-Submitted by  Ngwanakopi Ramushu

On the 4th of May Opima College's goalball team competed in a tournament at Setotolwane Lsen School in Limpopo Province. Optima's female team won with 13 points. They were awarded with gold medals. We are looking forward towards the tournament in Kimberley in July. Although we have a challenge in finding permanent team members, we believe that with stable teams we can do even better.

Save the Date - 2nd Global Partnership on Children with Disabilities (GPcwd) Forum

Plans are being made for the second gathering of the GPcwd to take place on September 24th immediately following the High Level Meeting on Disability and Development. This year’s event will be one full day at UNICEF House, followed by a reception. Further details are forthcoming, but please save the date. More information on the Partnership and the work of the four task forces (education, nutrition, humanitarian action, and assistive technology) are available at http://www.unicef.org/disabilities/index_65319.html.
 

UNICEF’s State of the World’s Children report 2013 will focus on Children with Disabilities – To be released on 30 May

On May 30th, UNICEF will launch this year’s edition of its flagship publication, State of the World’s Children. The focus is Children with Disabilities. The report focuses on the position of children with disabilities in a varying worldwide landscape: how do they fare at home, in school, or at health care centres? What happens to children with disabilities in emergencies or conflict? How do these situations fluctuate around the world? The report asks readers to consider the lost opportunities in denying the full potential of these children.

The State of the World’s Children 2013 argues for inclusive and equitable approaches in such areas as early childhood development, education, health, nutrition, humanitarian response and protection. Based on documented experience and examples, the report will recommend ways in which governments, the private sector, international donors and agencies, and other stakeholders can help advance this agenda.

The report gives a voice to children to encourage their position as architects and agents of change in their towns, villages and cities, and to engage a dialogue leading toward equal treatment of all children, regardless of ability. To this end, in addition to the main narrative and expert technical panels, the report features perspectives, or personal essays, by policymakers, parents, care providers, celebrities and role models with disabilities and, most significantly, young people with disabilities that have accomplished personal or professional goals or are striving to do so. The hope is that report will foster greater attention on these children’s global needs and remarkable potential.
 

Following the last update on here about Article A1 of the draft international treaty at the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO) (click here to go to the previous post), and negotiations attended by World Blind Union (WBU) delegates in Geneva on 18- 20 April, the WBU sent out this press release (click here).

Council's National Executive Director, Mr Jace Nair, recently wrote about a matter that lies very close to his heart; access for visually impaired people to reading material. Please click here to download the letter that Mr Nair wrote in his capacity as President African Union of the Blind (AFUB) stating his concerns and views regarding the current draft of the international treaty at the World Intellectual Property Organisation (WIPO).

He says the following about this statement: "The main thing that should come out of this is that no limitation or exception or fair access (fair use/fair dealing) should be restricted by a DRM/TPM and that if there is one in place, then for purposes of legitimate use (e.g. to enable text to speech software to work, exercise fair use/fair dealing rights), the rightsholder should provide the 'key' or 'code' to circumvent the DRM/TPM to enable access.

For libraries, the rightsholder should allow libraries to circumvent the DRM/TPM for legitimate use (e.g. browsing for the purposes of finding information or purchasing e-resources, fair use/fair dealng access, etc). This should be a standard requirement so that access is not unnecessarily restricted or delayed because permission has to be obtained. It should be an unrestricted course of action for legitimate use."
 

Mr Nair added that Council and AFUB also endorses a statement by the World Blind Union (WBU) regarding WIPO infomercials. Click here to download the WBU's statement.

“My World” is a United National (UN) global survey. The World Blind Union's Advocacy Coordinator, Dr. Victor John Cordeiro, urges visually impaired people to select one of the priorities and vote for it. This will hopefully bring significant changes in the lives of blind and partially sighted people in the world.

Dr. Cordeiro suggests that by voting, visually impaired people can focus the attention of the UN and world leaders on issues that blind and partially sighted people face. 

In addition to the 16 priority areas in the survey, there is an option to suggest a priority, which Dr. Cordeiro says can be made disability-specific. He mentions the example of Accessibility; access to information and technology;

Results will be shared with world leaders in setting the next global development agenda. Tell them about the world you want, because your voice matters!

Click here to access the survey and to cast your vote.