02/MAR/2009

With Regards to "All out to help disabled students " in the NST on 2nd March 2009,

The Malaysian Association of Standards Users (Standards Users) is very delighted that there are allocation by the Terengganu state government of unlimited funds to help students with disabilities.
It is something many should emulate especially those who get cheap publicity helping people with disabilities by giving them wheel chairs and get the press to tell the world about it. In many cases the wheel chairs are not the correct one for people with mobility problems !!!.

Standards Users has the privilege of working with the Japanese Industrial Standards Committee through our work with the Department of Standards Malaysia. We were truly inspired by the level of access people with disabilities (PWDs) and the elderly enjoy in Japan. They are relatively independent and are able to care for themselves on their own.

PWDs often voice out their desire that they do not want to thrive on charity and become a subject of philanthropy all their lives. They are prepared to work and support themselves and contribute to the economy just as much as the mainstream citizens do.

What is stopping them then?

The answer is the inaccessible environment. The transportation and road systems are not accessible for PWDs at all. Even in metropolitan Kuala Lumpur, we can only see pockets of locations which are accessible to PWDs namely those with vision impairment and some places for those who are wheel chair bound.  Most public buildings even in Kuala Terengganu although subject to the Uniform Building By-Laws or the UBBL are not accessible to PWDs. The By-law 34A of the UBBL has requirements for buildings to comply with the Malaysian Standards or MS 1183 on Specifications for Fire Precautions in the Design and Construction of Buildings Code of Practice for Means of Escape for Disabled People and the MS 1184: 2002 Code of Practice on Access for Disabled Persons to Public Buildings.

But these provisions are rarely if not never complied with. Some buildings are provided with dysfunctional accessibility features such as wheel chair ramps which are too steep, Braille inscriptions on lift floor buttons without audio indications of floors and blocked access to PWD toilets. In some places toilets for PWDs are used as detergent and cleaning appliances storage space.

The current UBBL does not call for compliance with the MS 1331 which is the Code of Practice for Access for Disabled People Outside Buildings. This standard outlines basic requirements for the provision and design of out-door facilities so that they are accessible and usable by disabled people.

We hope that the funds allocated by the Terengganu state government include improvement of accessibility for PWDs. This is a more long term and effective measures to truly help PWDs lead normal lives alongside mainstream society. Compliance to the available Malaysian Standards for accessibility which are already in the UBBL shall be the first step to ensure that PWD are provided with long term solutions rather than short term charity or philanthropy exercises which only benefits them once.

We must remember that going by the United Nations statistics, if 10% of the world populations face some form of disability then Malaysia may have at least 2.7 million PWDs. Therefore it is in the interest of the government’s expenditure to ensure a more long term viable and sustainable solution for PWDs to be able to care for themselves, be independent and earn a decent living but ONLY if they can have access to such privileges.

Datuk Marimuthu Nadason
President