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For disability rights meeting, UN will print first direct-to-Braille documents

For disability rights meeting, UN will print first direct-to-Braille documents

Human Rights

In time for negotiations for an international agreement on the rights of persons with disabilities, the United Nations will be able for the first time to produce materials directly in Braille thanks to the donation today of a state-of-the-art printer by a US-based non-governmental organization (NGO) for the blind.

In time for negotiations for an international agreement on the rights of persons with disabilities, the United Nations will be able for the first time to produce materials directly in Braille thanks to the donation today of a state-of-the-art printer by a US-based non-governmental organization (NGO) for the blind.

At a Headquarters press event this morning, Dr. Harold Snider, Executive Director of the Services for the Visually Impaired, delivered a Thiel Beta X printer to Ambassador Don MacKay of New Zealand, the Chairman of the Ad-Hoc General Assembly Committee on a Convention on the Rights and Dignity of Persons with Disabilities, which is meeting at the UN from 16 January to 3 February.

The donation was made in cooperation with the World Blind Union, which represents 180 million visually impaired persons from about 600 different organizations around the world, and the software is being donated by Duxbury Systems of Massachusetts, a leader in the industry.

“This is a positive step towards making the United Nations accessible,” said Ambassador MacKay, who explained that accessibility of facilities was one of the key issues to be covered in the treaty.

“What we have lacked is the ability to produce working documents during the negotiations themselves in a Braille format. This particular, extremely generous gift will enable us to fill that very significant gap,” he added.

In addition to accessibility, the convention will deal with such issues such as the right to life and non-discrimination for persons with disabilities, awareness regarding disability, equal recognition before the law, independent living and inclusion in the community.

Beside national delegations, some 500 representatives of disability NGOs are expected to attend the session. Both groups will include visually-impaired persons, according to the Ad Hoc Committee.