Today marks the official opening of the Park Inn Newlands, a modern 122-room in a beautiful Cape Town suburb that also has a strong link to the local Deaf community.

Originally built as a school, the building that would become known as Bastion (of the Deaf) served the Deaf community (and housed the provincial offices of DeafSA) from 1993 until 2012. In September 2012, following 8-years of negotiations, the original building was demolished to make way for the new Park Inn Newlands.

However, what marked the end of an era also marked the beginning of a new one. The provincial offices of DeafSA can still be found at the corner of Hemlock & Thicket Roads in Newlands, adjacent to the Park Inn Newlands Hotel. In addition to this, approximately 30 percent of the hotel’s workforce are deaf, and deaf contractors were also used during the construction phase.

So while the Bastion building is now nothing more than memories and photo’s, the important role this address has played in the lives of the Deaf community continues.

In 1996 a young Sean Allan was arrested while travelling through Thailand and charged with drug trafficking.

He was sentenced to 15-years imprisonment in a Thai prison.

9-Years later, thanks to a royal pardon, he was released and returned to South Africa to rebuild his life.

Today, thanks to his commitment, and a lot of hard work, he is a successful entrepreneur.

Join DTV on Saturday, 10 January 2015, when Troy Panaino focuses his camera on Sean, who shares the harrowing details of his time in a Thai prison, along with the triumphs of returning to South Africa, and starting all over again.

Learn more about Sean, and how to avoid becoming an unwilling drug mule yourself, by viewing our slideshow here.

DTV is planning an insert that looks at relationships where one partner is hearing, and the other is deaf/hard of hearing.

We would like to hear from you if you are in such a relationship, and willing to be interviewed for TV. The only requirements are:

• One partner in the relationship must be hearing, and the other must be deaf/hard of hearing.
• You are both willing to be interviewed on camera, and featured in an upcoming episode of DTV.
• You have been together for at least one year.
• You live in Johannesburg, Pretoria, Durban or Cape Town.

Please note the following:

• No compensation is offered for being interviewed and/or featured in the insert. This includes any expenses you may incur for transport, accommodation and other incidentals.
• Submitting your details to us does not guarantee that you will be interviewed or featured in the insert.

If you meet the above requirements, and are willing to be interviewed, please submit your details to us using this form.  Submit your story now, if you haven’t already done so.

If you don’t meet the requirements, please consider helping us out by sharing this article with your friends or family who do meet the requirements, and might be interested in being featured.

World Diabetes Day (WDD) is an official United Nations Day, and is celebrated every year on 14 November, in more than 160 countries. The purpose of the campaign is not only to keep diabetes in the public spotlight, but also to raise awareness, and draw attention to critical issues relating to diabetes.

The campaign is attached to a new theme every three years, with the latest theme (from 2014 to 2016) being “Healthy Living and Diabetes”.

Aside from local events in your area, you can help raise awareness of diabetes (and World Diabetes Day), by using the International Diabetes Federation’s (IDF) new WDD Selfie app – use the app to take a selfie, position the blue circle wherever you want to (it is the global symbol for diabetes), and share it on the WDD pages, and across your own social network profiles. You can find the app on the iOS (Apple) and Google (Android) App stores, or by following this link.

The infographics below provide additional information regarding diabetes, and you can also visit the IDF website for more information.

Did you know?

If diabetes were a country, it would be the third most populated country in the world.

 

 

 

Today is United Nations Day, commemorating the entry into force of the Charter of the United Nations.

The United Nations was established on 24 October 1945 to promote international co-operation, and to prevent conflicts on the scale of the World Wars. The United Nations has grown from 51 member states at its founding, to 193 member states currently, and its mission has grown beyond preserving world peace. The United Nations was not the first organisation that sought to regulate conflicts between nations, but it is the longest running, and also represents a far greater number of nations and people than any of the earlier organisations.

In 1948, the General Assembly adopted the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, which serves more as a common standard of achievement for all nations than a legally binding document. Nonetheless, the United Nations continues to focus extensively on

promoting and encouraging respect for human rights and for fundamental freedoms for all without distinction as to race, sex, language, or religion

In December 2006, the landmark Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities was adopted by the General Assembly, with South Africa being one of the first nations to sign the document in March 2007. The Convention has more than 30 articles that cover the specific rights of persons with disabilities, which all member states are expected to adhere to. These include rights such as (the full document can be viewed on the United Nations website)

• As a change of perceptions is essential to improve the situation of persons with disabilities, ratifying countries are to combat stereotypes and prejudices and promote awareness of the capabilities of persons with disabilities (Article 8).
• Countries are to guarantee that persons with disabilities enjoy their inherent right to life on an equal basis with others (Article 10), ensure the equal rights and advancement of women and girls with disabilities (Article 6) and protect children with disabilities (Article 7).
• On the fundamental issue of accessibility (Article 9), the Convention requires countries to identify and eliminate obstacles and barriers and ensure that persons with disabilities can access their environment, transportation, public facilities and services, and information and communications technologies.
• Countries are to promote access to information by providing information intended for the general public in accessible formats and technologies, by facilitating the use of Braille, sign language and other forms of communication and by encouraging the media and Internet providers to make on-line information available in accessible formats (Article 21).

Some people questioned the need for a separate convention for persons with disabilities, and the United Nations addresses these questions in the FAQ on their website, stating, amongst others that

The rights enumerated in the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, in a perfect world, would be enough to protect everyone. But in practice certain groups, such as women, children and refugees have fared far worse than other groups and international conventions are in place to protect and promote the human rights of these groups. Similarly, the 650 million people in the world living with disabilities—about 10 per cent of the world’s population—lack the opportunities of the mainstream population. They encounter a myriad of physical and social obstacles that:

• Prevent them from receiving an education;

• Prevent them from getting jobs, even when they are well qualified;

• Prevent them from accessing information;

• Prevent them from obtaining proper health care;

• Prevent them from getting around;

• Prevent them from “fitting in” and being accepted.

The Convention does not create any new rights or entitlements for persons with disabilities, but instead it expresses existing rights in ways that address the specific needs of persons with disabilities.

Celebrate United Nations Day by

• Enjoying the rights afforded you by its declarations and conventions, and those enshrined in our own Constitution.
• Learning more about the United Nations, and what they do.
• Sharing this with others.