Government Implementation of the Standard Rules
As Seen By Member Organizations of
Disabled Peoples' International - DPI

Barbados

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© Dimitris Michailakis 1997

Barnod Inc. The National Organization of the Disabled, Barbados
Compare with the following Country Report(s): Barbados Government report

General policy

Since the adoption of the Rules, the government has established a National task force on Disability Policy. This National Task Force is responsible for drafting a national policy document. The government has also allocated a sum of money for the establishment of a Disability Unit. These are measures taken, in order to convey the message of full participation. According to the Government, the officially recognized disability policy is expressed in guidelines adopted by the Government, in guidelines adopted by a national disability council and in policy adopted by political parties. The emphasis in this policy is on prevention and rehabilitation.

Legislation

The rights of persons with disabilities are protected by general legislation. There are not any judicial mechanism adopted to protect the rights of persons with disabilities. Non-judicial mechanisms include an Ombudsman and a governmental body (administrative). General legislation does not apply to persons with different disabilities.

No new legislation concerning disability has been enacted, since the adoption of the Rules.

Accessibility

There are rules to ensure accessibility of the built environment. They establish national design standards requiring accessibility in public places and the outdoor environment. Accessibility in the built environment is observed by a national authority. The following measures have been promoted by the government in order to facilitate accessibility in the built environment: levelling off pavements, marking parking areas, installing or widening lifts and installing accessible toilets. There are special transport arrangements for persons with disabilities which are available for education. According to the Government, special transport is also available for medical treatment, work and recreational purpose. The most difficult obstacles, when planning to build accessible environments, are attitudinal factors, economic/budgetary factors, lack of legislation and regulations, lack of knowledge, research and information, lack of user participation and lack of enforcement mechanism. There is no disability awareness component incorporated in the training of planners, architects and construction engineers

Sign language for deaf people is recognized as the main means of communication between deaf persons and others. However, it has no officially recognized status. According to the Government, sign language is also recognized as the official language of deaf people and is also used as the first language in education of deaf people. There are government measures to encourage media to make their services accessible to persons with disabilities. But, there are no measures to encourage other forms of public information services to make their services accessible. There are no services provided to facilitate information and communication between persons with disabilities and others. The Government refers to the following services provided in order to facilitate information and communication between persons with disabilities and others: literature in Braille/tape, news magazines on tape/Braille andsign language interpretation, for any purpose.

Organizations of persons with disabilities

There is a national umbrella organization. There are no legal provisions mandating the representatives of persons with disabilities to participate in policy making or to work with governmental institutions. The government gives financial support to existing or new organizations of persons with disabilities. Persons with disabilities participate to a very limited extent in government, legislatures, judiciary, political parties and NGO's. According to the Government, disabled people participate to a great extent in NGO's. The role of organizations of persons with disabilitie is to advocate rights and improved services, mobilize persons with disabilities, contribute to public awareness, provide services and promote/organize income generating activities. According to the Government, organizations do not promote/organize income generating activities.

Co-ordination of work

There is no national co-ordinating committee. According to the Government, there is a national co-ordinating committee, reporting to the Ministry of Community Development and Labour. The committee includes representatives of several Ministries and of organizations of persons with disabilities. The Government expects the committee to participate in policy development, adding, however, that it is too early for an assessment of its effects.

The adoption of the Rules has led to a rethinking of the approach to disability policy. A task force has been specifically established to produce a draft policy.

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Contents of the DPI Report | Compare with the following Country Report(s): Barbados Government report