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EAST WINDOfficial Newsletter of the World Blind Union-Asia Pacific
No. 8
Contents of this issue:
From the EditorNew Member of the WBUAP Policy Council: Mrs. Grace Chan, Chairing The Employment & Economic Empowerment Committee (We Call 3e Committee)The First Barrier-Free Website of Blind Massage Industry Is Launching to The WorldEqual Participation and Sport for AllBraille Big Event: Celebrating The Bicentennial of Louis Braille And 150th Anniversary of the Birth of Kuraji IshikawaBraille Rock on Manly Beach, AustraliaBlind Citizens Australia National ConventionWe Can Change Attitudes Now: Association of Blind Citizens of New Zealand Conference 2009Parents Forum in FijiPacific Disability Forum Conference: VanuatuVisit to MyanmarDanida Capacity Building Project UpdateWBU-AP Low-Tech Equipment Recycling WebsiteWinners of the WBUAP Onkyo Braille Essay Contest 2009ObituaryComing UpContact Details
FROM THE EDITOR
This issue should have been already 4 months
old by now, but here it is at last.
You can tell from this issue the diversity and
the width of our Region, literally, from Fiji to
Mongolia, from China to New Zealand.
2009 saw a few very significant events related
to the DANIDA Capacity Building Project which
has been going on in practice since 2006, namely,
Vision Conference, Evaluation Workshop and
Logical Framework Workshop. We are featuring
these events as well as some of the highlights of
the project outcomes. In addition to reporting on
what have been happening in the two target
countries, our experiences also provide us with
some of the hints for the strengthening of our own
organizations and building of our own capacity.
We will try to keep you informed of the project
updates in our future issues as well.
As we enter the second year of the current
quadrennium, there are a number of events that
you might want to mark on your calendar for. In
particular, we are in the middle of preparatory
works for the Mid-Term Assembly in Japan
including Youth and Women’s Forums. We hope
to see as many of you as possible, in our
discussions, sharing, and above all, in our circle
of friendship and comradeship.
We are mostly keen on hearing messages and
feedbacks from you, Dear Readers. Please let us
know whatever you felt about this issue.
Michiko Tabata: Editor-in-Chief
Editorial Committee: Ivan Ho Tuch Choy
Kevin Murfitt
Kim Mok
NEW MEMBER OF THE WBUAP POLICY
COUNCIL:
Mrs. Grace Chan, chairing the Employment &
Economic Empowerment Committee (we call
3E Committee)
Grace Chan joined the Hong Kong Society for
the blind (HKSB) on 14 August, 1973 and had
worked in executive positions for 27 years with
20 years as the Chief Executive of HKSB. She
retired in January, 2008.
Mrs. Chan also has worked as and still is the
CEO of the Asian Foundation for the Prevention
of Blindness (AFPB) since 1988 on a honorary
basis. She has launched a lot of projects for the
blind in the Asian Region and, in particular, in
China. The most significant projects in China
include:
1) Mobile Eye Treatment Centres (METC). 22
METCs will be operating in China restoring
the eye sight of poor cataract blindness living
in remote areas of provinces in China.
2) Education Resource Centres (ERCs): 6ERCs
are operating in 6 provinces to provide
inclusive education to blind students living in
villages.
3) National Orientation and Mobility Teachers
Training in China: 6 O & M National
Training Courses had been conducted for
teachers in blind schools and rehabilitation
personnel from China Disabled Persons
Federation. Have successfully convinced the
Ministry of Education to include O & M into
the curriculum of blind schools in early 2000
so that blind students can be taught formally
in O & M.
4) Pioneer in China and in the Asian Pacific
Region since 1991 to promote massage as a
profession for the blind through organization
of Regional Massage Seminars (every two
years) with the first one held in Xian, China
in 1991 and so far 9 Regional Massage
Seminars have been held in the region.
The positions held in international
organizations:
1996-2000: Regional President of World
Blind Union (WBU) East Asia Pacific
Region.
1997-2002: Regional Chair of International
Council for Education of People with Visual
Impairment (ICEVI).
2000-2008: Founding Chairman and Regional
Chairman of WBU Asia Pacific Regional
Massage Commission.
2002-2007: Treasurer of ICEVI
2004-2008: Trustee of International Agency
for the Prevention of Blindness (IAPB)
2004- Now: Council Member of IAPB
Since 2009: Member of WBUAP Board and
Policy Council of WBUAP
In April, 2008, Mrs. Chan, together with a
number of enthusiastic community leaders and
blind members formed the Hong Kong Blind
Sports Association and have been working as the
CEO on a honorary basis since then to promote
blind sports as we believe that through sports
rehabilitation, blind people will be able to regain
their self-confidence and re-integrate into society.
******
THE FIRST BARRIER-FREE WEBSITE OF BLIND MASSAGE INDUSTRY IS LAUNCHING TO THE WORLD
Blind Massage International Website, the
world’s first barrier-free website of blind massage
industry, was launched on Oct. 15th, 2009.
The World Health Organization announced in
October 2003 that the global number of the blind
is 45 million, and visually impaired population
reached 135 million. This number increases in the
region of 1 to 2 million every year.
People with visual impairment are more
difficult in finding jobs than the able-bodied.
Therefore, how to solve the employment problem
of the large number of blind people has become a
major issue confronting the world. Massage,
which has the significant effects with its
characteristics of easy manipulation, no damage,
and no side effects, is welcomed by people in
many countries. According to statistics from the
occupational information resources networking
systems of the United States Department of
Labor, from 2004 to 2014, the massage industry's
growth rate will exceed the industry of all types’
average growth level of 21% to 35%. As the
physiological characteristics of the blind are
suitable for working in the massage profession,
massage will provide the blind with lots of
employment opportunities.
Recently, blind massage industry is constantly
growing and expanding, leading to a huge
demand of fast and convenient platform of
information sharing and study for blind masseurs.
Ongoing development and widespread of internet
has widened people’s vision, and is leading them
to a more capacious world. In order to provide
every blind massage participator and enthusiast an
exchanging platform and strengthen information
sharing, Beijing Massage Administration Center
together with the Hunan Yeahcome Health Care
Co., Ltd. has jointly established the portal site of
blind massage industry, Blind Massage
International website, under the proposal of
World Blind Union Asia-Pacific Regional
Massage Commission, with the goal of promoting
development of blind massage and employment
of the visually impaired, publicizing and
advancing healthy and fast development of
handicapped industry.
This is the first website belonging to blind
masseurs, and will be a soul house of the blind
massage participators and enthusiasts throughout
the world!
Firstly, the website has an international edition
and a domestic edition, respectively supporting
English language and Chinese language. Each of
them has another 3 sub-editions, Web Accessible
Common, Web Accessible Blind and Web
Accessible low vision. The Web Accessible
Common is accessible for everyone while the
Web Accessible Blind provides blind person with
more convenient and fast navigation, and the Web
Accessible low vision gives several choices on
font-size and color schemes to the low vision.
Secondly, the designed web page follows the
habits of blind and is accessible for keyboard
users. Each picture has an introduction so you can
hear pictures. Additionally, the website is linked
with Google blind search engine.
Thirdly, the website has authentic and rich
information. There are papers from international
conferences such as WBUAP massage seminars
and good articles from professional publications
all over the world. The website has Massage
section divided into History & Culture, Massage
Therapies, Spa & Bodywork, Massagists' Words
and Massage Tidbit. Besides, there are Visually
Impaired section divided into Eye Info, Braille
Knowledge, Life Tips, Computer & Software,
Activities Exchange.
Visit the Blind Massage International website
at:
www.blindmassageintl.com
******
EQUAL PARTICIPATIONAND SPORTS FOR ALL
Hong Kong Blind Sports Association
(HKBSA) was established and officially opened
on 29 May, 2008. Its main objective is to provide
equal participation and sports for all. Up till now,
we have nearly 500 registered blind members. In
the past 20 months, over 30 sports activities were
organized in addition to regular training for over
80 blind members in marathon, golf, bowling and
blind football. Dragon Boat Rowling Training
Class will commence after the Chinese New Year.
By then, we will have 100 blind members
participating in regular sports training.
We would like to share with friends in the
Region three major activities that HKBSA
undertook recently, and how we promote equal
participation and sports for all in Hong Kong,
China and Malaysia:
1) 1st Hong Kong-Malaysia-Australia Blind
Golf and Blind Bowling Exhibition Match –
15 and 16 October, 2009
To promote the spirit of “Equal Participation
and Sports for All” and to celebrate the
International White Cane Day, HKBSA, in
collaboration with the National Council for the
Blind in Malaysia (NCBM), held the 1st Hong
Kong-Malaysia-Australia Blind Golf and Blind
Bowling Exhibition Match on 15 and 16
October, 2009 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.
Thanks to the kind support of Dato
Kulasegaran, President of NCBM, Mr. Ivan
Ho, Executive Director, Mr. Moses Choo,
Deputy Director of NCBM, Mr. Radha
Krishnan, Chairman of the Asian Committee of
International Blind Sports Federation and Mr.
T.W. Yam, a Civil Engineer before he became
blind and an experienced golfer, the above
event was successfully held.
13 visually impaired golfers from Hong Kong
and a total of 32 competitors including sighted
participants joined the blind golf competition
on 15 October.
Earlier in the morning, Hong Kong Golf
Coach, Mr. H.L. Chan, conducted a workshop
to the blind participants and sighted guides on
the basic golf skills. Mr. Chan together with the
Australian golfers demonstrated on the green
the proper skills on playing golf. Blind golfers
were then given the chance to gauge their skills
in driving and putting. For the putting contest,
each participant was given 3 chances to make
their shots count.
In the afternoon, all blind and sighted
participants featured in 8 flights at the
Inaugural Exhibition Match. For each flight,
the organizers teamed up 2 visually impaired
golfers with 2 sighted golfers as they went on
the greens for a round of 9 holes. As a result,
Mr. Ron Anderson of Australia won the
Championship of B3 category and Mr. Galant
Ng from Hong Kong won Championship of B2
category.
During the welcoming lunch, 2 blind golfers,
Mr. Kim Mok from Hong Kong and Mr. Ron
Anderson from Australia enlightened the guests
with their thrilling encounters on the golf
course and were well-received by those
present.
Dato Kulasegaran, NCBM President, Ms. Lai
Poh Guat, National Social Welfare Department
Deputy Director, Mr. Peter Sun, Chairman of
HKBSA, Mrs. Grace Chan, HKBSA and Mr.
Radha Krishnan, Chairman of the Asian
Committee of IBSA were among the guests at
the welcoming lunch.
On 16 October, blind bowlers from Australia,
Hong Kong and Malaysia competed in the
Bowling Tournament. As our main aim was to
have sports exchange, we formed mixed teams
in that each team consisted of blind bowlers
from Australia, Hong Kong and Malaysia. We
were so pleased to see that each team
cooperated so well and eventually athletes from
each country/city won different awards.
On evaluation of the event, we all feel that our
objective to promote equal participation and
sports for all has been achieved. We have been
told that as a result of this event, many blind
friends in Malaysia would like to develop blind
golf training in Malaysia. Blind bowlers from
Malaysia felt exhilarated to have played with so
many social celebrities and for the first time
with blind bowlers from other countries.
2) Sun Rise Watching Camp - 19 and 20
December, 2009
To promote the core values of the UN
Convention on the Rights of People with
Disabilities and to encourage people with and
without disabilities to participate in meaningful
activities so as to build a barrier free sports
environment and inclusive society, HKBSA
organized the 1st Sun Rise Watching Camp on
19 and 20 December, 2009 which is sponsored
by Quiksilver Glorious Sun JV Ltd.
Participants included local elite athletes,
visually impaired friends, international and
secondary school students and parents, and
friends from corporations such as Quiksilver
Glorious Sun JV Ltd., Duty Free Shoppers,
Hang Seng Bank, Hong Kong Science
Technology University, singers, sports angels,
etc.
On 19 December, 27 blind participants and
over 70 people from all walks of life run up
from the Choi Hung Bus Terminus to the Fei
Ngo Shan Boy Scout Camp site at the
temperature of 10 degrees Celsius. Mr. Chang
Hing Wah, Deputy Director of Social Welfare
of the Hong Kong SAR Government, officiated
at the kick-off ceremony at the Camp site. Mr.
Chang acknowledged that Sun Rise Watching
Camp is the first of its kind and a meaningful
activity. Through description by sighted friends
and by sense of feeling and hearing, our
visually impaired members can share the joy of
the beauty of sun rise.
On this occasion, Quiksilver gave each
participant a knitted cap to keep their heads
warm and students of Vocational Training
Council baked cookies for our participants at
the tea reception. In the evening, our blind
friends grilled the food at the barbecue stoves
for our sighted participants after which our
marathon coach, Mr. Lam Wai Keung, taught
participants to dance cha cha cha, rock and roll,
etc. around the camp fire. Until the late
evening, participants were divided into groups
to stay in different camps. As participants were
so excited, they preferred to chat and share
their life experience with one another rather
than go to sleep. The Head of the Duty Free
Shoppers cooked congee for the participants to
keep their body warm as it was minus zero
degree after midnight on the hill.
The most exciting moment came when
participants were asked to gather at 4:30 a.m. to
jointly walk up to the top of the hill. As it was
so dark (no light at all), participants had to
walk hand in hand (two people in one group)
and close to each other (as they felt freezing
cold). Under the guidance of the experienced
boy scouts and volunteers, they eventually
managed to reach the top of the hill. On that
early morning, it was quite foggy and cloudy.
Everybody waited there for a long while. As
time passed, they began to feel disappointed
that they might not see the sunrise with such
foggy weather. Just at that very moment,
morning sun suddenly appeared in front of
them! Every participant jumped to their feet,
cried and hugged each other and took photos in
order not to miss any moment of the sun rise!
Our blind friends were told that when the sun
rose, it had 4 colours and the colours kept on
changing until it became more and more shiny.
On our way back, our blind friends kept on
talking that this was an unforgettable
experience for them. It was their first time to
see the sunrise and to have opportunities to
meet people from different sectors. They were
very grateful to the volunteers who looked after
them so well on the way to the top of the hill.
As for the volunteers, they also treasured this
experience as they learned from our blind
friends how to understand and appreciate every
matter and every item by sense of touch, smell,
hearing and language. Through this event, it
also shows that if we could make up our mind
and not so easily give up, everyone can realize
their dream, live in faith and love, and lead a
bright future!
3) 1st Hong Kong – Guangzhou Marathon
Exhibition Match cum Tandem Cycling
Activity to welcome Asian Games and Asian
Games for the Disabled – 22 and 23
January, 2010
It is our firm belief that sports rehabilitation is
the most effective way to help blind people
regain their self-confidence and integrate into
society. As such, HKBSA would like to
promote marathon training in China. To start
with, we contacted the China Association of the
Blind (CAB), Guangzhou Disabled Persons
Federation (GDPF), Guangzhou Association of
the Blind (GAB) and the Pan Yu Disabled
Persons Federation (PYDPF) to jointly
organize the 1st Hong Kong-Guangzhou
Marathon Exhibition Match cum Tandem
Cycling Activity in Pan Yu Ta Fu Shan Park on
22 and 23 January, 2010. Altogether there were
75 blind members and 200 volunteers
participate in this event.
In the afternoon of 22 January, a marathon
workshop was conducted during which our
marathon coach, Mr. Shum, our experienced
sighted guide runner, Ms. Kitty Chan, our
Chief Operating Officer, Mr. Kim Mok, and
our Director, Mr. Galant Ng who happens to be
a blind person and is also the full marathon
runner, shared with the participants from Hong
Kong, Guangzhou and Pan Yu their experience
in marathon training and the exercise that they
must do to keep their energy and strength.
Participants were also asked to practice the
exercise on the spot with the coach, which
brought to the highlight of the workshop. All
participants enjoyed the workshop very much.
In the morning of the 23rd, Hong Kong,
Guangzhou and Pan Yu Teams all lined up at
the entrance of the Pan Yu Ta Fu Shan Park.
They were all dressed in their own uniforms
holding their own team flags and ready for the
5K run. After the official kick-off ceremony,
the Executive Vice Chairman of CAB, Mr. Li
Wei Hong, the Presidents of the Guangzhou
and Pan Yu Disabled Persons Federation, Mr.
Leung Chor Yee and Ms. Chang Bor, the Vice
President of GDPF, Ms. Fu De, Chairman of
GAB, Mr. Chen Yang and Mrs. Grace Chan,
CEO of HKBSA led all participants to start the
marathon run. During the activity, many
visitors stopped and watched our blind friends
running. Some even gave applause to
encourage them to run. As a result, our Hong
Kong marathon runner, Mr. Ho Wing Luen,
finished the 5K run in 18 minutes followed by
our Mr. Liu King Tsang and Dai Shek Lung
within 20 minutes. The teams from Guangzhou
and Pan Yu received special achievement
awards.
In the afternoon, participants were divided into
2-member groups (1 sighted in front and 1
blind at the back) to enjoy the tandem cycling
in the Park. Some were even so courageous that
two blind persons played the tandem cycling
together!
The Park has all of a sudden become an
Adventurous Park with laughing, screaming
and singing in every corner of the Park!
We are so pleased to see that our initiative has
aroused the interest of organizations of and for the
blind in China. We sincerely hope that these
activities just mark the beginning of blind sports
development in China and more such activities
especially marathon can be organized in different
parts of China. Maybe one day we will have a
blind marathon activity in China!
******
BRAILLE BIG EVENT: celebrating the bicentennial of Louis Braille and 150th anniversary of the birth of Kuraji Ishikawa
Braille authorities in Japan organized the
Braille Big Event on October 31 and November 1,
in commemoration of Louis Braille bicentennial
and the 150th birthday of Kuraji Ishikawa, the
founder of Braille in Japan. Big Event consisted
of Braille Essay Contest among primary school
students at blind schools and sighted primary
school students who had exchange programs with
blind schools, Braille reading and writing
competitions, and 2 lectures by a Braille authority
and another by a prominent novelist. The Big
Event also highlighted donations of Braille paper,
styluses and slates, and English picture books
with Braille and tactile pictures, to developing
countries in Asia and Africa. The Event had the
honor of being attended by secretaries of
embassies in Japan, from the Philippines, Timor
Leste and Cameroon.
******
BRAILLE ROCK ON MANLY BEACH, AUSTRALIA
Braille on Manly Beach was a celebration of
the 200th anniversary of the birth of Louis Braille
with a truly Australian flavor. We want to spread
the word that Braille rocks.
After 18 months of planning, Braille on
Manly Beach became a happening thing on
Sunday September 20 as part of the Manly Arts
Festival. Teams of volunteers coordinated by
artist Anne Walton and under the expert guidance
of sand sculptor Dennis Massoud worked
enthusiastically to make a giant Braille message
in the sand of Manly's West Esplanade harbor-
side beach.
The teams that had been recruited prior to the
event were joined by dozens of beach-going
locals and tourists of all ages who pitched in to
shovel sand and carry buckets of water. The
shoveling and water-carrying began at 9:30,
and the 23-dot message quickly took shape. Each
dot was 1 metre in diameter and 0.5 metres high.
The entire message was completed at about 3pm,
2 hours ahead of schedule, and just in time for the
helicopter fly-over that produced some stunning
aerial photographs of the message set amid the
panorama of Sydney's northern beaches.
Those who preferred a more relaxed
experience kept themselves busy buying tickets in
the raffle for 4 tactile T-shirts with the alphabet
embossed on the front in Braille and print. Long
lines of children formed near the marquee waiting
to have messages Brailled for them by a crack
team of on-location Braille transcribers, while
others contributed messages to the Braille time
capsule.
Just before 5pm, a short ceremony took place,
during which Disability Discrimination
Commissioner Graeme Innes unveiled the
message that had been made in the sand: Braille
rocks (using the "brl" contraction for "Braille").
Graeme also announced the four lucky winners of
the Braille T-shirts.
The time-capsule will be earmarked for
opening on January 4 2109, the 300th birth of
Louis Braille. Graeme and I have already put it in
our diaries.
Braille on Manly Beach was conceived by
Anne Walton, who has become internationally
respected for working with Braille in ways that
are both artistic and inclusive, and Braille
advocate Bruce Maguire. It was made possible by
the expertise and enthusiasm of sand sculptor
Dennis Massoud, and the event was supported by
a grant from the Community Partnerships
Division of the Australia Council. And it all
happened because so many people were inspired
by the coming-together of Braille and the beach,
and gave generously of their time and energy.
Thank you to all who were involved.
******
BLIND CITIZENS AUSTRALIANATIONAL CONVENTION 2009
On 17 and 18 October 2009 Blind Citizens
Australia (BCA) held their biennial national
convention at Royal on the Park hotel in Brisbane.
The two day event was preceded by a Technology
Expo which allowed blind and vision impaired
people to check out the latest technology and to
also speak to service providers. The expo was
very well attended at all times.
The weekend began on Friday night with a
welcome function hosted by the Brisbane branch
at the Irish Club. About seventy blind and vision
impaired people walked to the venue, a distance
of about four city blocks, to enjoy drinks, finger
food and the opportunity to greet other convention
attendees. The function manager at the Irish Club
commented it was great for her staff to learn to
provide a service which could accommodate the
needs of blind and vision impaired people.
Convention was officially opened on Saturday
morning by the Hon. Bill Shorten, Parliamentary
Secretary for Disability in the Australian federal
government. Key note speaker at the convention,
Dr Mark Maurer, President of the National
Federation of the blind in the United States, spoke
passionately about We honoured Louis Braille at
morning tea with a birthday cake to celebrate two
hundred years of Braille.
The theme of the convention program was
“Strengthening Our Voice” and we began with a
session on Capacity Building at a local, Asia
Pacific regional and an international level. Mary
Ann Diamond, president of the World Blind
Union, participated in this session.
The day proceeded with session son “Service
Providers: Are they meeting our needs?;
Education revolution: Is equal opportunity leading
to equal outcomes?; and Our Vibes –blind and
low vision everyday stuff.
It was Saturday night and time to relax and
catch up with old friends at convention dinner.
During the dinner BCA presented several awards:
The Aspirations Award presented by the
Women’s Branch to a member who has been an
outstanding role model for blind ad vision
impaired women was presented to Christine
Simpson;
The David blithe award for outstanding service
to the blind and vision impaired community was
presented to Barry Chapman;
Certificates of appreciation were presented to
Erica Webb and Lee Smith;
Sunday began with the Annual General
Meeting of BCA which included the President’s
report and the financial report as well as the
executive officer’s report. Two new board
members were welcomed together with two
newly elected representatives to the National
Policy and Development Council (NPDC)
Following the AGM we heard national office
happenings with reports from Jodie Holdback
National Advocacy Officer and Wayne Hawkins
National Policy Officer Communications and
Information Access, Youth Leadership and
Beyond Blindness with appositive Attitude
commanded attention and participation from
convention attendees. The convention came to a
close with a light hearted and satirical look at the
Good, the bad and the Unsightly of National
Convention 2009.
National convention provides members with an
opportunity to network become more
independent, socially interact with other vision
impaired and blind people and gain new skills:
there were one hundred and twenty six attendees
at this convention, thirty six of whom were first
time attendees, making it one of the most
successful national conventions yet. ,
By Cheryl Pascual, Vice-President of Blind
Citizens Australia (BCA)
Email: [email protected]
******
WE CAN CHANGE ATTITUDES NOW: Association of Blind Citizens of New Zealand Conference 2009
Over the weekend of 9-11 October, in
Auckland, this conference focussed on how we as
blind and vision impaired persons can change the
attitudes of others in the commercial sector, local
and central government and the general public
with regards to the abilities of people with
disabilities. Changing one’s own attitudes around
blindness, service provision, possibilities with
regards to advocacy efforts, employment, etc was
also touched upon.
Keynote and guest speakers, addressing
conference, included Rosslyn Noonan, NZ’s
Chief Human Rights Commissioner, Maryanne
Diamond – President of the WBU, our Associate
Minister for Disability, the opposition party’s
Spokesperson on Disability and the Mayor of
Manukau City, the region we met in.
A panel discussion was facilitated around
attitudes and the UNCRPD (United Nations
Convention on the Rights of Persons with
Disabilities) in NZ and specifics were raised
around the fact that websites in the public domain
are still not accessible and whether legislation re
this should be advocated for, as is the case with
regards to public buildings.
Aspects such as reasonable accommodation
and undue hardship were discussed in the light of
new NZ legislation, allowing small and medium
sized businesses to fire a person following 90
days of employment, without providing a reason,
for many disabled people feel quite threatened by
this latest employment law item.
Our 10th year of hosting leadership seminars
directly prior to Conference, was celebrated and,
this was also the third year that we facilitated an
advocacy workshop directly following
Conference, so, our suite of capacity building
opportunities is expanding into more than 1 area.
******
PARENTS FORUM IN FIJI
A great forum was held in Fiji for parents of
children who are blind or have low vision. This
forum brought many parents from remote areas of
Fiji together for the first time where they
exchanged stories and ideas about getting their
children access to education. In particular, parents
were connected with community rehabilitation
workers that were responsible for their regions
and gained key contacts and confidence to assist
their children. A national parent body was
established which is a direct outcome of the
efforts and commitment from Fiji and people like
Paul Manning from NZ and Frances Gentle in
implementing the EFA campaign.
******
PACIFIC DISABILITY FORUM CONFERENCE: VANUATU
The Pacific Disability Forum (PDF) is the
peak body representing organisations of persons
with disabilities in the Pacific region. PDF was
established in 2004, and its current membership
consists of approximately 34 full and associate
member organisations including: Australia, Cook
Islands, Federated States of Micronesia, Fiji,
Kiribati, New Caledonia, New Zealand, Papua
New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga,
Tuvalu, and Vanuatu, as well as representatives
from Timor-Leste, development partners, regional
and international organisations such as the
International Council for the Education of persons
with Vision Impairment (ICEVI). World Blind
Union Pacific-Oceania sub-region is a full
member.
The 2009 conference was attended by
approximately 70 delegates and was preceded by
a women’s forum, and followed by a general
meeting of the PDF Council.
The women’s forum included the launch of a
United Nations Development Program Pacific
Centre 2009 report, written by Daniel Stubbs and
Sainimili Tawake, titled “Pacific sisters with
disabilities: At the intersection of
discrimination”. A report was tabled the
following day at the main conference including
recommendations such as: ‘Pacific Governments
that have not already done so, need to ratify the
United Nations conventions for children (CRC),
women (CEDAW), and persons with disability
(CRPD) and their respective Optional Protocols;
and ensure that CRPD Article 6, Women with
disabilities and other CRPD Articles containing
gender equity measures be given priority for
implementation’
The two-day main conference was officially
opened by His Excellency, Kalkot Mataskelekele,
President of the Republic of Vanuatu. The
opening ceremony included a keynote address by
Ms Maryanne Diamond, President of the World
Blind Union. Maryanne focused on the lack of
rights and disadvantaged faced by women with
disability, especially in developing countries, and
Maryanne’s message to all was to ‘Go for it’ and
work together to get our voices heard to attain
those basic human rights now endorsed by the
United Nations Convention on the Rights of
Persons with disability (CRPD) and other UN
instruments.
The theme of the PDF conference was
“Advancing disability concerns in the Pacific
Region”, and included presentations by national
disabled persons organisations (DPOs), the
Pacific Island Forum Secretariat (PIFS), AusAID
and NZAID, the United Nations Development
Program (UNDP) Pacific Centre, WBU-AP
Pacific-Oceania, ICEVI Pacific, and the
Australian Human Rights Commission.
Presentation topics included case studies on
development in the Pacific, the implementation of
the CRPD, the situation of women and girls in the
Pacific, inclusive education, the rights-based
approach to disability development and current
regional development assistance for disability-
related programs.
Frances Gentle, representing ICEVI and
Royal Institute for Deaf and Blind Children
(RIDBC) (Australia) gave a presentation on the
launch of ICEVI and World Blind Union’s
“Education for All Children with Vision
Impairments” (EFA-VI) global campaign within
the Pacific region. The presentation included an
overview of EFA-VI activities during 2008,
including the development of the Fiji EFA-VI
National Task Force and Fiji EFA-VI Plan and
the train-the-trainer “Professional Diploma in
Orientation and Mobility, Pacific Region”. Two
graduates of the orientation and mobility program
were awarded their certificates and a donation of
white canes as part of the presentation.
Conference delegates were advised of the
adoption of Unified English Braille (UEB) code
in Australia and New Zealand in 2005, and the
merit of adopting one Braille code across all
English-speaking Pacific Island countries.
The Pacific Regional Conference on
Disability concluded with the production of a
report containing 12 recommendations that were
unanimously endorsed by PDF and the conference
delegates. These recommendations are available
at www.pacificdisability.org
This report was presented to Mr. Joe Ligo,
Director General, Ministry of Justice and Social
Welfare during the conference closing ceremony,
with a request that the recommendations be raised
by the Vanuatu government at the August 2009
Pacific Islands Forum meeting.
The PDF Annual General Meeting was held
on Thursday April 23rd, and included the tabling
of the Chief Executive Officer’s Report, audited
financial accounts, reports from PDF
organisational members, and the election of the
executive committee for the next two years.
******
VISIT TO MYANMAR
Dato' Kulasegaran, in his capacity as the Chair
of the South-East Asia Sub-Regional Committee,
and Ivan Ho, the Secretary General of WBUAP,
visited Myanmar from 20 - 23 December 2009.
They held long discussions with the
representatives from the Education Centre for
Blind Affairs (ECBA) and the Myanmar National
Association of the Blind (MNAB) immediately
upon their arrival. MNAB very kindly arranged
for them to visit two of their affiliates, St. Mary's
Workshop for the Blind and the Collective
Workforce Association of the Blind.
St. Mary's Workshop is built on a two-acre site
and it has 26 male and female workers who stay
in the compound with their families. The workers
are mostly masseurs as weaving and basket-
making have ceased due to the high prices of raw
materials. The Collective Workforce Association
is a merger of two organisations, the New Light
and the Collective Workforce, which came
together in 2003. They raised some funds from
their fund-raising activities and bought a piece of
land measuring 25 by 60 feet on which they built
a thatched shelter (without rooms) for their
regular gatherings and activities. Last year,
Cyclone Nargis brought the shelter down and they
had to rebuild part of the structure with financial
assistance from MNAB which was donated to
MNAB by WBUAP. The members are mostly
masseurs or handicraft-makers and they operate
from their own houses and do their own
marketing. The Collective Workforce Association
supplies their members with the raw materials at
cost price.
Their efforts in persuading ECBA to join
MNAB were unsuccessful although ECBA
assured them that they would, wherever possible,
work closely with other organisations serving the
blind. On the other hand, MNAB has forged
ahead since their last visit in 2007. MNAB has
helped with the training of masseurs, setting up
massage centres and formed an ICT Committee
with the aim of teaching computer skills to both
blind users and teachers of the blind. MNAB has
also drawn up an Action Plan to impart teaching
of blindness-specific skills to people having
connections with blind people, to create public
awareness on the capabilities of blind people and
their need for employment opportunities.
Currently, the most popular avenues for
employment are massage and playing music.
Dato' Kula advised MNAB to form the
Committee on Education For All Vision Impaired
Children and to appoint an independent
Chairman, preferably from the Government, and
to invite members from bodies interested in the
education of blind children, including ECBA, to
serve on it. MNAB have informed them that they
have approached the Government, which is very
receptive to the idea, but indicated they prefer a
committee for all disabled groups. Dato' Kula's
advice to them was to convince the Government
that the EFA-VIC Initiative was an ICEVI/WBU
Project; failing which, MNAB should request that
sub-committees be set up for each group to deal
with their specific needs.
Before departing, Dato' Kula presented the
donation of Braille items from the National
Council for the Blind, Malaysia (NCBM) worth
over $800 comprising white canes, writing slates,
chess sets and talking calculators to ECBA and
MNAB.
******
DANIDA CAPACITY BUILDING PROJECT UPDATE
As reported briefly in east Wind No. 6,
DANIDA Capacity Building Project has been
going on in the Asia Pacific Region practically
since 2006, mainly targeted at our colleagues in
Mongolia and Lao PDR, with the hard works of
our colleagues at the Danish Association of the
Blind and support from DANIDA, the
development aid agency of Danish government.
The whole project aimed at organizational
strengthening, increased capacity in advocacy and
lobbying, establishment of women’s wings, and
the increased capacity of WBUAP as a regional
structure. For this purpose, various activities were
conducted including: Leadership Training
seminars and Follow-up Seminars on
organizational skills and leadership, research of
blind and visually impaired women of the two
countries, and women’s forums in the two
countries.
The 3 years of these activities brought about
remarkable achievements. The two organizations
are now stronger, more visible and recognized in
their societies, have more members and branches
of their organization. LAB succeeded in being
registered from the government, while MNFB has
been presenting itself as a strong advocate.
Although women’s wings are not yet in place as
initially anticipated, their women’s forums made
enormous changes to the blind and partially
sighted women who attended them, and some of
them are even developing leadership skills.
The Project also set aside some of the funds
for so-called Small Scale Projects: the two
organizations were to design their own activities,
and the Project Steering Committee reviewed and
made suggestions. This was a wonderful scheme,
as the outcome of these activities was brilliant.
Following are some of the very successful Small
Scale Projects:
Mongolian National Federation of the Blind:
MNFB established several additional
branches in provinces where there were no
branches before, so that the MNFB services
can be reached to the blind and visually
impaired individuals living in rural areas of
the huge land of Mongolia.
MNFB set up information centers and library
within their provincial branches, sometimes
using the local government offices for their
sites. These offices made the rural blind
people more visible to the general public,
which eventually increased the number of
volunteers in reading, writing or guiding.
They also provoked support from other local
organizations.
MNFB held a workshop in a provincial
branch attended by representatives from
smaller districts. The workshop highlighted
fundraising and other organizational
management issues, advocacy and lobbying,
issues of human rights etc., so that these
knowledge will be shared by the blind living
in rural areas.
Lao Association of the Blind:
White Cane Day: LAB held a large event in
2008 with participants from the government,
business circles, the media, and more than
200 blind and visually impaired persons,
raising awareness about the needs of the blind
in a very visible way.
LAB purchased musical instruments, trained
their members, and formed a musical group.
The bank plays at public events or even for
some money, which can be shared by the
members themselves and the LAB.
LAB used the project fund to create the
brochure of their activities.
LAB succeeded in making the media
broadcast LAB programs, on the ratio and on
the TV.
During the year 2009, there were 3 major
project-related events in our Region.
Vision Conference (May) in Vientiane, Lao
PDR: Representatives gathered from MNFB,
LAB and DAB as well as from Vietnam,
Indonesia, Myanmar, Brunei, and AP Board.
The conference was aimed at common
understanding of what have been useful in the
project, sharing the status of organizations
attending, gather ideas for possible future
opportunities and cooperation, etc.
Evaluation Workshop (September) in Ulan
Baator, Mongolia: Representatives from
MNFB, LAB and WBUAP, jointly with
colleagues from DAB and the Evaluator, to
discuss findings and lessons learned from the
4 years of the Project, to be a step forward for
the idea of future projects.
Logical Framework Workshop (December) in
Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia: Representatives
from MNFB, LAB and WBUAP, together
with colleagues from DAB discussed and
presented ideas to be included in the
application for future project to be submitted
to Danida, focusing on the areas of
strengthening organization, advocacy and
lobbying, and strengthening of regional
functions.
The WBUAP Mid-term Assembly, scheduled
for October 2010 in Chiba, Japan, will have a
session on the project and capacity building, and
we are hoping to welcome our colleagues from
MNFB, LAB and DAB, to share more of the
stories with us.
******
WBU-AP LOW-TECH EQUIPMENT RECYCLING WEBSITE
After a successful pilot project in 2008, WBU-
AP with the support of Royal Society for the
Blind (RSB) of South Australia, has established a
region-wide low-tech equipment recycling
website. People who are blind or have low vision
throughout the Asia-Pacific region can visit the
site and request items available for free, such as
magnifiers, digital watches, Braille items, white
canes etc. We also encourage organizations who
have surplus or obsolete low-tech equipment to
visit the site and donate their stock to the site.
Have a look at: www.rsb.org.au/wbu
******
WINNERS OF THE WBUAP ONKYO BRAILLE ESSAY CONTEST 2009
The Sponsors of the Contest, Onkyo
Corporation and the Braille Mainichi of Japan,
together with the WBUAP Onkyo Selection
Committee, announced the winners of the 2009
Contest as follows:
THE OTSUKI PRIZE:
The Otsuki Prize of $1,000 was awarded to Mr.
Dong Huy Lieu from Vietnam with his entry
“Braille - Lighting Up My Life". The reasons for
awarding him this prize are:
(a) It is a well rounded essay with a clear focus
on the topic. He is able to show how Braille has
helped him to achieve his goals in life.
(b) He is able to bring out the positive spirit in
his struggle to live a normal life and how this
enabled him to inspire others around him.
(c) While relating his personal experiences, he
has provided interesting insights into Vietnamese
life as he made his personal journey on the road to
success.
PRIZES FOR CATEGORY A
(Ages from 14 to 25 years old):
1. The Excellent Prize of $500 was awarded to
Miss Ria Andriani from Australia with her entry
"Some Things Are Meant To Be True". She is
awarded the prize for the following reasons:
(a) She is able to bring out a clear message of
hope concerning the role of Braille in helping her
to appreciate music and achieve success.
(b) She is able to depict a struggle of
determination and positive outlook despite great
odds to fulfill her life's goal in the field of music.
PRIZES FOR CATEGORY B
(Ages from 26 years old and above):
1. The Excellent Prize of $500 was awarded to
Mr. Atung Yuniarto from Indonesia with his entry
"Touching The Points of Hope" which scored 73
points. The reasons for awarding him the prize
are:
(a) He displayed very well his writing craft
with interesting and varied details as he depicted
his journey of hope and ultimate success.
(b) He showed how with the help of Braille he
was able to fulfill his dream and to inspire others.
2. Two Fine Works Prizes of $200 each are
awarded to:
2.1. Miss Khong Thanh Thuy from Vietnam
2.2. Miss Daw Byar Mee from Myanmar
We take this opportunity to extend our heartiest
congratulations to all the winners. We also wish
to express our deep gratitude to the National
Onkyo Selection Committees of Australia,
Indonesia, Myanmar and Vietnam for
encouraging, facilitating and selecting the best
entries sent to the WBUAP Onkyo Selection
Committee.
******
OBITUARY:
At the WBUAP Joint Board and Policy Council
Meeting held in Mongolia in September 2009, the
Vice-President reported the sad news that Prof.
Datuk Dr Ismail Md. Salleh, the Chair of the
ICEVI East Asia Committee, and President of the
Malaysian Association for the Blind, passed away
on 27 August 2009. A moment of silence was
observed in his memory.
The death of Datuk Prof. Ismail Md. Salleh was
a great loss, not only to his family and country,
but also to the blind people of Malaysia and the
region. He struggled against the limitations of
vision impairment to become one of the
outstanding blind persons in Malaysia. The late
Datuk Prof. Dr Ismail was conferred the
Professorship on Economics by the National
University of Malaysia, thus becoming the first
blind Malaysian to have achieved this intellectual
position. Subsequently, he was appointed a
member of the Think-Tank group at the Institute
of Strategic and International Studies of Malaysia.
On account of his long and dedicated services to
the blind people of Malaysia as the President of
the Malaysian Association for the Blind, and as
Chairman of the Tun Hussein Onn National Eye
Hospital, and his understanding of the issues of
persons with disabilities, he was appointed the
first Senator for the Disabled in December 2007.
That same month the Malaysian Parliament
passed the Persons with Disabilities Act.
We have lost an outstanding man in Datuk
Prof. Dr Ismail who demonstrated that blindness
was no barrier to success, and what it means to be
blind. The President of WBUAP, and all Board
and Policy Council members extend their heartfelt
condolences to his wife and children.
******
COMING UP…..
The 8th WBUAP Onkyo Braille Essay Contest
2010
The Onkyo Corporation Ltd., The Tenji
Mainichi Newspaper "The Braille Mainichi" and
WBUAP announced the start of the 8th WBUAP
Onkyo Braille Essay Contest for blind and vision
impaired people in the Asia Pacific Region. Cash
prizes of US$1,000.00, US$500.00 and
US$200.00 will be awarded respectively to the
best seven entries from two age groups from all
countries in the region.
The closing day is April 30, 2010.
For further details, please contact Ivan Ho Tuck
Choy at the contact details at the end of this
newsletter.
The 10TH WBUAP Regional Seminar on
Massage for the Blind
Date, Monday May 3 to Thursday May 6, 2010
Place: Seoul, Korea
For further details, please contact the
Conference Secretariat at: Korea Blind Union, 3F
Eroom Center 17-13 Yeouido-dong
Yeongdeungpo-gu, Seoul, South Korea
Tel: 82-2-6925-1114
Fax: 82-2-6925-1117
E-mail: [email protected]
The 13TH World Conference of the
International Council for Education of People
with Visual Impairment
Date, Monday August 9 to Friday August 13,
2010
Place: Hotel Ambassador City, Jomtien,
Thailand
For Abstract Submission contact the ICEVI
Secretariat at: 3, Professors' Colony, Palamalai
Road, S R K Vidyalaya Post, Coimbatore 641
020, Tamil Nadu, INDIA
Tel : +91 422 2469 104
Fax : +91 422 2693 414
E-mail : [email protected]
For Registration contact the Foundation for the
Employment Promotion of the Blind at: 2218/86
Chan Road, Khet Yan Nawa, Bangkok - 10120,
THAILAND
Tel : +662 6780256 / 6689 8302573
Fax : +662 6780765
E-mail : [email protected]
The Conference has opened its own website at:
http://www.icevi.org/13thWC/
The WBUAP Mid-term Assembly
Date, Friday October 29 to Monday November
1, 2010
Place: Hotel Green Tower, Chiba, Japan
For further details, please contact the secretariat
of the organizing committee at the National
Committee of Welfare for the Blind in Japan, at:
THE International Conference on Low Vision
Date, February 2011
Place: Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia
******
We Are Waiting for Your Contributions!!
Send in your writings…reports, essays, poems,
commentary, just about anything, that you might
want to share with your friends and colleagues in
the Region.
Your Donations Is Always
Welcome!!Help us make a difference of what it means to
be blind. Your donations will help our
international blindness movement in particular
from our friends in less economically privileged
circumstances.
Your generous contribution is very much
appreciated. Please note that, following the
election of our new Treasurer, we have our new
USD account in Australia.
Please direct your payment to:
National Australia Bank
Bank Address: 330 Collins Street , Melbourne,
Australia
BSB: 083-004
Account Number: WBUAPUSD01
Swift Code: NATAAU3303M
Name: World Blind Union – Asia Pacific
******
CONTACT DETAILS
President, WBUAP
Chuji Sashida
E-mail: [email protected]
National Committee of Welfare for the Blind in
Japan
E-mail: [email protected]
2-18-2 Nishi-Waseda, Shinjuku, Tokyo 169-0051
Japan
Editorial:
Michiko Tabata
E-mail: [email protected]
National Committee of Welfare for the Blind in
Japan
E-mail: [email protected]
2-18-2 Nishi-Waseda, Shinjuku, Tokyo 169-0051
Japan
Secretary General:
Ivan Ho Tuck Choy
E-mail: [email protected]
National Council for the Blind, Malaysia
94B Jalan Tun Sambanthan
50470 Kuala Lumpur
Malaysia
East Asia Sub-Region
Michiko Tabata
Pacific-Oceania Sub-Region
Kevin Murfitt
E-mail: [email protected]
3-6 Allambee Ave
Camberwell, Victoria, 3124 Australia
South East Asia Sub-Region
Dato Kulasegaran
E-mail: [email protected]
National Council for the Blind, Malaysia
94B Jalan Tun Sambanthan
50470 Kuala Lumpur
Malaysia