Page 843 - Week 03 - Wednesday, 20 March 2019
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video
seek. While always honouring culture, an important role of a disability advocate specifically for Canberrans from CALD backgrounds would be to demystify and destigmatise issues of disability, or to raise expectations or a vision of life where disability does not present insurmountable obstacles. To be done right, however, this task must be performed by a professional who has been trained and has the skills to engage in this kind of educational outreach with complete cultural sensitivity.
The alternative is to allow people to potentially make choices they might well make differently if they understood their situation more fully. This alternative also includes a willingness to allow certain Canberrans to enjoy less fulfilling lives simply because they somehow do not rate highly enough to get this government’s serious attention.
Ms Lee’s motion makes a simple request, one that could easily be agreed to by those opposite. ACT government publications pay lip-service to meeting the specific needs of those in Canberra’s multicultural communities and making sure they enjoy access to the same services that the rest of the territory’s residents do. But, as they say, talk is cheap. I urge this government to endorse this motion and then actually follow through with the provision of an advocate and appropriate programs. The reputation of this government among culturally and linguistically diverse Canberrans is once again on the line. I commend this motion to the Assembly.
MS LEE (Kurrajong) (2.54): I thank members for their contribution, and especially Mrs Kikkert for her support. It is clear that all parties acknowledge the need to ensure that our CALD community is not left behind when it comes to accessing essential disability services. Having spoken to numerous advocacy groups and members of the disability community, and having attended a forum on the issue last year, I have heard firsthand about the needs that are going unaddressed. I want to see these gaps addressed. In my opening speech I raised a few specific reasons why accessing disability services for our CALD community can be challenging. I will expand a little more on that now.
First there is the language barrier. This goes beyond just translating resources. There is a lot of talk about plain English disability information to help participants and families navigate the intricacies and complexities of the NDIS and specialist disability services. Even for migrants who have lived in Australia for a long time, language barriers will almost always be a factor for the remainder of their lives. My parents migrated to Australia in their 30s and have lived here for more than 30 years but, due to the fact that they did not speak a word of English until they were in their 30s and due to their lack of formal Australian education, they will struggle to read government documents. This is even if they get translated material.
Second there are the economic and technological barriers which many in the multicultural community face. Many of us take for granted that we can and do use the internet and our mobile phones for just about anything. Not everyone is as technologically fluent. Even though there are many areas in the ACT with free wi-fi, for those from a CALD background, especially our older Canberrans, accessing, understanding and using the internet is not as easy and does not come as second nature.
Next page . . . . Previous page . . . . Speeches . . . . Contents . . . . Debates(HTML) . . . . PDF . . . . Video