[Pwd] Re: [WSIS CS-Plenary] health section - explanation

[zara]

Dear Hiroshi,

I believe that we absolutely need to submit a section on persons with disabilities to be included in the Civil Society statement and I greatly thank those for giving us this opportunity at this late date.  We have material to work with.  Here below my signature are excerpts of documents that could be helpful.  I am at your disposal tonight if you need help.

Best,


Catherine

--
Catherine Roy, consultante
www.catherine-roy.net
514.525.9490
--

This was the section concerning persons with disabilities included in the Civil Society statement for the Geneva phase:

2.2.8 Rights of Persons with Disabilities

In inclusive information and communication societies, the rights of persons with disabilities to have full and equal access to information and communications including ICTs, regardless of types and degree of disabilities, must be ensured by public policies, laws and regulations at all levels. In order to achieve this goal, a Universal Design principle and the use of assistive technologies must be seriously promoted and supported throughout the whole process of building and nurturing information and communication societies in which persons with disabilities and their organisations must be allowed to participate fully and on equal terms with non-disabled people.


This is the Disability Caucus statement for the Tunis phase:

Recalling the historic success of the first Global Forum on Disability and the over all first phase of WSIS; Being encouraged and moved by the spirit of the Geneva Declaration on Inclusive Information Society, WSIS Declaration of Principles and Plan of Action;

Noting, however, with great concern the difficulty of transforming words on paper into real actions/implementation, given the fact that the concept of "inclusiveness" in general often leaves disability aspects out, causing persons with disabilities to be excluded, marginalized, forgotten and left behind;

Having high hope and confidence in the ultimate power of the united force, among persons with disabilities, our representative organizations our friends and our empathetic allies of all sectors around the world, to work for the true inclusive information society,

Therefore, we, participants of the Second Global Forum on Disability in the Information Society, held during the second phase of WSIS, on the 18th day of November 2005, in the City of Tunis, Republic of Tunisia:

1. Call upon all governments, private sectors, civil society and international organizations to make the implementation, evaluation and monitoring of all WSIS documents, both from the first and second phase, inclusive to persons with disabilities;

2. Strongly urge that persons with disabilities and our needs be included in all aspects of designing, developing, distributing and deploying of appropriation strategies of information and communication technologies, including information and communication services, so as to ensure accessibility for persons with disabilities, taking into account the universal design principle and the use of assistive technologies;

3. Strongly request that any international, regional and national development program, funding or assistance, aimed to achieve the inclusive information society be made disability-inclusive, both through mainstreaming and disability-specific approaches;

4. Urge all governments to support the process of negotiation, adoption, ratification and implementation of the International convention on the rights of persons with disabilities, in particular through enactment of national legislation, as it contains strong elements concerning information and communication accessibility for persons with disabilities.


This is the Canadian Civil Society declaration adopted in Winnipeg in preparation for the Tunis phase that may be helpful as well for wording if needed:

Persons with Disabilities

Canadians with disabilities account for 17% of the population and, despite efforts and progress made, they continue to represent the most excluded of Canada’s marginalized populations, with poor access to education, employment, and the means to realize their full potential. Women with disabilities and persons with disabilities from cultural or aboriginal communities are faced with double exclusion. Actions to take include:

1. Promoting the adoption and implementation of inclusive standards and alternative formats for ICTs;
2. Ensuring that all legislations, policies, programs, and initiatives in the field of ICTs from the initial phase of development include persons with disabilities;
3. Supporting capacity building of persons with disabilities to ensure that they can take full advantage of ICTs.

> -----Original Message-----
> From: pwd-admin at wsis-cs.org [mailto:pwd-admin at wsis-cs.org] On Behalf Of
> Hiroshi Kawamura
> Sent: December 19, 2005 4:38 PM
> To: plenary at wsis-cs.org
> Cc: Pwd at wsis-cs.org
> Subject: [Pwd] Re: [WSIS CS-Plenary] health section - explanation
> 
> Dear Ralf:
> 
> Thank you very much for your kind offer to invite a chapter on
> disabilities.
> 
> I am very pleased to ask WSIS Disability Caucus members on how to proceed
> through PWD mailing list which has nearly 300 subscribers with or without
> disabilities across the world.  This is our standard procedures to make a
> decision. I will get back to you within 24 hours.
> 
> Best
> 
> Hiroshi
> 
> ----- Original Message -----
> From: "Ralf Bendrath" <bendrath at zedat.fu-berlin.de>
> To: <plenary at wsis-cs.org>
> Sent: Tuesday, December 20, 2005 1:17 AM
> Subject: Re: [WSIS CS-Plenary] health section - explanation
> 
> 
> > [Please note that by using 'REPLY', your response goes to the entire
> list.
> > Kindly use individual addresses for responses intended for specific
> > people]
> >
> > Click http://wsis.funredes.org/plenary/ to access automatic translation
> of
> > this message!
> > _______________________________________
> >
> > Elizabeth Carll, PhD wrote:
> >> What is curious to me is why the drafting group did not decide to
> include
> >> both a section on disability as was submitted by the Disability Caucus
> >> and
> >> the health section as was submitted by the Health and ICT Working
> Group,
> >> thereby being inclusive of both groups.
> > Excuse me, we did _never_ make such a decision, and would not dare to.
> >
> > The disability caucus just never found the time to submit language, as I
> > learned just now. If they do, I will be more than happy to include this
> in
> > a revised version of the statement.
> >
> > Ralf
> > _______________________________________________
> > Plenary mailing list
> > Plenary at wsis-cs.org
> > http://mailman.greennet.org.uk/mailman/listinfo/plenary
> >
> 
> 
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