Phnom Penh: Representative of Mr. Chea Somethy, Minister of Social Affairs, Veterans and Youth Rehabilitation, Mr. Em Chan Makara, Secretary of State and Secretary-General of the Disability Action Council, and leaders of the Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts, Mr. Long Bonna Sirivadh, and the United Nations Development Program Representative in Phnom Penh Cambodia, Ms. Alissar Chaker participates in the National Workshop on Copyright, Disability Rights and the Marrakesh Convention on December 21, 2023 at the Phnom Penh Hotel.
Speaking at the seminar, Mr. Em Chan Makara said that the Marxist Treaty enables people with disabilities to effectively obtain basic human rights knowledge in education, labor markets and cultural activities.
Mr. Em Chan Makara stated that people with disabilities who have difficulty reading printed documents can not get all the information from normal printed documents, while people with this type of disability can not see or read the text, need documents in the form provided. Convenience, such as documents in alphanumeric or voice-typed text, e-books, or large-format documents.
Mr. Em Chan Makara emphasized that the Marrakesh Treaty is important, especially for the blind and visually impaired, who have a high percentage of the total disability in Cambodia, up to 35%.
At the same time, he added that people with visual impairments in Cambodia are facing difficulties in accessing education, integration in general knowledge, especially the lack of printers, documents and textbooks. Visually impaired people can be used for learning, so increasing access to printed documents or books in an easy-to-read format for people with disabilities is essential and important for creating a social environment for all.
At the same time, Mr. Long Bonna Sirivadh said that this is the second time between the Ministry of Culture and Fine Arts and the General Secretariat of the Council for Disability Action under the joint support of the United Nations Development Program (UNDP). Organize this workshop in one direction for facilitating access to information and education for people with disabilities.
Ms. Alissar Chakker stressed the importance of the Marrakesh Treaty in promoting inclusion for people with disabilities in Cambodia, emphasizing that access to knowledge is a fundamental human right that opens the door to education, employment, health and Being actively involved in various fields while people with disabilities have difficulty reading printed materials, they face restrictions on access to printed materials due to factors such as blindness, visual impairment, mental retardation or physical disability access to text, audio books and large print.
It should be noted that according to the report of the Socio-Economic Survey 2021, the rate of people with disabilities in Cambodia is 872,527 people, equivalent to 5.3% of the total population of 13.5 million people with visual impairments 3.1% while in 2019/20 it was 2.8%.
According to the data, there is an increase in the number of people with visual impairments who need support in terms of comfort and comfort, and joining the Marrakesh Treaty is an important part of supporting people with disabilities.
