Courtesy from PETPOSITIVE

Courtesy from PETPOSITIVE
Congratulations, meanwhile, are in order to Independent Living and Training Centre (ILTC) members Francis Siva and Gurdip Kaur for getting themselves into the executive committee of the Malaysian Spinal Injuries Association (MASIA) last Sunday.

Serving as ILTC president and secretary in their own Nongovernmental organisation respectively, both Siva and Gurdip a.k.a Rina were elected as committee members at MASIA's 13th Annual General Meeting in Bandar Baru Sentul in Kuala Lumpur.

More than 50 members gathered at the event with bright hopes of rejuvenating the once-popular disability NGO.

Quite surprisingly, the AGM unearthed reports of mismanagement and misuse of funds by previous two senior executive committee members.

A resolution was passed by the Sunday meeting for an investigation to be carried out on the duo as soon as possible and be followed up by a police report if the allegations are found to be true.

On Tuesday, the ILTC was invited to a top working committee meeting of disabled activists with the Ministry of Transport (MOT).

Speaking to PET+BLOGSPOT recently, Siva commented: "I was thrilled to be invited to this event as it gives us an opportunity to put forward our views in an official way so that action will be taken as swiftly as possible in the area of public transportation for the handicapped in our country."

A follow-up access audit exercise to check out the wheelchair-friendly facilities at the KLIA and LCCT airports in Sepang is expected to be held sometime next week.

Tuesday's meeting with the disabled was held at the headquarters of the MOT in Putrajaya.

Towards a disabled-friendly city - malaysiakini

Towards a disabled-friendly city
MALAYSIAKINI REPORT by Vasughi Supramanian

17 March 2010
Finally at least one local administration in the country has woken up to the fact that the disabled need special attention so they can move around urban centres without any hassle and not just on paper. Petaling Jaya City Council has decided to make the necessary changes in the city to create a disabled-friendly environment.

"Nothing will change if the local council members don't go down to the field," said Petaling Jaya councillor Anthony Thanasayan from his wheelchair. He urged the Selangor state government to look into disabled issues seriously as more join the disabled ranks, either through disease or accidents. "The simple reason why nothing is being done to increase the facilities available for the disabled is simply because they are not the ones on a wheelchair," he added.

To that end, the city council has formed a special committee for the planning and execution of a disabled-friendly city.

Thanasayan who is also the committee president said: "We will adopt four main strategies which are to upgrade staff expertise on disabled-friendly facilities, implementation of barrier-free city projects in selected locations, renovation programmes for the existing buildings and the monitoring of the social development programs." PJ City Council planning and development unit director Sharipah Marhaini Syed Ali on her part said that presently PJS5, PJS6 and Section 52 are being developed as disabled-friendly areas.

"We would also make Section 13, which is under development, a convenient place for the disabled. Apart from that, all the existing and future developments in Petaling Jaya would strictly go through the Uniform Buildings by-law," she added.
Speaking to about 15 media representatives after the special meeting with 50 local council members yesterday, Sharipah said the council has come up with a specially-designed pamphlet for the convenience of the disabled.

500 printed pamphlets will be distributed to the disabled through the welfare department and the city council.

She added that the pamphlet contains information on barrier-free places in Petaling Jaya such as pedestrian walkaways in section 52, The Curve, Ikea, Ikano Power Centre, and SS2.

our special ones

OUR SPECIAL ONES

23rd - 25th April 2010
Mid Valley Exhibition Centre
Level 3, Hall 3, Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia

OUR SPECIAL ONES will be organized and presented by D’ Organiser (M) Sdn Bhd with one objective to promote an understanding of disability issues and to create public awareness by bringing forward the difficulties encountered by our special ones together bringing in the latest technology of products and aids.

OUR SPECIAL ONES will bring together all with Development Disability (eg. Autism, Down Syndrome), Mobility and Physical Impairments, Spinal Cord Disability, Brain Disability, Vision Disability, Hearing Disability, Cognitive or Learning Disabilities, Mental Disabilities and Psychological Disorders.

OUR SPECIAL ONES will bring in international as well as local exhibitors and associations to showcase their products and services offering practical solutions to aid and improve an independent lifestyle of the disabled.

OUR SPECIAL ONES will also be supported by various Organisations and Governmental Bodies and various sponsors to bring OUR SPECIAL ONES to another level which in return will create OUR SPECIAL ONES to be an annual event.

OUR SPECIAL ONES will be targeted at the general visitors, locally, regionally and internationally. This will be a great unity among our families of Malaysia as 1Malaysia to join hands and allow OUR SPECIAL ONES to appreciate and experience meaning of acceptance and also to help them face different types of barriers from participation in school, adapting to work life as well as social activities.

Our special Ones will be an eye opener for everyone, as the event will be first of its kind and this has never been done within Malaysia or around the region.

“Through education and increased public awareness, we can foster understanding, acceptance and appreciation with autism” Dr. Richard Burton, the Health and Human Services Director

Our Special Thanks for Your Support for

OUR SPECIAL ONES

Present A Paper At Community Hall In Section 3, Taman Medan.

Recently, on 21 March 2010, I had an opportunities to share My personal experience about my life story - A Little Background on my Present Career - a half-day forum on how to be more effective in their roles at at community hall in Section 3, Taman Medan.
This forum organised by Taman Medan assemblywoman Haniza Talha. My intention with present this paper was to reflect on my personal experiences, my family support, how I was motivated and the challenges facing as a disabled person in Malaysia.

Changes for the better

Thursday March 25, 2010

Changes for the better

The needs of the disabled and their caregivers are finally receiving some attention.

TWO events with ramifications for people with disabilities took place last week.

The first happened in a community hall in Section 3, Petaling Jaya, where a group of nearly a hundred – mostly parents and caregivers of the handicapped – attended a half-day forum on how to be more effective in their roles.

It was part of a community-based rehabilitation exercise organised by Taman Medan assemblywoman Haniza Talha.

This workshop was special for several reasons. First, it was targeted at parents and caregivers of disabled persons. The pillar of strength for the disabled, this group has been largely invisible to the public, the media and the Government.

Not enough attention is being given to those who endure hardship in raising a handicapped child. Quite a few have to cope on their own with two or even three disabled family members.

Before the event began, I went around the hall and spoke to some of the parents.
Blind trust: The blind are easy targets for crooks. It is difficult for them to distinguish between a genuine law enforcement officer and a con man.

I was shocked to discover that they had little support or information on how to bring up their disabled kids even though they had access to specialists and lived in a vibrant city like Petaling Jaya.

Clearly those involved in rehabilitation medicine need to change their present method of treatment in hospitals and find an effective way to reach their patients in their own homes, like what is being done in outreach programmes in many countries.

I was especially delighted when I learned that Haniza was planning to set up a support group for poor parents in her constituency so that they could come together and share their resources.

The speakers at the forum were disabled persons with various handicaps.

A tetraplegic shared how he overcame depression and suicidal thoughts after he became handicapped following a road accident.

He spoke about how his mother eventually changed her negative perception when she saw him helping other people in a similar situation.

Another highlight was a presentation by a rehabilitation doctor who showed slides of aids available to the handicapped in Malaysia, in the form of special wheelchairs and shower equipment.

Many of the participants were seeing such things for the first time.

They told me later that they were greatly encouraged by the disabled role models who spoke about their experiences.

Meanwhile, disabled Malaysians who are worried about personal safety will soon have a reason to smile, following a special meeting between representatives of the disabled and the police force.

About 30 people – 10 of whom were top brass from the police force while the rest represented people with disabilities – met at the Jalan Travers police station in Kuala Lumpur last Wednesday.

Arranged by the National Welfare Department, the meeting was a follow-up to the one held in October last year. I wasn’t at the meeting but several physically-disabled activists who were present told me that it was very promising.

The police force was once again briefed on the problems faced by the disabled community in matters related to crime and protection.

These included the difficulty the blind have in distinguishing between a law enforcement officer and a crook pretending to be one.

One disabled woman related how she was robbed in broad daylight at a centre for the disabled, by machete-wielding assailants. She was in a state of shock and called the police, only to be told to “come over to the station to make a report”.

In a recent incident, a middle-aged man in a wheelchair was kicked by an assailant in public. Charges have yet to be filed against the offender.

The issue of wheelchair accessibility was also raised. Those who came in wheelchairs found the ramps in the newly-built police station, to be too steep. They couldn’t wheel themselves up without assistance. The ramp was also partially blocked by a flower pot and a signboard stand.

The lifts had no Braille buttons and no voice activation. The so-called handicapped-friendly toilet had hardly any room for manoeuvring. The grab bars were all fitted wrongly and the toilet did not have sliding doors.

As for the car parks, they were too far from the entrance. Disabled visitors are forced to negotiate oncoming traffic to get to the building which is located across the disabled parking lot.

The police promised to look into the complaints straight away.