International
Senator Monthian (APCD Executive Committee Member) being a member of the United Nations CRPD Committee
Senator Monthian Buntan
The “Fifth session of the Conference of States Parties to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD)” was organized at the United Nations Headquarters in New York on 12-14 September 2012. During the session, the election of the members of the Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities was conducted according to article 34 of the CRPD. As a result, Senator Monthian Buntan from Thailand, who is the Executive Committee member of the Asia-Pacific Development Center on Disability (APCD), was newly elected as one of the CRPD Committee members. Senator Monthian Buntan has been actively involved in the movement on disability and development in Asia and the Pacific. One of his big contributions regarding the CRPD is to have led the drafting process of the CRPD from Asia and the Pacific through the production of the so-called “Bangkok Draft”, which became a basis of the successful negotiation of the CRPD.
Asia-Pacific
Dr. Maya Thomas and CBID in Collaboration with APCD
Dr. Maya Thomas, Resource Person for the CBID Training at APCD
APCD welcomed Dr. Maya Thomas (Editor-in-Chief, Disability, CBR & Inclusive Development: http://dcidj.org/) as one of resource persons for the “Training of Trainers (ToT) for Community-based Inclusive Development (CBID): towards Sustainability” at APCD Training Building in Bangkok, Thailand on 10-21 September 2012.
According to Dr. Maya, “In the future, I hope that Community-based Rehabilitation (CBR) and Community-based Inclusive Development (CBID) will be more implemented in the Asia-Pacific region. It has to be done in very close partnership and collaboration with governments, persons with disabilities and disabled people’s organizations (DPOs). APCD has to play a key role in building capacity of persons with disabilities, and in continuing with information and knowledge dissemination related to CBID, so that the movement can go on in more sustainable way”.
Details about Dr. Maya’s viewpoint will be summarized through the training report to be produced later.
Dr. Maya and Training Participants
Southeast Asia
“Believing in Accessible Governance” by Mayer Dexter Yasay
Mayer Dexter Yasay
One of APCD’s focuses is to promote accessibility. In the Philippines, one unique project on Non-Handicapping Environment (NHE) has been implemented by the National Council on Disability Affairs of the Philippines (NCDA) and the Japan International Cooperation Agency (JICA). APCD has been collaborating with this initiative, including the project formation process, since key partners include APCD’s ex-training participants and resource persons.
In conjunction with the “Training of Trainers (ToT) for Community-based Inclusive Development (CBID): towards Sustainability” at APCD Training Building in Bangkok, Thailand on 10-21 September 2012, APCD has welcomed one great leader who is the Mayer of Opol municipality in Misamis Oriental province in the Philippines. Opol is one of the NHE project sites.
According to Mayer Dexter Yasay, “Non-Handicapping Environment is the center of my governance. I want NHE to benefit not only the disability sector but also all sectors in municipal governance. Therefore, I call it accessible governance.”
“If we add accessibility to municipal governance, we will have a barrier-free community that can include everyone, and exclude no one” said by Mayer Dexter Yasay.
Currently, APCD is developing a film on NHE in the Philippines in collaboration with NCDA and JICA.
Mayer Dexter Yasay Participating in the Group Work
