Bishop Charles Agyen Asare, the Presiding Bishop of the Perez Chapel, called for a return to what was right, saying, “We will go for Sankofa.”
Religious groups have also given assurance of there being light at the end of the tunnel.
The Church of Christ, the Jehovah's Witnesses, the Church of Pentecost and even more recently the International Central Gospel Church are a few who are making the attempt to reach out to the hearing impaired through sign language interpreters in church.
Wake-up call
Other calls have been made for the Ghana Education Service to include sign language in its curriculum.
More importantly, others have called for the re-vamping of the defunct Ghana National Association of Sign Language Interpreters to help avoid situations where fake interpreters will emerge, as happened recently at the funeral of the former President of South Africa, Nelson Mandela.
Not negotiable
The essence of democracy is respect for the fundamental human rights of all, including those living with disability, and that, without doubt, remains a non-negotiable stance.
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/NewsArchive/artikel.php?ID=302774
Church leaders regret neglect of hearing-impaired
GhanaWeb
Religious leaders in the country have taken the blame for their long denial of hearing-impaired people from benefiting from the usage of sign language during religious ceremonies.
In admitting the blame, some of the religious leaders interviewed by the Daily Graphic said that very important aspect of communication had never crossed their minds.
Churches in the country often preach in one language or another and this is interpreted in other languages, including French, to reach a wider congregation. Yet, nearly 99 per cent of worship centres in Ghana have no sign language interpreters to reach out to the hearing impaired.
Ghana's current population stands at 25.37 million, and out of this three per cent are living with disability.
Those with sight or visual disability form 1.2 per cent; those with hearing disability 0.4 per cent; speech 0.4 per cent; physical 0.8 per cent; intellectual 0.5 per cent; emotional 0.6 per cent, while those with other forms of disability form 0.3 per cent.
The Presiding Bishop of the Methodist Church, the Most Rev Emmanuel Asante, said, “It’s a neglect on our part.”
The Metropolitan Archbishop of Accra, the Most Rev Gabriel Palmer Buckle, admitted: “The issue of deaf and sign language has definitely escaped us.”
Apostle General Sam Korankye Ankrah, the General Overseer of the Royal house Chapel International, said, “It has not occurred to us.”
Rev Gideon Titi Ofei of the Sheepfold Ministry described it as an “ almost unpardonable oversight on the part of the church” while Rev Steve Mensah of the Charismatic Evangelistic Ministry maintained: “It’s an omission and once we are no longer people-focused, then our relevance as a church fails to exist.”
In unison, they all said, “We are sorry!”, but Rev Eastwood Anaba, the President of the Eastwood Anaba Ministries, held that “the apology is not just ‘I am sorry’ but also repentance”.
Swami Ghananand Saraswati, the first-ever monk of the Hindu Faith on the African continent, said, “We are selfish. We apologise to them,” while the acting Ameer of the Ahmadiyya Muslim Mission admitted: "I must be frank with you, this has never occurred to me. We do not have a sign language interpreter and none of our mosques has that. It is worrying, but unfortunately that is the situation. Ever since I was born this has never occurred to me. It has escaped us totally. You can quote me anywhere; I don't mind because it is the truth."
In spite of interventions to provide support for those living with disability at all levels of national life, appropriate communication using sign language to aid their understanding of what is communicated to all Ghanaians has been almost non-existent.
The support of various religious groups to those living with disability has, over the years, been encouraging, with a good number of them undertaking philanthropic activities even in rural areas and other deprived communities.
But all these laudable efforts notwithstanding, it appears religious bodies have done little to ensure the proper integration of people living with disability by way of communicating to them in the proper way.
In the Christian society, the Pentecostals, Protestants, Catholics and the Charismatics are all guilty of this neglect.
But, quite ironically, Romans 10:17 of the Bible states: "Faith cometh by hearing, and hearing by the word of God."
So the question is, how can the naturally deaf have faith when they are not enabled to hear in the many worship centres?
This neglect of persons living with disability goes beyond the church, with evidence on the ground showing that the situation is the same in the various mosques across the country.
Razak Isifu is hearing disabled and visited two mosques in Accra ? the Cantonments Police Mosque and the Asuma Banda Mosque at the Airport Residential Area ? but did not comprehend any message as a result of the absence of a sign language interpreter.
The Quran [Hud 11:20] says: "They will not be able to escape in the earth, nor do they have any protecting friends apart from Allah; they will have punishment upon punishment; they were unable to hear, nor used to see.”
So another question pops up: How can the naturally deaf-blind escape this punishment when those who can hear and see have neglected them?
In the Hindu Devotional Book: The Spiritual Ascent of Man, by Swami Krishnananda Saraswati, pages 34 and 35 categorically admit that "the deaf are most unfortunate.... Deafness is the highest hurdle barring their way to progress".
It adds that in devotion, "the first lessons in language and other knowledge are received through listening...hence listening is the first step of devotional worship and divine love which is Bhakti".
Swami Saraswati conceded that those who were able in Hinduism in Ghana had not enabled those who had deaf disability.
Lack of statistics on the deaf population in Ghana was, in some cases, cited by some religious leaders to have contributed to the neglect.
But, on the contrary, the 2012 census released by the Ghana Statistical Service revealed that persons with disability formed three per cent of the 25.37 million Ghanaians.
Those with hearing and speech disability together form 0.8 per cent. This figure is equal to the percentage of people who belong to other religions such as Hinduism, Buddhism, among others.
The census revealed that 110,625 people have hearing challenge while 101,096 have speech challenge.
This number is bigger than the population in some metropolises in Ghana. In fact, with the exception of the Accra, Kumasi and Tamale metropolises, the population of our people with hearing and speech challenge is greater than the number of people living in any settlement in Ghana, including Sekondi-Takoradi, Cape Coast, Sunyani, Koforidua and Ho.
For Rev Anaba, even the global statistics should push the church to act immediately.
Coincidentally, Rev Anaba has an elder sister who is a sign language interpreter, yet he confessed that it had escaped him to utilise her services.
Similarly, the Most Rev Palmer Buckle has a nephew who is deaf, yet he too admitted that the idea of using a sign interpreter in his parish had never crossed his mind.
It is also worth noting that it is not just the religious bodies that have neglected the deaf in the Ghanaian society.
The entire country has violated Article 17 of the 1992 Constitution on non-discrimination, as even at important national gatherings such as Independence anniversaries, sign language is absent, leaving the deaf in wonderland.
Even on national television, with the exception of Ghana Television which interprets its news and a few programmes in sign language, no other television station reaches out to the deaf.
All hope of remedying the situation is, however, not lost.
When contacted, the Minister for Gender, Children and Social Protection, Nana Oye Lithur, gave an assurance that beginning this year, a sign language interpreter would be provided at every Independence Day celebration and other national events.
True to her words, for the first time in the history of this country, a sign language interpreter was used at this year’s Independence anniversary parade at the Black Star Square in Accra last Thursday.
For his part, Bishop Charles Agyen Asare, the Presiding Bishop of the Perez Chapel, called for a return to what was right, saying, “We will go for Sankofa.”
Religious groups have also given assurance of there being light at the end of the tunnel.
The Church of Christ, the Jehovah's Witnesses, the Church of Pentecost and even more recently the International Central Gospel Church are a few who are making the attempt to reach out to the hearing impaired through sign language interpreters in church.
Other calls have been made for the Ghana Education Service to include sign language in its curriculum.
More importantly, others have called for the re-vamping of the defunct Ghana National Association of Sign Language Interpreters to help avoid situations where fake interpreters will emerge, as happened recently at the funeral of the former President of South Africa, Nelson Mandela.
The essence of democracy is respect for the fundamental human rights of all, including those living with disability, and that, without doubt, remains a non-negotiable stance.
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://www.ghanaweb.com/GhanaHomePage/religion/artikel.php?ID=302819
Angola: Canada - Angola Gets Experience On Professional Integration of Disabled Persons
AllAfrica.com-
10 MARCH 2014
RELATED TOPICS
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Angola was represented in the international conference on disabled people's integration in the job market, held in the Canadian City of Vancouver on 5-7 March, this year, by the executive director of the National Council of Disabled Persons (CNAPED), Sonia Doutel.
Speaking to ANGOP, in Ottawa, Sonia Doutel informed that the participation of Angola in the event was part of the National Plan of Integrated Actions on Disability, approved by Presidential Decree, which includes a series of measures to be implemented with a view to improving the level and quality of life of disabled people.
The participants in the conference exchanged ideas and established strategies for the creation of new employment opportunities for people with disability.
Sonia Doutel explained that it is necessary that in recruiting workers employers must look at the competence and talent of applicants instead of focussing on their limitations. In order to prevent such situations, revealed the source, in the past three years Angola produced a legislation designed to facilitate the integration and acceptance of people with disability in the job market.
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://allafrica.com/stories/201403102448.html
Namibia: Okakarara Disabled Get Wheelchairs
AllAfrica.com-
11 MARCH 2014
RELATED TOPICS
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THIRTY people living with disabilities in the Okakarara Constituency of the Otjozondjupa Region on Friday received wheelchairs from the Namibian Ports Authority (Namport).
Chief Executive Officer of Namport Bisey Uirab handed over the 30 wheelchairs to the beneficiaries at the Okakarara State Hospital.
The wheelchairs were purchased by Namport at a total cost of N$150 000.
Not all beneficiaries attended the event, because some live in rural villages and could not make it to the handing-over function.
"Namport has a social investment fund, which we used to purchase the wheelchairs, and our investment fund is not limited to the Erongo Region where our operations are mainly based," said Uirab.
He said Namport spent over N$20 million in assisting needy community-based organisations in different regions over the past few years.
Uirab urged the beneficiaries and their family members to look after the new wheelchairs.
The Okakarara Constituency councillor, Vetaruhe Kandorozu in his vote of thanks said the beneficiaries are from the Okakarara, Okamatapati, Okondjatu and Coblenz areas in his constituency.
He commended Namport for assisting people living with disabilities.
"Our people depended on crawling around their homes but now that they have a wheelchair each, their movements have been made easy," said Kandorozu.
He then spoke out strongly against some people abusing the social grants of people living with disabilities.
Kandorozu said some disabled people in the Okakarara Constituency have never seen their monthly social grants because their relatives misuse them.
He said such exploitation must stop immediately.
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://allafrica.com/stories/201403110634.html
Disability issues were not mentioned in the 1991 Constitution’NCPD Commissioner
Sierra Express Media
By: SEM on March 11, 2014.
Issues of Persons with Disability have today occupied the backbone of the state as they are now highly considered to participate on issues on the development of the country. In the past persons with disability were always at the back yard and contributing very little, but today the disabled are part of the governance system. The appointment of a visually impaired person, Mr. Mustapha Bai Attilah as Deputy Minister of Social Welfare Gender and Children Affairs, and the establishment of a National Commission for Persons with Disability (NCPD) are great achievements for the disabled group.
These were the words of the Commissioner of NCPD, Mr. Frederick Kamara, on March 6th 2014 in Freetown when addressing members of the media at the usual Government press briefing in the Conference Room of the Ministry of Information and Communications in Freetown.
Mr. Kamara further expressed delight for the inclusion of Persons with Disability in constitutional matters although he did not have the opportunity to disseminate information the way he wanted to. He lauded CRC to have the material in Braille, which he described as a great opportunity because it helps the visually impaired people to be able to read the Constitution by format and understand about the review process.
Kamara intimated that, when the 1991 Constitution was drawn up, disability issues were not mentioned; now that CRC is in session it is a prospect for the issue of disability to be incorporated. The Commissioner raised that the 2011 Disability Act that was passed in March led to the establishment of the National Commission for Persons with Disability in June 2012. He confirmed that, the act has many good provisions that form part of the Constitution. He also raised that disability issues are now looked at and are receiving due attention, a situation he described as very appropriate and ethical. The Minister concluded by appealing to all to continue putting the issue of disability at the fore front.
Abdulai Mento Kamara and Jennifer Kanneh
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://www.sierraexpressmedia.com/archives/65843
Inaccessible facilities denying disabled women SRH services
Vibe Ghana-
March 12, 2014 | Filed under: Latest news | Posted by: VibeGhana
“Inaccessible equipment and facilities limited contraceptive options and information on sexual and reproductive health (SRH) discourage most disabled women from accessing SRH services,” Hajia Adishetu Salifu, Executive Director of Pagbi Mini Bipola Lebgimsim Association (PAGBILA) has said.
Hajia Salifu, who said this during the opening of a two-day training workshop on SRH for peer educators of women with disabilities in Tamale on Tuesday said “The denial of universal access to SRH to females with disabilities was not simply unjust but hindered economic development, limited democracy, burdened families and eroded societies.”
The workshop, which was organized with support from the Global Fund, was on gender, and SRH as well as reducing gender based violence with the aim to increasing their (disabled women) access to SRH.
The move is to help achieve the Millennium Development Goals on maternal health, child survival, HIV and AIDS and gender equality.
Hajia Salifu said “Health care providers owed all clients whether they had disabilities or not encouragement, support, and appropriate services when they wanted to have children or want to avoid pregnancy.”
She, therefore, called for compliance to universal access to health care, which implied that “Enough services and information are available, accessible and acceptable to meet the different needs of all individuals. ”
Chief Issahaku Alhassan Amadu, Northern Regional Population Officer condemned men, who enjoyed having an affair with disabled women but did not want to be seen with them.
Chief Amadu called on all, especially men to showed respect and true love for women with disabilities. GNA
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://vibeghana.com/2014/03/12/inaccessible-facilities-denying-disabled-women-srh-services/
Zambia: PROFLIGHT, APTERS Partner to Help Disabled Children
AllAfrica.com-
BY JUDITH NAMUTOWE, 12 MARCH 2014
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PROFLIGHT Zambia has teamed up with Appropriate Paper Technology (APTERS) charity to encourage young people to develop a money saving ethics and help disabled children in the process.
The Youth Day initiative would see APTERS create 60 hand-crafted "piggy banks" in the shape of Proflight-branded aeroplanes that would be given to children on the airline's flights this week.
This is according to a statement issued in Lusaka yesterday. Proceeds paid by Proflight would be used by APTERS to help subsidise the cost of the mobility aids they make for children with cerebral palsy and other disabilities.
Proflight director of government and industry affairs Philip Lemba said "the team at APTERS is doing fantastic work to support less fortunate children and their families and it is a natural choice for Proflight Zambia to engage them to make these Youth Day gifts."
Colourful piggy banks have a long history of encouraging children to save money by putting notes and coins in a slot where they were then kept safe until a target amount had been collected and could then be used to buy something special that the child had been saving up for, thus teaching them the value of money and instilling a savings habit.
Appropriate Paper Technology is based at the University Teaching Hospital (UTH) and was established in 1990 by three young enterprising and skilled physically challenged people with the aim of producing mobility aids for disabled children using recycled paper as the raw material.
The organisation also uses the same technology to make commercial products such as dustbins, file boxes, toys, trays and now piggy banks to fund the collection of paper and support its activities.
【付記】上記ニュースのURL
http://allafrica.com/stories/201403130048.html
Kenya: Deaf Orphans in Kisii Find Welcoming Home
AllAfrica.com
BY NOBERT ALLAN, 14 MARCH 2014
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SOME 12km from Kisii town in a sleepy village stands a unique children's home which caters for deaf orphans.
The home's founder is Sam Mcrenolds of South Eleventh & Willis Church of Christ in Texas, USA. Having no family to bequeath his $80,000 (Sh6.9 million), he decided to help needy children.
Mcrenolds wanted to build an orphanage to rescue neglected orphans in Nyanza region. He chose Misedha village to do the project.
Sam's Home for Deaf Orphans took in its first children, numbering seven, in November 2010. Currently the centre is home to 40 children -- 20 boys and 20 girls. Sixteen of them are living with HIV after being orphaned at a tender age. Most of them were abandoned by their extended families after their parents died of HIV/Aids-related complications.
Simeon Ongiri, the home's director, says the orphanage has a vocational building where the orphans are taught carpentry and tailoring. The orphanage also has well-equiped computer lab.
Despite being abandoned by their family members, at Sam's they get all the love and attention they require. The orphans are fed spiritually by having morning devotions before going for their classes.
"When we first admitted them, these children were malnourished but now as you can see, they are growing up healthy," Ongiri said.
Kisii county has an HIV prevalence of 8.9 per cent compared to the national average of 5.6 per cent.
The HIV Prevention Revolution Road Map 2013 report ranked Kisii county among six counties that are contributing more than half of new HIV/Aids infections in the country.
Florence Ogero, the county HIV/AIDS co-ordinator, Kisii said 4,530 new infections were recorded in 2012 while 2,730 HIV related deaths occurred in 2011.
This work was produced during the Internews Kenya and National Geographic photo camp held from February 10-15 in Kisii.
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Africa: Focus On Disability - Disaster Aid Should Reach Everyone
AllAfrica.com-
BY SUE COE, 14 MARCH 2014
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The Humanitarian Innovation Fund (HIF) was launched in 2010 to fund innovative technological ideas to improve responses in humanitarian crises. Its grants have included low-cost wheelchair provision in crisis situations.
This is thoroughly commendable as most donors still ignore disability-inclusive measures in their work. However, the fact that an innovation fund is supporting these basic measures is an indication of broader negative attitudes sector-wide. They should be a routine part of humanitarian responses.
SciDev.Net's recent coverage of HIF shows the organisation sees itself as funding risky projects. Manager Kim Scriven said HIF is "pushing against a culture of risk aversion in the system where there is not a fantastic tradition of talking about failure". Grants to the NGOs Motivation and Handicap International for producing and distributing low-cost wheelchairs in the Philippines and for disaster preparedness in Nepal are reported as examples of this.
But these excellent measures are not inherently risky. They are a small part of the comprehensive measures needed to enable disabled people's access to humanitarian responses.
People with impairments suffer disproportionately when a humanitarian disaster strikes. There is a long history of disabled people being excluded from humanitarian crisis responses - confirmed by rare research studies after the 2004/5 Tsunami crisis and by reviews of data from other disasters in the past decade. [1] Additionally, many people become newly impaired in humanitarian crises, especially natural disasters and war. [2]
Providing access to humanitarian response for disabled people shouldn't be classified as 'taking risks'. It is fulfilling their rights. This is increasingly endorsed by governments across the world through their ratification of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
This first human rights treaty of the twenty-first century came into force in 2008 and has been ratified by 141 countries so far. It consists of 50 user-friendly 'articles' outlining specific rights people with impairments have. Articles 9 and 11 specifically address accessibility and humanitarian response obligations. Article 32 obliges all ratifying countries to ensure that their international aid is disability-inclusive.
HIF has so far focused on supporting physically impaired people who would benefit from wheelchair access. This is a good initial intervention and an excellent development. But the needs of people of all impairments should be accounted for in responses. People with visual, hearing, intellectual, complex and multiple impairments also have rights to access distribution points, reconstructed facilities and information. These aspects are often ignored.
My hope is disability inclusion will be seen as a regular part of all humanitarian response in future, will be recognised by all donors, and extended across all impairment groups.
Sue Coe has worked in international development for 25 years across Africa, Asia, Europe and the Middle East. Now a development and disability inclusion consultant, she previously worked for World Vision, Practical Action (formerly ITDG), VSO and Action on Hearing Loss (formerly RNID). Sue can be contacted at suecoe2603@gmail.com
References
[1] Maria Kett and others Disability in conflict and emergency situations: focus on tsunami affected areas. Report to the KaR Disability Programme, Overseas Development Group, University of East Anglia. (International Disability and Development Consortium, June 2005)
[2] Maria Kett and John Twigg in World disaster report 2007: focus on discrimination (International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies 2007)
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Liberia: Disabled Females Conduct Workshop On October Election
AllAfrica.com
BY ALVA MULBAH WOLOKOLIE, 17 MARCH 2014
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The Association of Disabled Females International (ADFI) in collaboration with War-Survivors has ended a day's workshop aimed at educating the disabled community on the pending October 2014 special election. The first of the series of the workshop was facilitated by the National Elections Commission (NEC) at ADFI headquarters in Slipway, central Monrovia on Friday, March 14, 2014.
Speaking to the INQUIRER at the close of the exercise, ADFI National Program Officer, F. Glabor Dennis, said the essence of the workshop was to educate members of the disabled community about procedures toward exercising their rights at the polling center.
Mr. Dennis disclosed that over 61 disabled participants from New Kru and Clara Towns and other parts of Monrovia attended the educative program to sharpen their knowledge as to how they would proceed to the ballot box.
"We want the disabled community to be informed and know how to participate in the coming election scheduled for October. It is also meant to reawaken them to get involved in the process and know how to do the right thing," Mr. Dennis asserted.
For her part, the Executive Director of ADFI, Mrs. Meima Hoff, reiterated that people with disabilities need a disabled friendly environment to go about exercising their constitutional rights.
Mrs. Hoff noticed that during the 2005 and 2011 General Elections, most of the polling centers were not friendly enough to allow people with disabilities to cast their votes.
This time around, she continued that ADFI has decided to begin putting in some corrective measures that would enable them participate in electoral process freely.
"There are more disabled females than disabled males in the country. It is time for us to know our rights as to how to vote especially this special election in October 2014," Mrs. said.
The ADFL boss used the occasion to call on the 53rd National Legislature to ensure the passage of a bill seeking to establish the National War Victims Trust Fund.
According to Mrs. Hoff, when the bill is passed, it would compel government to give reparation to all key war-victims in the country, something she said is also done internationally.
"Since 2005, we have had stable government, so there is a need that war- victims get reparation; so we are appealing to our lawmakers to visit the bill which has been in committee room since last year," Mrs. Hoff said.
Meanwhile, Mrs. Hoff has called President Ellen Johnson-Sirleaf to reinforce her statement made several months ago that government agencies should employ people with disabilities.
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Gambia: Deaf Scorpions to Take Part in Africa Football Cup
AllAfrica.com-
BY BABOUCARR CAMARA, 21 MARCH 2014
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The Gambia's deaf Scorpions football team has been invited to participate in the first ever Africa Deaf Football Cup to be played in Abidjan, Ivory Coast, between the 4th and 25th October 2014, the Gambian association announced this week.
According to the Gambia Deaf Scorpions, the Abidjan championship is one of several regional and international invitations they have been invited to take part in. The team is also invited to participate in the 4th edition of the West Africa Deaf Football tournament slated for 21st July to August 9th, 2014 in Lome, Togo, and the Gambian team as one of the best in continental African deaf football since its inception in 2006 is among the favourites to win.
That tournament is being organised by the West Africa Deaf Sports Union (WADSU) with support from the Economic Community of West Africa States - Youth and Sports Development Centre (ECOWAS-YSDC). The championship will bring together eight countries.
Seeks support to honour invitations
In order to take part in the championship, the association has also called for more support in order to meet the financial requirements to take part in the competitions. "We are confident enough to attain excellence in sports and then bring glory to the nation. The performance of the national Deaf Scorpions is so admirable for both regional and international sports federations in Africa," the association added.
Gambia
Today is World Tuberculosis Day The Gambia will today join the rest of the world to celebrate World Tuberculosis (TB) Day. World Tuberculosis Day can be … see more ≫
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Nigeria: 'Disabled Employees Are Resourceful'
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BY COSMAS OKOLI, 22 MARCH 2014
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Every employer wants to employ the best hands to achieve organizational goals, but not all of them know how to source for skillful staff in our today skill deficient work force.There are enormous benefits that can accrue, directly or indirectly to an organization by employing people with disability.
Disabled people are twice as likely to be unemployed as non-disabled people, and it not because they are all lazy benefit scroungers, but because there are myths and misconceptions preventing the inclusion of people with disabilities in the workforce. For example, the cost of employing a person with a disability; in terms of possible workplace adjustments, the impact on their compensation and sick leave, the belief that people with disability will take up too much time to manage, the fear of other people in the workplace doing or saying the wrong thing, etc are some of these misconceptions."The difference people find when they send in a 'straight', CV compared to when they declare a disability is quite significant.
This level of prejudice is damaging to disabled applicants, but also damaging to employers, who may be missing out on the best talent" (From an online source).
To be employed means a great deal to the disabled, not just for the financial remuneration, but also for a deep sense of self-worth, dignity and independence.
As mentioned earlier, there are huge benefits that can accrue to an employer and hence, an organization by employing persons with disabilities. And this is apart from the code of moral ethics.
Researches have shown that disabled employees are on the average, at least as productive as their non-disabled colleagues. People with disability bring to the work place, a diverse range of skills and abilities and a new and valuable perspective. They are; reliable and likely to be trustworthy, have good work ethic, also have a positive attitude like can-do spirit and are willing to go the extra mile... .
Employing disabled people can open up new opportunities and improve market share. Good customer service requires people to think creatively about the needs of all their customers. Those with direct experience of living with a disability provide an invaluable perspective. This could be in the front line as customer service staff, signaling to clients that disabled people are welcome and that their needs will be met.
People with disability are a resource of abilities, and a pool of willpower --they are real economical and social actors who can stimulate a wide range of interest, and even proffer solutions to problems in order to improve productivity.
Employing disabled people makes good business sense, the benefits of which includes: attracting and retaining the best of the talent pool, including latent talent, improving customer service, strengthening workplace morale and productivity, being a good corporate citizen, complying with legislative requirements and meeting international standards.
The truth is, to possess a competitive and effective workplace, employers need to ensure they recruit the best person for the job while retaining and developing them.And emphasis should be placed on the disabled worker's skills and not their disability. If a section of people are excluded from the job market for reasons that do not relate to their ability to do the job, workplaces will inevitably miss out on skills, talent and energy.
Learning to respond creatively to life's challenges means many disabled people develop good problem-solving skills, flexible and innovative ways of approaching issues, as well as determination and focus. Yet, despite these positive qualities and work records at the disposal of prospective employers, the percentage of disabled people in the workforce is still largely insignificant, this and the perceived fact that the disabled people in the country, aged between 20-50 years have the highest unemployment rate of any population group in Nigeria; this is a very sad statistic. These talents and skills wasting as a result of lack of job opportunity could help grow our Gross Domestic Products (GDP), businesses will grow and the economy will thrive.
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Disabled South Sudanese soldiers stage protest over unpaid salaries
Sudan Tribune-
March 24, 2014 (JUBA) - Disabled soldiers from the South Sudanese army (SPLA) wounded during the recent outbreak of violence in the country staged a protest in the capital, Juba, on Monday, over delays in the payment of their salaries.
JPEG - 84.1 kb
Protesting soldiers seen at the University of Juba junction on 24 March 2014 (ST)
Protesters blocked traffic at the University of Juba junction, setting up roadblocks and throwing stones at passing cars.
Soldiers who spoke to Sudan Tribune said they were protesting over the government’s failure to address a number of issues affecting military personnel, including delays in salary payments.
Soldiers have complained about delays in salary payments and the omission of names on the payroll.
One soldier, who now uses a walking stick to keep himself upright, told Sudan Tribune that he had not been paid for four months.
“The rebels wounded us and these people (government authorities) don’t want to pay our salaries,” he said on condition of anonymity.
Captain Dut Wal, who is one of those affected, told Sudan Tribune on Monday that authorities had not yet responded to any of the demands made by soldiers or taken action to address payment issues.
He said it was unfortunate that the government appeared not to appreciate the contribution of armed forces to the defence of the country.
“This is a peaceful demonstration. The essence of it is to draw the attention of the government so that some of the issues we have raised through [the] administrative chain of command and have not until now been addressed are brought to the attention of the senior leadership,” he said.
SOLDIERS LEFT OFF PAYROLL
Sergeant Major Abui Samson said he was left “speechless and angry” after learning his name was not listed on the army payroll despite being wounded in active combat.
“Actually I realised I made a wrong choice and grave mistake in joining the army. I thought I was responding to the national call to defend our country, hoping that the leadership would also look after me and the family,” Samson told Sudan Tribune.
“I want the public to tell me whether I and some of my colleagues have [made] a mistake in joining the army. I also want to the public to tell us whether we have [done] anything wrong to ask for payment. And whether it is right to omit the name of someone in hospital bed still recovering from wound like you can you?” he added.
SPLA spokesperson Col. Philip Aguer has admitted that some have not received their January salaries.
He said the issue arose after soldiers wounded in conflict zones were transferred to the capital for treatment as there is no automatic system set up to transfer money to hospital.
“The SPLA general headquarters is working on this issue and it will be resolved quickly,” Aguer said without providing a specific date.
ADMINISTRATIVE ISSUE
Cabinet affairs minister Martin Elia Lomuro said the government was working to address the “administrative” issue with “care and respect ”.
“The leadership is handling it with care and respect. The situation has now been brought under control,” Lomuro told reporters on Monday.
The finance minister said his ministry had offered solutions for the issues raised by the soldiers, but did not elaborate further on how the matter would be resolved.
Wal, however, accused the government of “sitting on the issue”.
“Some of our colleagues are regretting and angered by behaviour of some government officials. If you cannot solve the issue brought to you, then why don’t push it ahead to someone who would handle it or forward it to the next level,” he said.
The protest remained peaceful throughout, with soldiers later retreating to their hospital beds.
This is not the first time soldiers have gone on strike over unpaid salaries, with similar action also taken in March 2009.
At least 60 soldiers were killed earlier this month after fighting erupted at Juba’s Geida military barracks following a dispute over salary payments.
Heavy gunfire erupted inside the barracks on the morning of 5 March while salaries were in the process of being paid, sparking widespread panic among city residents already jittery from mid-December clashes which erupted at the same facility between rival factions of the presidential guards.
It is undersood the incident occurred after some soldiers attempted to collect the salaries on behalf of some of their colleagues who were not listed on the payroll, but this was refused as government employees are now required to collect payments in person. The measures were implemented under a government directive to ensure wages are not paid to so-called “ghost” workers or those who do not show up during the payment period.
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Namibia: Disability Sport Stalwart Dead
AllAfrica.com
26 MARCH 2014
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THE secretary general of the National Federation of People with Disabilities, Gerson Mutendere (41), died on Monday afternoon.
The NFPD announced his death on Tuesday, saying "the nation had lost a great man." Information regarding the cause of death was not available at the time of going to print.
"It is with great sadness that we have to advise that an icon for people with disabilities has passed away," said NFDP chairperson Gideon Nasilowski.
"He was a fighter who changed the living standards of people with disabilities in Namibia. He was a mentor, a man with great vision and passion for people with disabilities in Namibia. We will forever keep you in our prayers and we will long for your wisdom for many years to come but today we wish to salute you, and thank you for what you have done for us," Nasilowski added.
Mutendere was the former chairperson and secretary general of the National Disability Council, an organisation he co-founded, before taking up the position at the NFDP.
Paralympics Namibia secretary general Pena Kandjii echoed Nasilowski's sentiments. She said Mutendere had been a strong-willed individual, whose primary concern was to see people with disabilities treated on par with their able-bodied peers.
"It was a shock to the system when I heard about it. He will be deeply missed. He is a Namibian icon because of what he has been doing for people living with disabilities," said Kandjii.
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Jackline Yeboah Wins Miss Deaf Model
spyghana.com
By Ghana News -SpyGhana.com
Spyghana.com is a premier news source that covers daily news of Ghana, Africa and the World over.
A special event organised and funded by a deaf Ghanaian couple has been held at Senior High/ Technical School for the Deaf at Mampong ? Akuapem, Ghana on the theme MISS DEAF MODEL COMPLETITIONS on the 22/23th of April, 2014.
The occasion has been supported by Andrews and Beatrice Wirekoh. The couple showed great love and dedicated to the commitment to the Deaf event for the first time. The event has brought together over students from the school and gave them opportunity to enable them develop their talents.
10154089_10152372559655815_1345933683_nAs born in Ghana, Andrews Wirekoh is used to reside in Australia and since there he seemed to dedicate to the development and improvement of the deaf talents in Ghana and encouraged the students to drive their hope and work hard for the economic living in their future during the sunday service. His wife stays in Ghana never living in Australia.
During the event, the winners were presented the gifts like medals and cash rewards by the couple. All the students (over 500) shouted “THE BEST EVENTS EVER”. The list of students who participated in the event for MISS DEAF MODEL WINNERS and won the rewards:
Winner - Jackline Yeboah
2nd participant - Ayishatu Hamisu
3rd participant - Ellen Kusi
4th participant - Apeda Patience
Source: Johnson Dei-Kusi
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