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A newsletter for
people interested in issues relevant to people from a
NESB with disability and their families and carers.
Produced by the Multicultural Disability Advocacy
Association of NSW (MDAA).
If you have any queries,
questions, comments or any other contributions please
contact us by email (mdaa@mdaa.org.au)
or phone (02) 9891 6400.
NEW at
MDAA
Cultural
Competence Training in rural and regional NSW
We will deliver one day workshops
in rural and remote NSW during 2007 for ngo services
working with people with disability. The towns we will
deliver the training in are:
- Queanbeyan 30 April 2007
- Albury 1 May 2007
- Griffith 2 May 2007
- Coffs Harbour 10 July 2007
- Lismore 11 July 2007
- Bathurst to be confirmed soon
- Dubbo to be confirmed soon
- Broken Hill to be confirmed
soon
The aim of the workshop is to
enhance the cultural competence of people who work with
people with disability, with the expected outcome of
higher quality service delivery to people from
non-English speaking backgrounds with disability and
their carers.
COST: Free & Lunch is
provided
For more information and to
register please go to
http://www.mdaa.org.au/service/industry/country.html
and follow the links.
Housing and
support for people with disability: conference 31 May
Shelter NSW and MDAA are co-hosting
a 1-day conference on housing and support for people with
disability, on 31 May in Sydney. Confirmed speakers
include Chris Glennen, Eddie Bartnick, Trudy Van Dam,
Belinda Epstein-Frisch, Simone Finch, and Joseph
Connellan. The focus is on good news stories and new
directions. Planning is well advanced so for details see
the webpage for this event on the Shelter NSW website.
www.shelternsw.org.au
Disability and
Rights: Free Workshop for Ethnic Community Workers
When:
Wednesday 23 May 2007
from 9:30am - 3:00pm
Where:
40 Albion Street, Harris
Park NSW
This one day training is
specifically designed for community workers who are
working with NESB communities.
In this workshop we will explore:
- What is a disability?
- Are there people with
disability in my community?
- What are the rights of people
with disability?
- What services are available?
This is a free workshop and only
open to a limited number of people. So register by 16th
May 2007:
Call Ather Pervaiz at MDAA on 9891 6400 or email
ather.pervaiz@mdaa.org.au
mdaa cultural
abilities news
Discussion Paper:
Supported
Accommodation Services for people from NESB with
intellectual disability
The Department of Ageing,
Disability and Home Care (DADHC) has asked mdaa cultural
abilities to provide advice on and assist in developing
new, flexible accommodation support models for people
from NESB with intellectual disability.
We know that about 25% of people
with disability aged 0-64 years in NSW (this means one in
every four people or 334,350 people) are from CALD
backgrounds. The 2007 Report by the Productivity
Commission on Government Services identifies that NSW
reported a lower than national average proportion of
CSTDA users born in a non-English speaking country for
accommodation support services. NSW reported 0.2 users
born in a non-English speaking country per 1000 people,
the national average was 0.5.
DADHC is aware of the need to
improve access to its services and has an Action Plan
that aims to improve accessibility to people from CALD
backgrounds. This project is a commitment within that
plan, as well as DADHC’s and the NSW
Governments’ commitments under “Stronger
Together”.
We have already held several focus
groups with parents and people with disability from a
range of ethnic communities and workers, as well as
service providers.
We are now able to release a
discussion paper and we urge you to respond… by 26
April 2007…
By early May we will provide a
report to DADHC based on your feedback and comments, the
comments made at the focus groups and a literature
review. DADHC will then use the information to trial a
supported accommodation service for people from CALD
backgrounds with an intellectual disability in South West
Sydney.
So please read the discussion paper
and respond using one of the response forms provided.
www.mdaa.org.au/supported-accommodation.html
mdaa cultural
abilities to deliver cultural diversity training in
Queensland
We were successful in our tender to
deliver cultural diversity training to NGO disability
services throughout Queensland in 2007 and 2008. As part
of the Queensland Government’s “Strengthening
Non-Government Organisations” program, we will be
delivering the Nationally Recognised Training package
‘Working effectively with culturally diverse clients
and co-workers (CHCCS 405 A)”. More information
about how to register and where and when the training
will be held will be available soon.
NSW News
NEW NSW
Government
Following the Election on 24 March
the new Ministers of the New Iemma Government were sworn
in on 2 April.
Some of the more relevant
Portfolios for us are:
Minister for Disabilities, Minister
for Ageing: Kristina Keneally; Minister for Housing: Matt
Brown; Minister for Education: John Della Bosca; Minister
for Health: Reba Meagher; Minister Assisting the Minister
for Health (Mental Health): Paul Lynch; Minister for
Community Services: Kevin Greene; Minister Assisting the
Premier on Citizenship: Graham West; Attorney General:
John Hatzistergos; Minister for Police: David Campbell;
Minister for Planning: Frank Sartor; Minister for Fair
Trading: Linda Burney
Commonwealth
News
Commonwealth/ State and
Territories Disability Agreement (CSTDA) talks can’t
even get started
Mal Brough the Commonwealth
Minister responsible for disability services said in his
press release this week:
“The Australian
Government today offered the states and territories a
new deal to help people with disabilities, at a
meeting of Commonwealth, State and Territory
disability ministers. Minister for Families, Community
Services and Indigenous Affairs, Mal Brough, said he
had invited the states and territories to evaluate
their unmet need and submit the results to the
Commonwealth for consideration of a plan to address
this need on a dollar-for-dollar funding basis.
Unfortunately, the states and territories caucused and
returned to the meeting with a written rejection of
the proposal and then closed the meeting,"
Of the same meeting the Queensland
Disability Services Minister Warren Pitt, who chaired the
meeting, said in his press release:
“State and territory
disability services ministers have expressed their
deep concern and disappointment with the Commonwealth
Government’s high-handed approach to negotiations
for a new five-year funding agreement. He said he was
surprised and angered by the Commonwealth’s
threat to abandon the collective CSTDA process and
instead deal with the states and territories
individually. Speaking on behalf of all state and
territory ministers, Mr Pitt said Mr Brough’s
attempt to splinter the states and territories was
ill-conceived and arrogant.”
MDAA also received a letter today
from the then NSW Minister for Disability John Della
Bosca stating that “ Five years ago the Commonwealth
contributed 20 per cent of disability funding and NSW
provided 80 per cent. Since that time, NSW has increased
its support to 84 per cent, while the Commonwealth’s
contribution has dropped to 16. As these CSTDA
negotiations begin, the Commonwealth has proposed an
agreement that would reduce the Commonwealth contribution
to just 8 per cent by 2010/11.”
And just in case anyone is doubting
that we are in an Election Year, a reminder by the Human
Rights Commissioner and Commissioner responsible for
Disability Discrimination, Graeme Innes:
Commissioner
Innes warns - Every vote counts
With a federal election expected
later this year, politicians are focussing on making
every vote count. In view of this, federal Disability
Discrimination Commissioner Graeme Innes AM reminds
politicians that they must recognise the needs of all
members of their electorate.
"I remind all politicians - and
those aspiring to be politicians – of the need to
consider the votes of the four million Australians with
disabilities - 20 per cent of your voters," Commissioner
Innes said.
Commissioner Innes has proposed a
five point checklist for politicians to consider:
- Is your electoral office
clearly sign-posted and is there a level entrance
without steps?
- Do you have sign language
interpreters, hearing loops and wheelchair access at
all your public events?
- Is your website accessible to
people using voice or Braille reading software rather
than a screen?
- Are the newsletters or other
material you circulate available on request in
alternate formats such as large print or
Braille?
- Have you included disability
issues as part of your policy platform?
"If you can answer ‘yes’
to all of these questions, then you are on the way to
better meeting the needs of voters with disabilities;
people who could just make up those extra votes to get
you over the line," Commissioner Innes said. "Successful
politicians will be the ones who communicate and consider
the needs of all of us, not just those who can hear, see
or walk up steps."
Worldview
Convention
on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities
The Convention on the
Rights of Persons with Disabilities was adopted on 13
December 2006 during the sixty-first session of the
General Assembly, by resolution 61/106. In accordance
with its article 42, the Convention opened for signature
by all States and by regional integration organizations
at United Nations Headquarters in New York, as of Friday,
30 March 2007.
The Minister for Foreign
Affairs, the Attorney General, and the Minister for
Families, Community Services and Indigenous Affairs have
announced that Australia has signed at the formal
ceremony opening the Convention for signature on 30 March
2007 at the UN Headquarters in New York. Australia’s
Attorney-General emphasised the importance of this
initiative. "The significance of the Convention is
reflected in the fact that it is the first comprehensive
human rights convention of the 21st century. It is the
first multilateral treaty focussed on the rights of
people with disability, and has the potential to protect
the rights of 650 million people with disability
worldwide. The signing of this Convention reinforces
Australia's long standing commitment to eliminate, as far
as possible, discrimination against people with
disability," Mr Ruddock said.
The first country to
ratify the Convention was Jamaica. Countries who have
signed up so far: Algeria, Antigua and Barbuda,
Argentina, Armenia, Australia, Austria, Belgium, Brazil,
Canada, Cape Verde, Chile ,China, Colombia, Congo ,Costa
Rica, Croatia , Cyprus, Czech Republic ,Denmark ,
Dominica ,Dominican Republic ,Ecuador , El Salvador ,
Ethiopia , Finland , France, Gabon , Germany , Ghana ,
Greece , Guatemala, Honduras, Hungary , Iceland , India
Indonesia, Ireland, Israel , Italy , Jamaica , Jordan ,
Kenya ,Liberia , Lithuania , Luxembourg , Malta , Mexico,
Moldova, Morocco, Mozambique, Netherlands, New Zealand,
Nicaragua, Niger, Nigeria, Norway , Panama, Paraguay
,Peru , Poland , Portugal, Republic of Korea, San Marino
, Seychelles , Sierra Leone, Slovenia, South Africa ,
Spain , Sri Lanka , Sudan, Suriname, Sweden, Syrian Arab
Republic, Thailand , The former Yugoslav Republic of
Macedonia, Tunisia , Turkey , Uganda, United Kingdom of
Great Britain and Northern Ireland , United Republic of
Tanzania, Yemen, European Community.
One of the countries that
has not signed the convention is the United States of
America.
_______________________________________
Barbel Winter
Executive Director
Multicultural Disability Advocacy Association of NSW
PO BOX 9381
Harris Park, NSW 2150
Australia
ph: + 61 (0)2 9891 6400
www.mdaa.org.au
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