Women with Visual Impairments – Braille Brochure on Family Law – Jordan
Author: Womens UN Report Network
Date: August 9, 2010
WUNRN
Braille Brochure on Family Protection Law in
An important and symbolic milestone has been reached for people with
visual impairments in
legislation affects their daily lives.
During a workshop in Amman, Jordan, the YWCA of Jordan, in cooperation
with the Karama Organisation and the Cultural Forum of the Blind, distributed
copies of a brochure entitled “No humiliation, no insults: we want to live in
dignity”. This brochure for people with visual impairments outlines the
provisions of the Family Protection Law in Braille.
The brochure was drafted by several legal experts and also includes
national days for the disabled. It is seen as a step in the right direction.
Karama plans to distribute the brochure to all public agencies and civil
society organisations in the country.
Amneh Helweh, Karama Organisation representative in
countries that has a special law for domestic violence and that the main aim of
the organisation is to identify loopholes that prevent women from enjoying
their full rights. “Combating violence against women is not a simple endeavour
and cannot be accomplished by activating only one sector of society, or working
only on one level of advocacy. Karama brings together local experts and
activists to unify their efforts in ending the phenomenon by involving women in
determining their needs and rights, rather than working on behalf of them”.
“We converted brochures and other printed material that outlined the
law’s articles and legal proceedings in the case of domestic violence into
Braille to ensure that this segment of society is not left out” added
Makhamreh, the coordinator of the project.
Yosra Barakat, a blind participant of the workshop commented, “This is
the first time we have felt fully engaged in an initiative that targets all
segments of the society. It is very important for the blind to feel that they
are involved in everything that is around them”. Barakat, a 26 year old who
holds an MA in Arabic literature, explained that she and her peers felt
“embarrassed” when attending lectures as they could not read the required
materials.
She continued “I used to ask a lot of questions and sometimes I forced
people sitting next to me to read the material to me, It is very considerate of
them to think about us and present the data in Braille”. Barakat, however,
finds some of the articles of the Family Protection Law too “vague”.
Another participant of the workshop, Ramaa Abdul Salam, an Arabic
professor at
succeeded in highlighting several issues that are important to persons with
disabilities. He added “We as a people with special needs are not used to being
targeted along with the rest of society in any initiative”.
Some 30 participants took part in the two-day workshop in
will be made to address apparent loopholes in the Family Protection Law.
Categories: Releases
