The second driving lesson saw the muscles in my right hand tested to their limits. I went through the rigmarole of the three tests for the Ujian Memandu Bahagian II in today’s lesson, namely the slope test, three-point turning and side parking.

The three-point turning and side parking were strenuous exercises. I needed to turn the steering wheel to the extreme right or left for both activities. The power steering was not of much help much when the steering wheel was turned while the car was stationary.

It was a great relief when Andy indicated that today’s lesson had ended. My right arm was getting feeble. The last time that I used my arm this much was when I was in Tokyo and Bangkok. Hopefully with a few more lessons, the strength in my arm will improve.

Wednesday March 28, 2007

It’s time disabled be made senator

By AUDREY EDWARDS
audee@thestar.com.my

KAJANG: The time has come for a disabled person to be an appointed senator.

And Women, Family and Community Development Minister Datuk Seri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil has written a letter to Datuk Seri Abdullah Ahmad Badawi recommending it.

“Our nominees are involved in many fields. They have high qualifications and are experienced,” she told reporters after opening the National Down Syndrome seminar yesterday.

“They will be an example to Malaysians. The ministry feels the time has come to have at least one disabled person as a representative in the Dewan Negara.”

Shahrizat also said that a special counter would be opened at all district welfare offices beginning Sunday to serve people with disabilities, their family members and caregivers.

This, she said, was to make it easier for them to deal with matters such as aid, registration and equipment. The counter would be open daily during office hours.

On the access auditing being carried out by the ministry with the Housing and Local Government Ministry, Shahrizat said a report would be ready by the middle of the year.

The auditing is being done at all major towns in the country to examine the barriers in infrastructure such as buildings, roads and transportation against disabled people.

“I am not happy because I feel we have to do more. It is not difficult. It is just a question of whether to give importance to it or not,” she said.

“If we do not begin from now to make sure that all the facilities available are barrier-free, we will face trouble when we suddenly wake up and find that Malaysia is an ageing society and we are not prepared for it.”

Rapid KL Taking Disabled Persons For A Ride

On September 24, 2006, Katherine Chew, Senior Manager Corporate Communications Divisions of Rapid KL announced that “the transport company had bought 100 disabled-friendly buses with ramps. These would be delivered next month.” This was in response to the attempt by the Barrier-Free Environment and Accessible Transport Group (BEAT) members to board the new Rapid KL buses at the Bangsar LRT Station. BEAT is a coalition of sixteen NGOs of disabled persons.

When BEAT met with Rein Westra, Chief Executive Officer of Rapid KL, on October 20, 2006, we were asked to give him four weeks for him to present our issue to the government. We were also specifically warned not to go to the press during this period or he will stop all communications with us. We respected the moratorium that was unilaterally set by him. That was the last we saw of him. He never got back to us after that.

Six months later on March 10, 2007, BEAT was invited to a briefing and dialogue with Rapid KL Chief Operating Officer Mohd Ali Mohd Nor. During the briefing we were informed that the buses will be coming in stages. We were told that, to date, about forty have been delivered and are in various stages of being fitted with ramps, restraining systems and other safety features for wheelchair users.

However, we are still in the dark as to when the buses will be put on the road, the routes they will ply and how this is small number of accessible buses will fit into the bigger picture to fulfil the mobility needs of wheelchair users in the Klang Valley. BEAT has already waited for six months. We are still waiting. We cannot see the light at the end of the tunnel yet where the promised accessible buses are concerned. Apa macam Rapid KL?

Photo by Wuan.

The first driving lesson around the Safety Driving Centre circuit at Petaling Jaya was uneventful except for a moment of confusion when I pressed the accelerator instead of the brake during a three-point turning practice. Andy, the driving instructor was patient in explaining to me how the driving tests will be conducted. I also learnt about the technicalities of the slope test. My right hand needs more strength-building exercises. It was fatigued after forty five minutes of turning the steering wheel.

The United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD) was adopted by the General Assembly on December 13, 2006. This is a significant step for 650 million disabled persons worldwide who have been subjected to discrimination in more ways than one for a very long time. By signing this landmark Convention member nations affirm their commitment in ensuring equal opportunities for disabled persons in all strata of society.

Among the forty or so countries that have announced that they will sign the Convention on March 30 when the CRPD is opened for signing at the first instance are Mexico, New Zealand, Vietnam, United Arab Emirates and Sri Lanka. Ironically, the bastion of freedom and democracy, the United States of America has not indicated that they will sign to be a party to the CRPD. Likewise, the Holy See had informed the General Assembly that they will not sign as they oppose to several articles in the CRPD.

The American Association of People with Disabilities (AAPD) is concerned that “by not signing, the United States would be departing from their historic role as an international leader in the field of disability and human rights and may inadvertently discourage other countries from signing.” AAPD has initiated a campaign to ask its members to write to Members of the Congress to “to urge the President to sign the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities and its Optional Protocol on March 30th.”

Seminar Konvensyen Mengenai Hak Orang Kurang Upaya.

In Malaysia, the Ministry of Women, Family and Community Development (Kementerian Pembangunan Wanita, Keluarga dan Masyarakat), Department of Social Welfare (Jabatan Kebajikan Masyarakat Malaysia) and Japan International Cooperation Agency together with the cooperation of the Malaysian Council for Rehabilitation (MCR) and Malaysia Confederation of Disabled (MCD) organised a seminar on the CRPD on March 20, 2007. 400 disabled persons, officers from various ministries and agencies and representatives from NGOs attended this event at Nikko Hotel in Kuala Lumpur.

Associate Professor Osamu Nagase with Datuk Shamsiah Abdul Rahman.

Osamu Nagase, Associate Professor on Disability Studies at the University of Tokyo Graduate School of Economics was the main speaker. He shared with participants the history of the international disability movement and the chronology of how the CRPD came to be in its present and final form. He also gave us a rundown on some of the more important articles contained in the CRPD. Basically, the CRPD does not create new rights but to affirm that disabled persons have the same rights as non-disabled persons.

Dato’ Rafek bin Reshidullah - Ketua Pengarah JKM, Dato’ Sri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil - Menteri Pembangunan Wanita, Keluarga dan Masyarakat and H.E Mr. Tadashi Imai - Ambassador of Japan to Malaysia.

During Dato’ Sri Shahrizat Abdul Jalil’s speech at the opening ceremony, she informed participants that Malaysia will sign the CRPD but not on March 30 as there are issues with some of the articles in the CRPD that need to be resolved first. The contents have to be agreed upon by the various Ministries then taken to the Cabinet for approval before Malaysia can become a signatory to the CRPD. In the same speech, she also spoke about the Disabled Persons Act which is at its final stages of drafting. The earliest the Bill can be submitted to Parliament is during the last sitting for the year. The Ministry has been working on the details of this Act since 2002.

Perbincangan Panel - Stakeholders Perspectives on UN Convention On The Rights Of Persons With Disabilities.

After lunch-break, a discussion by a panel of stakeholders spoke about Malaysia’s stand on the CRPD. The guests were Cik Noraini Hashim, Pengarah Bahagian OKU of JKMM, a legal officer each from the Attorney-General’s Department and the Ministry of Women, Family and Community Development, Dr. Chiam Heng Keng of Suruhanjaya Hak Asasi Malaysia (SUHAKAM) and Mah Hassan of MCD.

The two legal officers in separate presentations informed participants that Malaysia has reservations with Article 16 which is about “Freedom from torture or cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment or punishment.” This Article contradicts Malaysian law because of the penal code with provides for capital punishments such as whipping. If Malaysia were to adopt that, it would mean that disabled persons would have to be exempted from such punishment under the law.

Malaysia will also not sign the Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, Article 1 of the OP states that “A State Party to the present Protocol (“State Party”) recognizes the competence of the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (“the Committee”) to receive and consider communications from or on behalf of individuals or groups of individuals subject to its jurisdiction who claim to be victims of a violation by that State Party of the provisions of the Convention.”

This seminar left many unanswered questions with regards to the rights of disabled persons in this country. The status of the Disabled Persons Bill is still unclear. There is also a question of how many more reservations Malaysia has with the articles in the CRPD. What is the basis of Malaysia’s refusal to sign the OP? Last but not least, there is no single agency within the government that oversees all disability-related issues. This makes it very difficult for advocates of disability issues as we have to deal with different and separate ministries on transportation, built-environment, education and employment, among others. Until a time when Malaysia has a dedicated agency that has the authority to compel all ministries to address disability-related issues, disabled persons will have to run from one ministry to another just to get a single issue resolved. Apa macam Malaysia?