Vision Australia ID 0:00
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Speaker 1 0:23
on the Vision Australia and reading radio networks. This is the Powerd news wrap
Sam Rickard 0:30
G'day. I'm Sam Ricard. It's the 20th of August. We're presenting articles from the powered dot media website, and joining me, as per normal, is the effervescent and efficient. Emma Myers, and I've probably forgotten a few more things, starting with E How you going? Emma?
Emma Myers 0:45
Oh, I'm brilliant. How are you? Sam, I am
Sam Rickard 0:49
particularly good today we have, oh, well, I follow up on on a article from last week, and we have some Well, mixed news, in a way, the resignation of a fairly well known figure in the disability community from from Dana, yeah,
Emma Myers 1:07
it's a bit sad to see our kids. She's the pillar of the disability sector, and she's a much loved and much admired disability advocate. Have been having been one for so many decades, her wealth of knowledge and connections is the one to aspire to. I
Sam Rickard 1:29
think you've actually had a fair bit to do with her in your capacity as a journalist, yeah.
Emma Myers 1:34
So a lot of stories that I've covered, you know Elle has always been there to comment and provide feedback about what the situation is, such as the problem with housing, and specifically, accessible housing, it's a big issue. So yes, she'll be missed.
Sam Rickard 1:56
Well, it seems that she's not really going anywhere, as per se, because she's still on a couple of other committees as well, so, but it does, yeah,
Emma Myers 2:05
yeah. So she's not going my entirely, but she had to leave for health services, which I completely understand. You know, I think no one can, oh, no one's invincible. Well,
Sam Rickard 2:22
I mean, I can speak from my terms, there's a lot of good you can do in many of these advocacy roles, but you can do no good if you're lying in a hospital bed, or, in my case, suffering from acute eye strain, for example. So it's probably a wise thing that she's decided to step back for a while, and I think, judging from the subject of your article, there's nothing stopping her from getting back into the action at some later stage.
Emma Myers 2:49
No, definitely not, and she would admit that she will be back.
Sam Rickard 2:57
And now we welcome back. Michaela talikas with the news.
Speaker 1 3:01
Thanks, Sam, many in the disability sector will be certain to learn that a champion of the Australian Disability Rights Movement has put in their resignation as CEO of the Disability Advocacy Network Australia, Dana. Dana CEO Elle Gibbs handed in her resignation in order to focus on her health. According to the organization Ms. Gibbs is a seasoned advocate, communications expert and NDIS specialist, having spent over 15 years working in policy, strategy and advocacy for the rights of people with disability. According to her website, elle Gibbs joined Dana in May 2023 in the role of director policy and advocacy before being promoted to CEO in April this year. In a statement posted on the organisation's website, Dana acknowledged Miss Gibbs dedication to the disability community. Elle has reinforced Dana's position as an ever reliable and trusted national voice for independent advocacy and all while being a tireless advocate for people with disability. Disability Advocacy Network Australia, Board Chair Wendy Prowse says the Dana board is forever grateful for the contribution the disability advocate has made to the community. While we are incredibly sad that she's leaving, we are also pleased that she is prioritizing her health and wellbeing, says Miss Prowse, a number of people within the disability sector have sent their Thanks and well wishes to miss Gibbs via LinkedIn, including Jane bridge, who works in disability policy. What has always had my greatest respect is that you have ensured the voices of those not often heard from in discussions yet the same people who are most marginalized are lifted up. She says, on her departure, Miss Gibbs posted to her LinkedIn to say that she hopes to be back in the fight for disability liberation and inclusion again soon. Disabled bodies are what give us so much of the deep expertise and understanding of the exclusion and. Experience of being disabled in this world, but they are also the same bodies that end up in the emergency room plugged into all the things. In the meantime, the much love advocate will continue her role as the co chair of the NDIS reform Advisory Committee.
Sam Rickard 5:22
Fun fact, if you go to Powerd spelled P, O, W, E, R, D, dot media, it will take you to the completely wrong website. Yes, there is a reason why we spelled it the wrong way. And now another excellent article,
Speaker 1 5:39
members of the disability community are being asked to share their personal experiences as part of the federal government's review of the Disability Discrimination Act 1992 which was announced last week as part of its response to the disability Royal Commission. Last July, the Australian government committed to reviewing the Disability Discrimination Act to strengthen protections for people with disability and ensure it remains fit for purpose. A total of $6.9 million has been committed to reassessing the Disability Discrimination Act with the intention of modernizing the legislation. According to the Attorney General's department, the department in charge of the review, some of the issues under examination include whether the rights and obligations in relation to assistance animals are outlined clearly enough, and the lack of prohibitions on harassment towards people with disability, according to the review paper, while the issue has been somewhat addressed In the Disability Education Standards for Education 2005 and is definitively included in the racial and sex discrimination acts. The Disability Discrimination Act does not explicitly include a clause which prevents offensive behavior or harassment towards the disability community, as stated in the review paper, the disability community has played a crucial part in the various reviews and inquiries since the Disability Discrimination Act first became a part of the Australian legal system over three decades ago. As such, the Attorney General's Department says it will draw on responses from prior submissions so that people with disability do not need to advocate again about the same issues and experiences that being said, Australians with disability, family carers and service providers and relevant professionals can also make new submissions by way of responding to questions outlined in the report or complete the shorter Community Survey. Anyone choosing to participate can submit their responses under their own name or remain anonymous. According to the Attorney General's website, the review paper is accompanied by an Auslan video, easy read and plain English versions of the paper's summary, making it accessible for every individual. Anyone participating in the review can submit their statements in a variety of ways, using written, audio or video content. According to the Attorney General's portfolio, Australia's Attorney General Michelle Rowland is encouraging anyone with disability or who has experience with disability to have their say. The review of the Disability Discrimination Act is one important aspect of our response to the disability Royal Commission ensuring Commonwealth anti discrimination legislation remains fit for purpose. The Albanese government is committed to working with the disability community to uphold the rights of Australians living with disability while ensuring adequate protections exist to combat disability discrimination, says Miss Rowland, Minister for Health disability and the National Disability Insurance Scheme, NDIS Mark Butler, backed up the Attorney General's comments. Our government wants to ensure Australians living with a disability can access and participate in all parts of society on the same basis as people without disability as this is only the first round for submissions, which close on the 24th of October. Those who are unable to contribute will have future opportunities to share their thoughts, according to the Attorney General's website. For more information, the link has been included in the podcast notes, and now back to Emma and Sam.
Sam Rickard 9:24
Thank you. Mark Heller, so the second article that was read was essentially a follow up to last week's issue, where they're yes, they're reviewing the Disability Discrimination Act, but they want input from people like you and me.
Emma Myers 9:39
Yeah, so the Disability Discrimination Act is being reviewed, and there are call outs for people from the disability sector, be it people with disability, family carers, service providers, friends, whatever. That element of disability impacts your life. They're calling up for input, as you said, Be good, bad, morally gray. They're just wanting to know what is actually happening and how the disability Disability Discrimination Act can actually improve based on both new submissions to the review, but they're also looking at previous submissions from the royal commission from other areas, so that people don't have to repeat themselves.
Sam Rickard 10:40
What I found interesting with the quote from Mark Butler is it did not sound like the normal poly speak. He actually did seem to, I don't know that, I don't know about you, but the language seemed to indicate that they are definitely looking to try and improve something here.
Emma Myers 10:56
Yeah. I mean, I hope that's the case, but you can never tell with them, there's reading a quote and actually hearing it being said. So whether Mark Butler genuinely means it, only time will tell.
Sam Rickard 11:11
Well, I mean, there, I think we can both quite happily say that there are things that definitely do need to be improved, but whether they will be a bug bear of mine has always been the fact that whether you are individual or a large company, there are no actual punitive fines involved in it. So if someone is, if there's a clear cut case of discrimination, we still have to go to some form of arbitration, where, really I think that there should be a bit more of a case of all right, yeah, you recorded having committed an offense. You should be charged for
Emma Myers 11:44
it, and yet, and that's always confused me as well, like what we're entitled to is outlined in the Disability Discrimination Act, and they've said that it'll be enforced, but whether it's actually enforced, and whether the enforcers even know those legislations exist within the act itself. So how can you find someone if the Enforcer doesn't even know what they're actually enforcing
Sam Rickard 12:20
exactly? I mean, you can do it the same case with the taxi companies, for example, and in various states, they're $10,000 fines for guide dog refusal, but they're never enforced. And if you go to the police and and say, All right, hey, this taxi driver is refused, and you can have the taxi the name, name of the driver and the number of the car, and the police will simply say, well, where's your lawyer? So yeah, there is a lot to be improved.
Emma Myers 12:46
To be an improvement of regulating and implementing the science of the people who cause
Sam Rickard 12:53
offense, yes, and I think yes, with the there needs to be education, as that's what it comes down to. And it's kind of strange that it's expected that someone like you or me would stand up against a large company, for example, having been discriminated against anyway, that is a wrap for this wrap. What have we got to look to look forward to next
Emma Myers 13:15
week? Yes. So there's a new tool for measuring our overall wellbeing when it comes to support services and how it could help us in the future.
Sam Rickard 13:29
Until then, we will, of course, see you next week. Bye, bye.
Speaker 1 13:41
You can find these articles and more by going to powered spelt P, O, W, E, R, D, dot media, along with the podcast of this show, the powered news wrap was brought to you by disability media Australia. This show was produced by Sam Rickard in the Adelaide studios of Vision Australia radio. You.
Transcribed by https://otter.ai
