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Article and photo contributed by Sumitha Shaanthinni Kishna, Executive Officer, Law Reform & Special Areas Committee


The Law Reform & Special Areas Committee of the Bar Council organised a roundtable discussion on 7 September 2009 on the Persons with Disabilities Act.  30 people attended the roundtable discussion including representatives from the Ministry of Human Resources, Ministry of Education, Ministry of Health, Ministry of Women, Family & Community Development, various organisations for persons with special needs,  and universities, as well as academicians and Members of the Bar.

The objectives of the roundtable discussion were to:

(1) discuss the benefits and drawbacks of the policies of the various government agencies in relation to access to education and education enablement for persons with special needs; and

(2) promote an effective regulatory and policy framework in realising the educational rights of persons with special needs.

Dato’ M Ramachelvam, Chairperson of the Law Reform & Special Areas Committee, began the roundtable discussion with a welcome address.
 
The first speaker, Helen Chin, a Member of the Bar and Chairperson of the Organising Committee for the roundtable discussion, presented a paper entitled “Implementation of the Persons with Disabilities Act 2008”.  She spoke about the need for punitive clauses to be inserted in order for the Act to be effective.
 
Shamini Nadarajan and Paul Boardman of the University of Nottingham (Malaysia Campus) presented a paper titled “University Of Nottingham, Malaysia Campus Practices in Promoting Disabilities/Diversity Inclusion”.  They highlighted the University’s support system based on the UK model, which catered for students with special needs from the time they enrolled right up to graduation day.
 
Paizah Zakaria from the Special Education Division of the Ministry of Education spoke on “Special Education Programme”.  She spoke on government efforts to promote the policy of education for all, including persons with special needs, which covers inclusive learning for students and special training for teachers.
 
Dr Aminah Bee Binti Mohd Kassim from the Ministry of Health presented her thoughts on the health care system in Malaysia.  She explained that given the increasing number of persons with special needs, there is a need for society to take note of the measures available for early detection of disabilities during pregnancy and/or in the early stages of a child’s life to prepare the child for the challenges ahead.

The final speaker, Tuan Haji Md Sabri Bin Karmani, presented on the topic of “Labour Department Peninsular Malaysia and its role in Employment Creation for People with Disabilities”, which focused on the government’s action plan in promoting employment for persons with special need in the private sector.
 
Thereafter the participants engaged in a healthy discussion, which generated many useful and practical recommendations to promote the educational rights for persons with special needs.
 
Dato’ Ramachelvam ended the roundtable discussion, thanking the participants for their valuable contribution.  He stated that the Bar Council would prepare a memorandum on the recommendations, which would be submitted to the National Council for Persons with Disabilities.