Disability Rights
I want to tell you two stories about Greg. They cover different phases of his life, but illustrate the problems that face us as people with print disabilities.
Disability Rights
I'm sure I'm not the only one here that's excited that we're six days into a 44 day period in which there will be 25 days of ashes test cricket. I'm a happy man.
Disability Rights
I've always been fascinated by numbers. Although remembering some of my maths exam results, I'm not so sure that they have been as fascinated by me. If you ask a group of people to say the first number that comes into their heads, you'll get a lot of 7's. Perhaps it's because we all have an intuitive awareness that 7 is the smallest number of faces of a regular polygon that cannot be constructed with a ruler and compass.
Disability Rights
I'd also like to acknowledge Brian Rope's many years of contribution to the disability sector, and wish him well in retirement, and wish Nicole Lawder success as she moves into the CEO's role.
Disability Rights
I am not here to present South Australia's government as having achieved the last word in access and inclusion for people with disabilities, any more than this report itself seeks to claim that the task is finished.
Disability Rights
I want to talk today about the relationship between the lofty principles of international law on human rights and the practical realities for people with a disability in Australia.
Commission – General
This paper addresses one of the Forum themes: ‘Security and Human Rights’. Since 11 September 2001 governments around the world have responded to the threat of terrorism with tough measures to protect the lives and security of their communities – to protect their fundamental human rights. New security measures give government authorities unprecedented powers, which can seriously infringe the basic human rights of those against whom the powers are exercised.
Disability Rights
Attorney-General Ruddock; Michael Apps and representatives of the bus and coach industry; Margo Hodge and representatives of the disability community; ladies and gentlemen.
Disability Rights
A very big thank you, in particular, to our colleagues from the Australian Attorney-General's Department and theDepartment of Foreign Affairs and Trade. Mostly, of course, for their work with us, over many years, in advancing the human rights of people with disability, internationally and domestically. But also, for being (as far as I know) the first in the world to refer, officially, to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities not by its unappealing acronym of CRPD, or as the Disability Convention, but as the "DisCo".
Disability Rights
One day during the Christmas school holidays, my nine-year-old daughter came into the loungeroom, where I was relaxing with a glass of Scotch, and said: "Dad, the window won't pop up -- you have to come and fix it".
Disability Rights
Australian Public Service Commission one-day diversity conference 'Public Service Regeneration - Challenges and Opportunities for the Workforce' Brisbane, Wednesday 8 June 2005.
Disability Rights
I've always had a yearning to be in the Guinness Book of Records, and so I decided, in preparation for today, to give the shortest presentation ever made by a staff member of the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission. My presentation thus consists of just seven letters: a question of 4 letters, and an answer of 3 letters. The question is SSDD, and the answer is DDA.
Disability Rights
As you know, the Commonwealth Disability Discrimination Act, and equivalent laws in all States, make it unlawful to discriminate on the ground of a person's disability. One of the areas covered by the Act is access to premises. The only exception to this is where a building is already constructed not providing access, and alteration to provide access would cause unjustifiable hardship.
Commission – General
I would like to begin by acknowledging the Gadigal peoples of the Eora nation, the traditional owners of the land on which we meet today, and pay my respects to their elders past and present.
Disability Rights
George Bernard Shaw once said that the only alternative to torture in life is art. I'm not sure that you could my presentation this morning art, but I do hope it isn't torture.
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