Organization calls for redesigning scope of work for people with vision disabilities
Middle East Feb 24, 2014
MUSCAT, OMAN: The Al Noor Association for the Blind has called for redesigning the scope of work for people with vision disabilities at workplaces and has stressed on the need for more job opportunities for them.
Barka al Bakry, the association’s vice president said, ”The number of people with vision disabilities is on the rise and we have to address the problem.
”Not all companies advertising for vacancies specify if the posts are for people with disabilities. Companies do not provide jobs to people with disabilities unless they are coaxed to.”
Barka added, ”It’s high time to allocate more jobs for people with vision disabilities and people who are blind. There are so many things that these people can do.
”The number of people with vision disabilities in the country has gone up. The 2010 Census showed there were 17,000 people with vision disabilities in the country; the number was only 12,000 in the 2003 Census.”
Omran al Rahbi, blind, an executive at a call centre said, ”I have been at this post for the past seven years. The monotony of it discourages me. There has been no promotion or change in my position.”
Talking about accessibility problems at work, he said, ”Accessing facilities is difficult at times. Mobility problems at workplace and lack of transportation are other issues. Since we cannot drive, a family member has to dedicate his or her time to take us around.”
Ali al Amri, also a employee with vision disabilities said, ”Many things are not labelled in Braille. The lift does not have Braille buttons, but the problem was sorted after the company installed a lift with voice recordings.
”I think we need better accessibility. In Oman, we don’t have a training center to support people who are blind for more than a year
Source: Menafn
People with hearing disabilities struggling to access services in Qatar
Middle East Feb 19, 2014
QATAR: Public and private services entities and organizations should provide sign language interpreters at their headquarters for the benefit of people of are deaf or hard of hearing, suggested a member of the Central Municipal Council (CMC).
CMC member Mohamed bin Zafir al-Hajiri argued that people with hearing disabilities are finding great difficulty in getting proper access to various services for example at municipalities, Qatar Airways, Qatar General Electricity and Water Corporation (Kahramaa), banks, and hospitals.
He suggested that special incentives should be given to some of the current employees of these organizations to get training in sign language and become qualified sign interpreters.
“There is no need to recruit new staff. Training some of the existing employees would be enough to ease the life of people with hearing disabilities and provide them with equal access to public and private services,” suggested al-Hajiri.
The council hosted yesterday Ali al-Sinari and Saleh al-Marri, chairman and director general, respectively, of Qatar Social-Cultural Centre for the Deaf, along with Aisha Abdulqadir, an interpreter and expert in sign language, to discuss the issue.
“I am proud of being here among the CMC members and I really appreciate their great services for the society. I am also thankful for your efforts to integrate people who are deaf and people with disability into the society,” said al-Sinari, addressing the council through the interpreter.
He explained the difficulties facing people with hearing disabilities, especially couples, in daily life and in particular in the event of an emergency. He said that such people face immense hardship in obtaining access to higher education, which reduces their chances of getting a good paying job. He urged the council to adopt their cause and promote the spread of sign language in the country.
“It is an easy and international language used for communication with and among people who are deaf. We, at the deaf centre, provide sign language interpreting training courses for three-and-a-half months,” he pointed out.
CMC chairman Saud al-Hinzab approved a suggestion to appoint a sign language interpreter at the council and referred the matter for the services and utilities committee for further study.
CMC vice-chairman Jassim al-Malki, said that Qatar is signatory to all the international agreements that promote the rights of people with disabilities and implemented this in its local laws.
“The government should ensure that such individuals get equal rights and opportunities without any discrimination,” he affirmed.
Source: Gulf Times
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