Report on Asia-Pacific Regional Workshop on Hard of Hearing and Deafened 29 February - 2 March 2012 APCD Training Building, Bangkok, Thailand Organized by Danishkadah Center for Research and Education of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (CED) Asia-Pacific Development Center on Disability (APCD) Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA) Printed by Asia-Pacific Development Center on Disability 255 Rajvithi Rd., Rajthevi, Bangkok 10400 Thailand Tel: +66(0)2 354-7505 Fax: +66 (0)2 354-7507 Email: info@apcdfoundation.org Website: www.apcdfoundation.org Content 1. APFHD in Brief 2. Summary Report 3. Program 4. Participants & Resource Persons 5. APFHD Executive Committee 6. Bangkok Recommendations on Hard of Hearing and Deafened in Asia and the Pacific 7. Country Profile to go to next content search ## ## 1. APFHD in Brief The Asia-Pacific Federation of the Hard of Hearing and Deafened (APFHD) people is a regional network of formal and non-formal organizations of hard of hearing and deafened people in Asia and Pacific (AP) region. APFHD provides a platform to unite voices of millions of people who are hard of hearing (HOH) and deafened, raise awareness and protect their rights in Asia and Pacific region. APFHD Founded on March 2, 2012 at Bangkok Thailand by a group of representatives who are hard of hearing and deafened from Bangladesh, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, the Philippines, Papua New Guinea, and Vietnam. Vision An inclusive society where rights and interest of persons who are hard of hearing and deafened in Asia-Pacific are ensured Mission To serve as the independent network for issues relating to hard of hearing and deafened in the Asia-Pacific region Objectives 1) empower persons who are hard of hearing and deafened in the Asia-Pacific region for their independent life with confidence; 2) support a formation and development of local self-help groups (SHGs) and self-help organizations (SHOs) in line with the vision and mission of APFHD; 3) facilitate and promote sub-regional and regional cooperation, and exchange information and knowledge among members of APFHD for effective networking locally and regionally; 4) collaborate with grassroots disabled People’s organizations (DPOs) and other Non-governmental Organizations (NGOs), local and national governments, regional and international organizations, the United Nations agencies and other stakeholders to mainstream hard of hearing and deafened perspectives in the movement on disability and development; 5) facilitate scientific data collection on persons who are hard of hearing and deafened in Asia and the Pacific; 6) assist technology development, including assistive technologies, accessible information and communication technologies; and 7) promote accessible environment for persons who are hard of hearing and deafened at educational institutions and workplaces in the Asia-Pacific region. ## 2. SUMMARY REPORT For the first time in the history, the “Asia-Pacific Regional Workshop on Hard of Hearing and Deafened” was organized jointly by Danishkadah (Pakistan), Center for Research and Education of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (CED) (Vietnam), Asia-Pacific Development Center on Disability (APCD) and Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), at APCD Training Building from 29 February to 2 March 2012. The aim of this workshop was to facilitate persons who are hard of hearing and deafened in Asia and the Pacific to found their own regional platform, with which can unite voices of millions of persons who are hard of hearing (HOH) and deafened, raise awareness and protect their rights in the Asia-Pacific region. During the three-day workshop, participants who are hard of hearing and deafened from Bangladesh, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, the Philippines, Papua New Guinea, and Vietnam successfully founded the first ever regional network in Asia-Pacific named “Asia-Pacific Federation of Hard of Hearing and Deafened (APFHD)”. The Workshop was conducted according to the following. Day 1 Exchanging information through the country reports on hard of hearing and deafened. Making group discussions according to SWOT. Sharing information and knowledge on assistive technology including speech to text. Day 2 Developing the Constitution and action plan. Day 3 Electing the Executive Committee members Confirming the logo Adopting the Bangkok Recommendations on Hard of Hearing and Deafened in Asia and the Pacific ## 3. Program Day 1: 29 February (Wed) 2012 Starting our New Journey 08:30-09:00 Registration 09:00-10:15 Opening Ceremony -Welcome Address by JICA -Opening Remark by APCD -Introduction of Participants by CED -Objective of the Workshop by DK -Group Photo In-charge: Mr. Bkom, Mr. Sano 10:15-10:30 Tea break and Knowing Neighbors 10:30-12:00 Presentation - Situation of HOH / Deafened in your country Bangladesh, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nepal 12:00-13:00 Lunch 13:00-14:30 Presentation (continued) -Situation of HOH / Deafened in your country Pakistan, Philippines, PNG, Thailand, Vietnam -Situation of HOH / Deafened in Japan by Mr. Seya (JICA short-term expert) In-charge: Mr. Akram 14:30-14:45 Tea break Why Regional Network? 14:45-15:15Brainstorm -Strength, Weakness, Opportunity, and Threat (SWOT) 15:15-16:15 Open Discussion -SWOT -Sustainability of regional platform In-charge: Ms. Hanh 16:15-17:00 Brainstorm -Assistive technologies In-charge:Mr. Akram and Mr. Seya Day 2: 1 March (Thu) 2012 Developing the Constitution 09:00-09:05 Recap -Program of the day In-charge: One of the participants 09:05-10:30 Constitution -Approval of Draft Constitution (including name, logo, etc) -Approval of Focal Point / Secretariat -Formation of Election Committee -Election of Officers In-charge: Mr. Akram, Mr. Seya, Mr. Ghulam 10:30 10:45 Tea break 10:45-12:00 Constitution (continued) -Approval of Draft Constitution (including name, logo, etc) -Approval of Focal Point / Secretariat -Formation of Election Committee -Election of Officers In-charge: Mr. Akram, Mr. Seya, Mr. Ghulam 12:00-13:00Lunch Making Action Plan 13:00-14:30 Facilitation -Where we are heading in next 2 years? -Future plan 2012 - 2013 In-charge: Mr. Maheshwar, Mr. Seya, and Mr. Ghulam 14:30-14:45 Tea break 14:45-16:30 Facilitation (continued) -Where we are heading in next 2 years? -Future plan 2012 - 2013 In-charge: Mr. Maheshwar, Mr. Seya, and Mr. Ghulam Day 3: 2 March (Fri) 2012 Regional Networking & Collaboration 09:00-09:05 Recap In-charge: One of the participants -Program of the day 09:05 - 09:45 Presentation In-charge: Mr. Ghulam -Implementation of UNCRPD in the Asia-Pacific region in partnership with APCD and its affiliated DPOs 09:45 - 10:30 Exercise In-charge: Mr. Bkom -Social Media In-charge: Mr. Akram 10:30 - 10:45 Tea break The Way Forward 10:45 - 11:15 Adaptation In-charge: APFHD -Constitution -Action Plan -Bangkok Recommendation 11:15 - 12:00 Closing In-charge: Mr. Bkom -Message from Delegates’ Representative In-charge: Mr. Sano -Guest Comment -Achievement by <> -Closing Message by JICA - Closing Remarks by APCD -Group Photo 12:00 - 13:00 Lunch ## 4. participants & Resource persons Participants Bangladesh Mr. Mohammad Ishaque Mia, Bangladesh Hard of Hearing Association Mr. Mohammad Sharafat Ali, Centre for Disability in Development Indonesia Ms. Rachmita Maun Harahap, Sehjira Deaf Foundation Ms. Angkie Yudistia, Sehjira Deaf Foundation Lao PDR Ms. Soutalynorasing Sisane, Lao Disabled People’s Association Mongolia Ms. Tuya Mijiddorj, Enerel-Peace Association of the Deaf Ms. Dolgorsuren Tumurbars, Union Supporting Training Deaf Children and Youth Myanmar Mr. Kyaw Kyaw, Myanmar Deaf Community Development Association Mr. Naing Linn, Myanmar Deaf Community Development Association Ms. Pa Pa Wadi, Myanmar Professional Social Workers Association Nepal Mr. Maheshwar Ghimire, Association of Hard of Hearing and Deafened in Nepal Ms. Nita Bhattrai, Association of Hard of Hearing and Deafened in Nepal Pakistan Mr. Muhammad Akram, Danishkadah Mr. Jawad Ahmed, STEP Philippines Ms. Ma. Filomena C. Gaya, Filipino Deaf Women’s Health and Crisis Center, Inc. Ms. Laurie Magbanua, Filipino Deaf Women’s Health and Crisis Center, Inc. Papua New Guinea Ms. Victoria Diresa Avei, National Advisory Committee on Disability Thailand Mr. Yongyut Borisut, National Associational of Deaf in Thailand Mr. Witthayut Bunnag, National Associational of Deaf in Thailand Mr. Roong-Arun Wongkaewmul, National Associational of Deaf in Thailand Vietnam Ms. Hanh Duong Phuong, Center for Research and Education of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing Ms. Nhan Nguyen Thi, Center for Research and Education of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing Resource Persons Japan Mr. Seya Kazuhiko, Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA Short-term Expert) Pakistan Mr. Ghulam Nabi Nizamani, APCD Empowerment Café Chief Barista ## 5. APFHD Executive Committee President Ms. Hanh Duong Phuong, Vietnam Vice President Ms. Victoria Diresa Avei, Papua New Guinea Ms. Rachmita Maun Harahap, Indonesia Secretary General Mr. Muhammad Akram, Pakistan Treasurer Mr. Maheshwar Ghimire, Nepal ## 6. Bangkok Recommendations on Hard of Hearing and Deafened in Asia and the Pacific Bangkok Recommendations on Hard of Hearing and Deafened in Asia and the Pacific The representatives who are hard of hearing and deafened from Bangladesh, Indonesia, Lao PDR, Mongolia, Myanmar, Nepal, Pakistan, the Philippines, Papua New Guinea, Thailand, and Vietnam in Asia and the Pacific, in total 24 persons, participated in the Asia-Pacific Regional Workshop on Hard of Hearing and Deafened from 29 February to 2 March, 2012 in Bangkok, Thailand. We, the participants in the Workshop, thank the organizers, Danishkadah of Pakistan, Center for Research and Education of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (CED) of Vietnam, the Asia-Pacific Development Center on Disability (APCD) and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA), for supporting an idea of this new initiative by persons who are hard of hearing and deafened in the Asia-Pacific region, as well as successful arrangements of the Workshop; Appreciating the efforts by people concerning disability including governments in Asia and the Pacific in enhancing the quality of life of persons with disabilities and their families; Also appreciating the efforts by governments in Asia and the Pacific to accelerate the ratification and implementation of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD); Observing that self-help organizations of persons with disabilities have played an active role in making our society more inclusive in the Asian and Pacific Decade of Disabled Persons, 2003-2012; Acknowledging that such regional networks as the Community-based Rehabilitation (CBR) Asia-Pacific Network, ASEAN Autism Network (AAN) and South Asian Disability Forum (SADF) have great impacts for the empowerment of persons with disabilities at the community, national and international level; Recognizing that APCD has been playing a major role to facilitate and strengthen the movement on disability and development in the Asia-Pacific region, in partnership with the United Nations Economic and Social Commission for Asia and the Pacific (ESCAP), JICA and other partners; Supporting the proposed new “Asian and Pacific Decade of Persons with Disabilities, 2013-2022” by the United Nations ESCAP to mainstream disability in the development agenda; Mindful that, despite the above significant achievements, there still remains challenges to be addressed for the realization of the rights of persons who are hard of hearing and deafened in the Asia-Pacific region. These challenges include a lack of recognition of persons who are hard of hearing and deafened according to specific needs in their daily life; lack of access to information and communication including assistive devices for persons who are hard of hearing and deafened; less number of leaders who are hard of hearing and deafened in each community; no strong movement to set up self-help groups of persons who are hard of hearing and deafened in each country; Noting that there is a clear consensus to support the establishment of a regional platform for persons who are hard of hearing and deafened in the Asia-Pacific region; Hereby unanimously recommend as follows: 1. An emphasis should be given to persons who are hard of hearing and deafened to enhance their recognition, taking into account different views on hearing impairment; 2. The newly established “Asia-Pacific Federation of the Hard of Hearing and Deafened (APFHD)” should be the key platform to promote the hard of hearing and deafened movement regionally in collaboration with APCD; 3. Hearing aids and other assistive devices should be provided in an affordable manner according to the basic needs of persons who are hard of hearing and deafened, regardless of the development stage of each country; 4. Further consideration should be given to information and communication accessibility including speech to text, Communication Access Real Time Translation (CART); 5. A sufficient system for data collection on hard of hearing and deafened should be developed and well managed at the country level in Asia and the Pacific; and 6. Attention should be paid to persons who are hard of hearing and deafened in the proposed new Asian and Pacific Decade of Persons with Disabilities, 2013-2022, to address the specific perspective on hard of hearing and deafened. 7. Importance should be given to the formation and development of groups and organization of persons who are hard of hearing and deafened in countries where there is no such groups and organizations. Presented and unanimously adopted at the Asia-Pacific Regional Workshop on Hard of Hearing and Deafened, 2 March, 2012 ## 7. Country Profile (powerpoint presentations) Bangladesh Hard of Hearing Association Bangladesh? Where is it? [image of world map located bangladesh] Something about Bangladesh Our National Flower: water lily [image of water lily] Our National Parliament [image of a building] Our National animal: The Royal Bengal Tiger [image of a bengal tiger] Bangladesh is like this: [images of a open field, house near liver, village, people on the train] Bangladesh: some information Size: 147,570 sq. km Population: around 160 Million Population density: 976 persons per sq. km Present situation of Hard of Hearing People in Bangladesh -Hard of Hearing People are less likely to be unemployed -Hard of Hearing People reported poorer well-being -Attitudes regarding the rights of Hard of Hearing people are generally negative. -Less Participation -No specific education material for hard of hearing student in School -Sign language is not accepted officially -No special school for Hard of Hearing en -No organization working in Bangladesh for Hard of Hearing people. -No employment support or services Informations are not accessible specially at workplace, transport, market or media. What we need -Strong organization -Participation -Inclusive Education system -Accessibility into all types of information -Human rights -Uphold dignity of Hard of hearing people -Equal everything Thank you everyone Indonesia MY PROFILE: Ms. Rachmita MH, Staff of Mercu Buana University, begin my working from June 2000 to present Who also lectures at my almamater, Mercu Buana University, where my graduated cum laude. MY WORKING AT MERCU BUANA UNIVERSITY I lecture on Interior Design on Tuesday through Friday and I spend Saturday, variety my activity i.e : student coursework at the furniture workshop furniture entrepreneurship training for students furniture training for community service Mercu Buana cooperation with Sehjira Deaf foundation a variety of training activities (Furniture, Sablon, Psikolog etc) MY WORKING AT MERCU BUANA UNIVERSITY ACTIVITY OF MERCU BUANA UNIVERSITY COOPERATION WITH SEHJIRA COUNTRY REPORT DEAF/HoH in INDONESIA Ms. Rachmita M.Harahap (Deaf) Ms. Angkie Yudistia (HoH) Fact: People with Disabilities (PwD) are now still struggling with different forms of discriminations in Indonesia, not to mentioned reality their struggle to fulfill their basic needs. i.e: Rejection to obtain education in normal public schools Lack of PwD friendly public facilities (not accesible) Deaf people can’t access information due to communication barriers Lack of employment opportunities etc Strategies to overcome barriers by Sehjira Deaf Foundation Indonesia Capacity Building for Sehjira’s members : active participation in Training, internal sharing and meeting, conducted training for its member. DET Training Internal Sharing Knowledge Sharing Handycraft Training We need an effective and efficient campaign to promote the rights of PwDs, in line with the CRPD. In order for this campaign to be successful, then people with disabilities themselves must participate actively as Agents of Social Change. But in order to do that, firstly and more importantly we have to enhance our knowledge and capacity. The Sehjira Deaf Foundation as the disability people organization for the deaf persons since its inception has been active in advocating of the CRPD. Discussion at Sehjira’s Office Establishing a shared understanding among the stakeholders Since 2010, the Sehjira actively involved as an associate member of Asia Pacific Development Center on Disability (APCD). Through APCD’s training we gained more skill and knowledge on how to plan, implement, evaluate a Community Based Rehabilitation (CBR) program. Other valuable outcomes from the training were networking and paradigm on disability related issue (Medical and Social Model). Medical model sees that disability is the problem of person with disability themselves. On the contrary, social model sees disability as social problem. It becomes a social problem because it is related to accessibility. Therefore, we must use Social Model as our paradigm. Sehjira members in APCD WBN, SHG & CBR Training Social participation : Mainstreaming disability into human rights movement Rationalization Women with disability have the same rights as other women -> joint women networking. Young people with disability-> build networking with other youth organization People with disabilities-> have the same rights as other people. After APCD trainings, we base our movement in social model in order to mainstreaming disability movement to others social movement, we implement this paradigm by having a good and mutual collaboration, networking and partnership with other DPOs, NGOs, Government, Civil Society Organization, National Commision of Human Rights, charity foundations such as Rotaract, volunteer organizations such as Gempita, Women Journal, ILO, National Commission on Violence Against Women, etc. Sehjira in a National Commission on Violence Againts Women Meeting Sehjira contribute article to woman journal on reproductive health issue.  Young people are the voice of our futures Explore the possibility to involving young people (with or without disability) in Sehjira’s activities By having a good collaboration with youth organization we gained more knowledge, skill and networking Impact From networking via APCD we got funding from Disability Rights Fund to conduct series of campaign in CRPD related issue. Through networking with youth organization, in July 2011, in collaboration with International Labor Organization (ILO), Indonesian Ministry of Manpower, Ausaid Sehjira act as event organizer of a National Congress which aim to enforce law especially related to work place policy for person with disability. DRF Meeting National Congress of ILO Through networking with DPOs we got opportunity to seize our network with other human rights organization Through Conducted several activities for young person with disability, some of our prior participants have become aware of their rights and want to enroll into public schools and also participate in international event Sehjira’s member became Runner up 2 of Miss Deaf World 2011 Contest. Lauching Book for Angkie Yudistia about “Perempuan Menembus Batas” Dec 2011 The Sehjira is also involve as a partner with state owned telecommunications company for developing sign language teaching software. This software will allow anyone to learn sign language easily, so communication barriers between deaf people and non deaf people can be reduce.   Several Sehjira’s Activities in Pictures President of Sehjira as Speaker about Disability Awareness Deaf And Mute for Third Country Training Program  in BBRVD Cibinong – Jakarta, 2010 Challenges and Difficulties: We still face challenges from those people who still considers People with Disabilities as a burden. We also face difficulties to enhance members capacity to manage our programs efficiently and effectively. Therefore we still need volunteers to assist us in implementing the program CBR Based Strategies Our strategies in advocating CRPD in Indonesia, especially for the deaf persons: Capacity building for our organization members in order to get better skills and knowledge for advocating CRPD dan support to CRPD ratification effort. Create several programs for empowering the deaf persons to create awareness and understanding that as people with disability they have rights to equal opportunity in the society, such as Disability Equality Training, self reliant trainings, public hearings, create ambience media for disability rights advocate and so on.   Networking and Partnerships with other organizations (Disabled or non disabled NGO). This approach is a very crucial factor in ensuring sustainability of our programs. For example, we are actively involved in human rights organization for women so that our partner acknowledges the existence of women with disability in the society. The Sehjira have been actively involved in various assessments regarding accessibility access in partnership and networking with other DPOs, human rights organizations and government. Therefore, in order to mainstreaming disability rights to human rights movement in Indonesia, we need to having a good collaboration and networking with other organization. Thank You Lao Country Report Ms. Soutalynorsing SISANE General Situation Lao is a country and located in southeastern Asia, border with Thailand, Vietnam, China, Myanmar, and Cambodia. Laos have population about 6 million, and have 18 province. There have a lot disabilities people in Laos such as: Hearing, Eyes, Leg, Arm and other… Especial Deaf and Hard of Hearing disabilities people have lot of difficult more then other disable. Government support Laos is developing country, The government solve problem most urgent that are: Education Traffic Health Communication Poverty Economy And other... So Government have only help in the policy to disabled. They don't support for Disabilities people. The Statistics Laos had receive fund and helping from each project such as: JICA, Association And Rehabilitation (AAR) Japan, Cooperation Orthotic and prosthetic Enterprise (COPE), and other… gave hearing aid, eye glasses, build the especial school, In the 1998 – 2008 Laos had receive a project came helping : Rehabilitation and Education of Deaf and HOH project. According audiology unit inspect when Rehabilitation and Education of Deaf and HOH project was acting in the project had only 5 province, but can’t research all district and only children. 5 province research of Audiology unit Total : 29.328 people HOH: 355 People Clean ear: 4041 People Infection ear: 344 people Threats Can’t research information about HOH or Deaf everywhere. Fund not enough The countryside far away. HOH people look like normal people Disabilities people who loss hearing are very shy and disclose Don’t accept in Disable. Lao still is developing country HOH Lao want Support Hearing aids Speech Therapy (lip reading) school Audiology test Accept from social Equal right Group helping (Association) And other... Thank you Mongolia Mongolia country report Mongolia country report statistics Total population 2754685. Nationwide , there are 108.1 thousand persons with disability , which represents 4.1 percent of the total population.About 34.0 percent of persons with disability have congenital disabilities , and 66.0 percent have acquired disability. Mongolia country report Definition Medical definition : Hard hearing and hearing impaired Social definition : Hard of hearing is a person who listen high voice and in deaf community those people who can speak and write well but cannot listen or have difficulty in listening called "half deaf" Mongolia country report Assistive Listening Hearing aids : Some private clinic provides lately digital hearing aids and it’s available for those who need it. But not in rural area Speech Therapy : Mongolian therapists are educated in Hungary and Poland. They are working in the special deaf 29th secondary school and State clinic. This field is growing in Mongolia lately Loop system: But it’s still new and there are many people who don’t aware about loop system. Audiology test : In State clinics audiology test is free and available. Not available in rural area. Mongolia country report Assistive Listening Cochlear Implant (CI): Two years old girl and forty years old man who lost his hearing due to accident were getting CI in two years ago. Also they were working with therapist. I heard girl is still making progress. Government do not provide any support for cochlear implant Mongolia country report Speech to Text /Captioning Speech to Text / Cart : It through internet and I’m sure many people can use here soon if we will advertise about those communication accessible devices. Captioning : National television broadcasts its news program with sign language interpreter but there is still no subtitle. It’s inconvenient for some of late deafened people since they don’t know or not accustomed by sign language. There is no such thing unless sometimes private channels offer some programs with subtitle due to its sponsor . Mongolia country report Government support for hearing aids but it was criticized by users because it has poor quality and couldn’t meet their demand. Some clinic provides it due to negotiation with welfare and labor center. Early dedication : Some non state clinics work for indentifying deafness in new born babies but is an expensive test Mongolia country report Government support Education: Free education available in government special school but not rural area.These are only special school in Mongolia and do not offer any accommodation to HOH and deafened students Employment: State is paying attention for the employment of the disabilities and the legal environment is improved in the certain level , however we don’t see any obious change on the matter.It shows there is a need to make survey disability issues and needs assessment.Implementing process of the law is unclear , responsibility mechanism is weak , the job environment for deaf and hard hearing is not satisfactory.Also bank and financing organization refuse to give loan because of their disabilities.so not implemented in private sector. Mongolia country report Self-Help Organization HOH Organization : There is one with name "Mongolian Assiocation of Deaf.NGO development is one right of community. THANK YOU FOR YOUR CONSIDERATION. Hard of hearing and deafened in Nepal Organisation name SHRUTI (Association of hard of hearing and deafened –Nepal) Presented by: Neeta keshary Bhattrai Nepal Name: Federal Democratic Republic of Nepal Capital: Kathmandu Major religions: Hindu (80%), Buddhist (10%), others (10%). Area: 147,181 sq Km Population: 30 million (estmated 2012) GDP growth: 3.5% GDP: 1,300 US$ (PPP) Organisation SHRUTI (Association of hard of hearing and deafened –Nepal) Members of the SHRUTI 7 committee members 4 of them are hard of hearing and 3 are deafened. President – Mr. Maheshwor Ghimire(H) Vice-President- Ms.Laxmi Devekota(D) General Secretary- Ms. Neeta Keshary Bhattarai(H) Treasure- Ms. Pramila Pathak(H) Members- Ms. Rukmita Budhathoki(D) Members- Ms.Gareema Bhattarai(D) Members- Ms.Sonu Shrestha(H) Activities run by Shruti Employment to both Deaf and Hard of hearing people 20 deaf and hard of hearing people got employment Working together with various organisation,NGOs, in field of hearing disabilities Interacting with hearing community to learn sign language. Trainings Basic computers trainings to both deaf and hard of hearing people. Graphic computer design trainings Siyastu accupressure massage Photography trainings Interpreter trainings Sign language trainings for hard of hearing people and hearing person. Underjob training in Annapurna Neurology Hospital Practising to give training without interpreter Interaction and awareness Interacting with family members of hearing disabilities people Counselling with them in legal, education and vocational trainnings Encourasing them to use their speaking ability Prevelance of disability 3 million people with disability (estimated; the recent 2011 census data is under processing and we will know the exat data) Estimated 1 to 1.2 million have hearing disability Definition of hearing disability in Nepali act ... Deaf means who can hear only upto 80 db and can speak clearly or not and uses sign language as their communication is referred as deaf. People who can hear 60 to 80 db and people who cannot hear clearly and can speak clearly and uses hearing aid to hear is referred as hard of hearing in our country Issues of Hard of hearing Hard of hearing accepted themselves as deaf and would like to mingle with deaf community Hard of hearing do not have separate identity They prefered not to use their speaking ability to blend with deaf community Both deaf and hard of hearing lossing their speaking ability Facilities needed hard of hearing people in Nepal Speech therapy to all hearing disabilities like deaf, hard of hearing and deafened people Audiogram testing to all of hearing disable people Need of loop system, CART, and speech to text Captioning and subtitles in television broadcast and news. Other needs Awareness raising about hard of hearing people’s basic needs Pakistan Country Report Islamic Republic of Pakistan Total Population 178816117 2.49% PWDS (Census 1998) http://www.census.gov.pk/search.php 15% PWD (WHO reported) 40% Physical, 20% Visual, 10% hearing, 20% Intellectual and 10% others Medical definition : Hearing Impaired Social definition Hard of hearing is a person who listen high voice. And in Deaf community those people who can speak but cannot listen or have difficulty in listening called "half deaf" Hearing aids: available easily in Urban but not in rural area. But not affordable for majority. Speech Therapy: is expensive, fewer speech therapist available. But this field is growing now. Loop system: some people know, FM loop available, but very expensive. No concept of loop system in any event. Audiology test: available in urban and free at few government hospital. Not available in rural. Cochlear Implant (CI): Use of CI is growing but very expensive and not affordable for majority. Government do not provide any support Speech to Text / CART: No such service available, and hardly anyone know about it. Captioning: There is some awareness on captioning. But no TV channels provide captioning. Only DVD movies has captioning / subtitle. Support for hearing aids but difficult process, not all applicant get response. Audiology test at some government hospital is free. But not in whole Pakistan Early dedication: Oto Acoustic Emission Test (OAE) is performed for new born babies in some hospitals but is an expensive test Education: Free education available in government special school. These are very few, main stream school do not offer any accommodation to HOH and deafened students. Employment: 2% quota is available but not implemented in private sector. Some corporate companies offer jobs for PWDs. Such as one KFC outlet run by Deaf people. SHO, NGO development is one right of community. Law not difficult but related department staff make registration much difficult just to get bribe. HOH organization: There is one with name of “Pakistan Association of Hard of Hearing”, but as far as we observe they use and promote Sign Language, same as other Deaf organization. So there is none who can raise voice for Hard of Hearing and Deafened. Thank you Islamic Republic of Pakistan Philippine Philippine Association of People with Hearing Loss (PAPHL) Ma. Filomena C. Gaya (Hard of Hearing) Fannie Mary Laurie F. Magbanua (Deafened) Republic of the Philippines (RP) is located in in South-eastern Asia, archipelago between the Philippine Sea and the South China Sea, east of Vietnam.  An archipelago comprising 7,107 islands, eighty one (81) provinces and 138 cities. Its capital city is Manila. Disability Statistics PWD's comprised 1.23% of the total population (942 thousand) (Source: www.census.gov.ph, released March 2005) graph image: hard of hearing: 4.75%, partial deafness: 4.35%, total deafness 3.81% Questions Assistive Listening Does hearing aids widely available in your country? Yes it is available in Metros (Metro Manila, Metro Cebu, Metro Davao) and other key cities in the country Does hearing aids affordable for majorities of the families of persons with hearing loss? Hearing devices comes with a price, it’s a kind of purchase one needs to set aside budget for. In the Philippines, a person can ask help/assistance financially to agencies like PCSO (Philippine Charity and Sweepstakes Office). Of course such agencies has guidelines/and requirements before doling out. (PCSO Individual Medical Assistance Program) Does speech therapy service widely available in your country Does the speech therapy cost affordable for majorities of the families of persons with hearing loss? It is available in manila, and in some metro in the Philippines and some province like Palawan. Cost of speech therapy ranges from Php 450-800 (around $10-18) per session. This will cost a worker with a minimum pay, a day’s work or two. Do you aware about loop system, FM loop as one of the assistive technology for people with hearing ? Yes, we are aware. "My implant comes with a loop ALD, but I have tried it on for personal audio device only." (LFM) Does loopy system, or personal FM loop available in your country? No. Does Audiology test is widely available and affordable in your country? It is widely available in Manila and in some key cities like Puerto Princesa City in Palawan. Its price ranges from Php 300-500 (around $7-11) for Pure Tone Audiometry. Price vary further depending on the test, the critical the test, the higher the price. Do you know about Cochlear Implant (CI)? Yes, we are aware of cochlear implant. The presenter (LFM) is on Auditory Brainstem Implant (ABI), a kind of CI. How many people get CI in your country? There are children and adults who had CI in the Philippines but there is no data on what the exact number. Cochlear Implant is expensive device including the operation, does government or charity organization offer some support for CI in your country? There are hospitals that cover charity patients, basically it covers hospital stay and doctor’s fee but I don’t think it covers cochlear implantation. Do you aware any speech to text service in your country? No. Do you aware CART (Communication Access Real-time Translation) , Speech-to-text Reporting (STT), Palantype as an assistive technology to make the communication accessible for those who prefer speech to text for communication. We have read about it, but haven’t seen one/use one in person. caption: Do you aware about Captioning and subtitle ? yes Do your national television and other televisions broadcast news and other programs with captions? Not really speech-to-text but news is provided by some sort of “summary” that flashes on the TV screen for every news bits. Does film developer add captions in their movies in DVD, cinemas, or television channels? Movies in DVD format are also available in the country, captions comes in English, sometimes there are Tagalog also. A cable channel, (Star Movies) airs some movies with English captions. Captions in cinemas are not available. Do you aware any policy / law in your country that force television and film companies to add caption in products? No idea. Does you government offer hearing aids free or at subsidiary Through PCSO, the government provides hearing aids. An Audiology Test result is one of the requirements. Do you aware any early detection program to identify deafness in new born babies? Yes we are aware that there are available newborn screening tests in the Philippines. However, only hearing screening is available in the country. It is available in private and some government-run hospitals in Metro areas (Metro Manila, Metro Cebu, Metro Davao) and not in most provinces. Republic Act 9709 an act establishing a universal newborn hearing screening for the prevention, early diagnosis and intervention of hearing loss. Does your government offer some support in education and employment We are not fully aware of the nature and extent of assistance from the government per se, but there is this deaf school in Palawan wherein some students (the less fortunate) receives government support i.e. school tuition and or allowances. It is implemented through the Municipal Social Welfare. Does your government encourage and make it easy for communities to develop their self-help organizations/ association/ clubs? The government might support, but efforts of encouragement are rarely observed. That is, if the group will come out, they might recognize it in the community. Philippine Association of People With Hearing Loss (PAPHL) introduction This group will be composed of hard of hearing and deafened in the Philippines. As of the moment , only adults are in the group but it is within our hope to include &/or extend services to children who are of same fate. Your organization activities related to people with hearing loss these can be Awareness raising Training / empowerment Employment support Advocating , lobbying to influence on policies of government , local authorities etc.? Our group is practically in its birthing stage, and we believe we are on our first step of a thousand mile s journey. Lots of ideas and dreams are coming in..as Ms. Gaya here dreamed that this group—”through teachings and trainings-, can help Philippines in producing more relay interpreters. This way, they can help the Deaf person because we have very few interpreters here in the Philippines. In PINASLI (Interpreter group), they have 35 hearing interpreters but only few are professional interpreters. That is why I want to train all of HOH-DEAFENED and develop this skill so that they can be relay interpreter. I would also like them to interact with the Deaf community. Most of the HOH-Deafened do not know how to do the sign language, and they prefer to speak and lip read. I  think that if they develop the relay interpreter skills, they will become more useful and helpful citizens Awareness/ Strategies/ Hopes As mentioned earlier, there are 7107 islands in the Philippines. Simply put, awareness raising should be thorough. And the group plans to identify and put up key persons in every province , much better if we can make it every city and municipality. We hope and would like to believe that Philippines will be an HOH and deafened-friendly country someday..it would never be easy and it’s never impossible too Is there any organization / club of Hard of Hearing and deafened people in your country, or group of hard of hearing and deafened in organizations / clubs of the Deaf. Yes, there are several organizations in the Philippines. One of those is the PFD (Philippine Federation of the Deaf, Inc) – their members are Hard of Hearing, Deafened and Deaf and they are all volunteers and help the organization. The other one is the PDRC (Philippine Deaf Resource Center).   There is also FDWHCC (Filipino Deaf Women’s Health and Crisis Center), these are all hard of hearing and deaf women and they do a lot of volunteer work including that of a Relay Interpreter. It helps deaf women who are victims of domestic violence. thank you Papua New guinea Country Report Order of guideline   Name: Victoria Avei Designation: Administration Officer Organization: National Advisory Committee on Disability Secretariat   Your short Introduction ( a paragraph 250-300 word ) My name is Victoria Avei, I am 26 years old. I lost my hearing when I was 14 years old due to acute Malaria. Despite my mother’s many attempts to revivie my hearing by taking me to doctors and private specialists, I never regained my hearing. In time, I came to accept myself. I currently am working for the National Advisory Committee on Disability Secretariat. I love my job as it gives me access to many disability activities. I have an ambition of being a role model for other Hard of Hearing and Deafened person. I want them to know that being hearing impaired is not the end of the world. It is actually, a inner strengthening process. Having a problem does not stop you, its pushes you beyond your limit. Today I am very happy that I never gave up school because of losing my hearing. I enjoy my life as a Hard of Hearing individual because I am able to creep into my own little silent world and assess all my problems without interruption. What do you expect most from attending this Workshop? To acquire first-hand knowledge on regional activities for Hard of Hearing persons and to contribute greatly in establishing the regional network for Hard of Hearing and Deafened persons. Your vision for future of hard of hearing and deafened community of Asia-Pacific (the APHOHD network) Be more globally connected and included. The APHOHD population to establish a social networking site that should make communication more effective internally and externally. Anything else you want to add. Networking with Hard of Hearing and Deafened person in PNG should be a lot more easier. Accessibly and inclusiveness must always be prioritized as part of achieving the Goals of the Convention on Rights of Persons with Disability (CRPD). Country Name: Papua New Guinea Name of Organization: National Advisory Committee on Disability Name of presenter: Ms. Victoria D. Avei Any data / information related to Hard of Hearing people in your country, consider followings; Is there any medical and/or social definition for hard of hearing people in your country? If yes please write here. Medical /scientific definition: In PNG HOH people are medically referred to as Hearing Impaired Persons. (This is because doctors assume that the sounds which we hear are not interpreted properly by the ear drums, hence the term - Impaired) Social definition: In PNG, HOH people are socially referred to as Deaf and Dumb. (A term that drives me right out of my nerves as just which part of us is dumb? Everyone makes dumb mistakes and they single it down to a HOH person who is not to blame for not knowing what to do or say.) Is there any statistics on Persons with disabilities (PWDs)? Does that mention how many “hearing impaired” people in your country? Does that further classify the number of Deaf (culturally deaf), hard of hearing and Deafened (post lingual deafness)? If not ever you heard or read any estimation in news papers or anywhere? According to the World Disability Report, 15% of any population will have some form of disability. This means that 1 in 6 people have some form of disability in PNG. Currently the population of PNG is more than 6 million. The World Health Organization state that 15% of our population here in PNG have some kind of Disability. However, we are not sure as to how much of this percentage covers Hard of Hearing and Deafened. Do you aware of any report, story anywhere in the media or internet, that due to various noises such as traffic causing increases in hearing loss in your country? You may collect such news, links to web, reference to report to share. Obtaining vital information in PNG is a rather difficult task. However as most people with HOH disabilities live in the rural areas, I would say that it is caused by late detection and poor health service. Assistive listening Does hearing aids widely available in your country? No, only in cities and whenever an isolated area happens to be lucky enough to be the host of a disable activity/workshop. Then the hard of hearing and deafened people are lucky to receive donations of assistive devices-hearing aids. Does hearing aids affordable for majorities of the families of persons with hearing loss? No, a majority of our nations population is not very rich and hearing aids are very expensive. Does speech therapy service widely available in your country? No, currently the government has not hired a speech therapist. However, some private specialists provide the service. Does the speech therapy cost affordable for majorities of the families of persons with hearing loss? No, as only private specialists provide the service, it is very expensive. Do you aware about loop system, FM loop as one of the assistive technology for people with hearing ? No, the system has not even been introduced in PNG. Does loopy system, or personal FM loop available in your country? No. Does Audiology test is widely available and affordable in your country? Our government has not hired an audiologist to service us. Do you know about Cochlear Implant (CI)? Do you aware how many people get CI implant in your country? No, I have not heard of the implant. I am not sure if the service is even available in PNG. Cochlear Implant is expensive device including the operation, does government or charity organization offer some support for CI in your country? No Speech to Text Do you aware any speech to text service in your country? No Do you aware CART (Communication Access Real-time Translation) , Speech-to-text Reporting (STT), Palantype as an assistive technology to make the communication accessible for those who prefer speech to text for communication? No  Captioning Do you aware about Captioning and subtitle ? Only if the speaker is speaking in a foreign language but rarely. Do your national television and other televisions broadcast news and other programs with captions? No Does film developer add captions in their movies in DVD, cinemas, or television channels? Yes, they are however far more expensiver than the average CD due to the extra work done on them. Do you aware any policy / law in your country that force television and film companies to add caption in products? No Captioning Do you aware about Captioning and subtitle ? Only if the speaker is speaking in a foreign language but rarely. Do your national television and other televisions broadcast news and other programs with captions? No Does film developer add captions in their movies in DVD, cinemas, or television channels? Yes, they are however far more expensiver than the average CD due to the extra work done on them. Do you aware any policy / law in your country that force television and film companies to add caption in products? No Organization’s Activities Introduction of your organization (brief) The Port Moresby Deaf Association comprises of a mixture of totally deaf persons and Hard of Hearing persons. There currently are about 35 active members. Quarterly meetings are held at various available locations that don’t cost money to gather at. Our aim is to gather all Hard of Hearing persons so we can have the strength to Walk for our Rights as an Independent DPO. We would also like to be more connected nationally so we can collate data for Hard of Hearing citizens. Your organization activities related to people with hearing loss these can be Awareness raising Sign Language classes Participating during International Disable day Training / empowerment Attending courses at Red Cross Special Education Centre Conducting small participatory activities for economical development/home economics (agriculture, handy work etc) Employment support Almost all of our group members are involved in small time manufacturing work. They make pillows, tables, bags etc to resell and make a profit. The better skilled ones who have a lot of patience tend to teach young children who are deaf and hard of hearing in sign language and communication skills. Advocating , lobbying to influence on policies of government , local authorities etc.? Individuals like myself who are connected to government departments and influential people work hard at including Hard of Hearing and Deaf situations to be more clarified and included in government policies. As an advocator myself, I constantly encourage people from the local authorities and govt agencies to recognize Hard of Hearing and deafened people. Besides, we are more compatible then most other pwds. Is there any organization / club of Hard of Hearing and deafened people in your country, or group of hard of hearing and deafened in organizations / clubs of the Deaf. Various provinces within PNG have their own groups. However, specifically put there is no barrier between Deaf and Hard of Hearing. Both are simply put as one body.   Anything other you would like to add. Since I came into contact with Disability Organization, especially the Deaf and Hard of hearing population, I see that we have a big problem going on apart from so many other problems. Communication by sign language is adapted into hand written or typed communication. Even though this may be seen as normal, I am concerned that the language structure is not in line with normal language as written or typed. A Deaf or Hard of Hearing person will easily make you confused if they were to write you a letter or instruction. I hope our Special Education Teachers can take this into account and address the problem. Note: It would be great if we can know, what is the cost of audiology test? What is per hour speech therapy cost? etc. so we can compare with different countries and also can compare with income level in each country to analysis further. Currently Government doesn't have a qualified Audiologist. However, ENT specialists do screening for audiology. As PNG government announced that Health is free so there should not be any cost related to audiology test. However the private specialists charge around K300.00 per audiology test. vietnam Center for Research and Education of the Deaf and Hard of Hearing (CED) Address: 4 Nguyen Thi Huynh, Ward 8, Phu Nhuan District, Hochiminh City VietNam Telephone : 84-8 6683 7494 Email : founder.ced@gmail.com Website : www.trungtamkhiemthinh.org Tax code : 0310918985 Approved by Department of Science and technology On April 15th 2011 Why is CED? 2006 Point of Departure: World Flight for Hearing 2007: Nothing about us without us Hearing impaired field Coordinator – Job in dream Workshop: The Voice of Silence World 2007: Being aware of problems There are about 2.5 million persons with hearing loss in Vietnam The Deaf: Three “Zero” NONE educational opportunities, NONE employment, NONE sign language interpreters The HoH/Deafened: Big difficulty in communication and integration 2007: Plans on Self-development Studying in Deaf education Social work Audiology Deaf Psychology 2008: Co-presenter with Johan IFHOH Congress 2008 in Vancouver, Canada Workshop: The Voice of Silence World 2008: An enjoyable feeling with Caption 2009: Nominated by IFHOH to attend IDA - Asia Pacific Regional Conference on the CRPD Implementation and Monitoring in Manila, Philippines on February 11-12, 2009 2009: Participated into the trainings in AP “CBR and Self-help Group” offered by APCD in ThaiLand on July 21 – 29 th 2009 2009: Introduced ALDA-AP at ALDACon in Seatle, USA on July 14 – 18 th 2009 2009: With Mr. I.King Jordan 2009: With FBI Expert with hearing loss – Sue Thomas 2010: International Training of Trainers The New Leadership Development on Rights Sensitization in ThaiLand on July 21 – 29 th 2009 2010: Attended IFHOHYP AGM & Conference In The Netherlands on April 1st – 5th the 2010 2010: and visited Hooridee Center for the Deaf and Hard of Hearing 2010: The first book published in May 2010: The first Asia Pacific Convention on Community Based Rehabilitation (CBR) organized by CBR Asia-Pacific Network from Nov. 13th - 15th 2010 in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia. And Awards in Vietnam Social Entrepreneur Blue Ribbon What problems do people with hearing impairments have to faced? The average income of Vietnamese people 50USD ~ 200USD Suportive devices Hearing Aids 300USD~2500USD Cochlear Implant 15.000USD~25.000USD People do not know  more about Hearing Aids and Cochlear Implant Deaf Education For the Deaf: Primary School For the Hard of Hearing: Upper secondary school Lack of basic knowledge and life skills Deaf, HoH and Late Deafened Be discriminated Can not rejoin society CED is the first and only social entrepreneur established by the Hearing Impaired and serve for ourselves Which services does CED offer? Peer counseling Training at CED office Offer training courses in Cities and provinces Employment Introducing vocational training Recommending employment internship and job opportunities Giving job orientation and job coaching Providing consultancy for entrepreneurs Researching & Publishing articles/books around hearing loss Dance group for performance Support groups Experts in Deaf Education Experts in speech therapy Audiologists ENT doctors Social workers Parent of persons with hearing loss as resource persons CED Networking National: Schools for the Deaf, Inclusive/normal schools, orgs of the HIs, NGOs International: IFHOH, EFHOH, IFHOHYP, ALDA, Hooridee Center, APCD... Thank for your time END.