The Accessibility Ally in the First Ever Quezon City PWD Summit

Today, July 13, 2011, the Quezon City local government and the various sectors of persons with disability (PWD) made history by conducting the first ever Quezon City PWD Summit. The main goal of this event is to carry out a consultation with all disability sectors in order to formulate a law that would uphold the human rights of persons with disabilities in the city.

The main theme of the PWD Summit is “making rights real for Filipinos with disabilities”. This event was organized by the local government of Quezon City and was supported by the Department of Health, the National Council on Disability Affairs (NCDA), and the Social Services Development Department. The Occupational Safety and Health Center in Quezon City was the venue of the summit.

The Accessibility Ally Talks in a Dialog with PWD Leaders

Today, the first ever national dialog with persons with disabilities (PWD) leaders was held at the auditorium of the Department of Social Welfare and Development at Batasan Pambansa Complex in Quezon City. This event was organized by the Department of Social Welfare and Development (DSWD), the National Anti-Poverty Commission (NAPC), and the National Council on Disability Affairs (NCDA).

Representatives from around 21 PWD organizations attended the dialog. I had the privilege of attending the event as one of the members of the board of trustees of ATRIEV Computer School for the Blind. With me was Mr. Tony Llanes Jr., ATRIEV’s founder and executive director.

How We Can Improve the Accessibility of the Department of Science and Technology Website

When I was a kid, I used to watch this TV program called Sineskwela. It was a show focused on explaining the basic concepts of science to young viewers. I must admit I had a hell of a time watching that show. In between each segment of Sineskwela were ads that aim to raise the young viewers’ interest in science and technology.

I remember those ads were produced by our country’s Department of Science and Technology (DOST). Looking back, it was good to have seen how DOST makes an effort to promote science and technology to the future leaders of the Philippines.

Growing up, I learned much more about the department’s responsibilities and activities. And as such, I found it necessary to look at the accessibility of one of DOST’s main tools for promoting science and technology and advocating its vision—its official website.

Let us take a look at the accessibility of the website of the Philippines’ Department of Science and Technology, www.dost.gov.ph.

Accessible Metal: How a Metal Website Supports an Accessibility Standard

Apart from being an advocate of accessibility, I’m also a long-time metal enthusiast. Although I listen to all types of metal, the ones I truly enjoy are doom, gothic, and death metal.

With this in mind, it’s really no surprise that I spend a good amount of time scouring the Net for metal websites. And oh, what joy was it for me when I saw a metal website which, in addition to being an excellent resource, demonstrates a good level of accessibility.

Before telling you about the site, I’d like to explain how the site supports one of the principles of web accessibility.

To the Recipient of the Disabled-Friendly Website Award

“It’s not only user friendly; it’s certified accessible.”

This is a statement included in an announcement by the National Computer Center about the Philippine Community eCenter )PhilCeCNet) website, a recipient of the Disabled-Friendly Website Award in 2009.

According to the announcement, the Disabled-Friendly Website Award is given in recognition to websites that are “disabled-friendly” – sites that are accessible to all, including users with physical disabilities. This award is given by the Philippine Web Accessibility Group (P-WAG) in partnership with the National Council on Disability Affairs.

Upon reading the (relatively old) announcement, I became very interested to look at the PhilCeCNet website (http://www.philcecnet.ph/).

What did I see?

How Accessible is the Website of the Philippines’ Department of Education?

In my mischievous youth, I saw the Department of Education, or Dep Ed, as the almighty provider of the glorious announcement of the suspension of classes during stormy days–nothing more, nothing less. Growing up, I saw the true significance of the role that Dep Ed plays and the importance of the information it aims to provide.

Dep Ed’s website, in particular, aims to provide that information to anyone who is interested. But how accessible is Dep Ed’s online information anyway? Let us take a closer look at the accessibility of the website of one of the Philippine government’s most important departments.

Below is an accessibility review of the website of the Department of Education of the Philippines (www.deped.gov.ph). The Department of Education is responsible for regulating and managing the Philippine system of basic education. The DepEd website contains information such as the agency’s profile, advisories, memoranda and notices, and news.

Learning About Our Right to Accessible Online Information

Today I had the chance to talk to a dynamic and insightful group about web accessibility. This group consisted of visually impaired students and professionals who are currently taking up an assistive technology training conducted by ATRIEV Computer School for the Blind.

Our mini web accessibility talk was part of the training’s topic on Internet navigation for visually impaired persons. I was invited by ATRIEV to discuss this topic, and on the first day, I asked the training participants if they wished to have a discussion about web accessibility. The group said yes, and I was very happy about it.

Wrestling and Accessibility?! What The…

Hold on. Let me explain…

For me, nothing beats the thrill of being at the edge of your seat as your favorite wrestling superstar is about to pin his opponent. This, along with the interesting and at times weird storylines, are the things that have made me tune in to the weekly shows dished out by World Wrestling Entertainment (WWE). I’ve been a fan of this wrestling brand since I was a kid. Ah, I even remember the time when it was called World Wrestling Federation…those were the days.

In addition to being a long-time WWE fan, I, as you can see, am also an advocate of accessibility. And with this in mind, I was elated when I realized that, as strange as it may seem, wrestling–in all its body-slamming glory–demonstrates a major principle of accessibility.

How Does Wrestling Demonstrate a Major Principle of Accessibility?

Continuing to Work on the Accessibility of Malaysian Websites

A few days ago, I shared an accessibility review of the Sarawak Government Portal. In this post I want to share a review I’ve made for another Malaysian website.

The site I reviewed below is the Official Website of the Ministry of Planning And Resource Management. I reviewed the English version of the site. Similar to the previous post, I used the JAWS screen reader and the Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.0 in doing the accessibility review.

Working on the Accessibility of Malaysian Websites

Last year, I had the privilege of conducting the first web accessibility workshop in Kuching, Sarawak, Malaysia. Since then, the event’s organizers and I have communicated closely via email. And as part of our commitment to help the Sarawak government, we provide reviews and recommendations to help ensure that their websites remain accessible to persons with disabilities.

Below, I’d like to share one of the reviews I’ve recently done for the Sarawak government. This is an accessibility review of the Sarawak Government Portal (www.sarawak.gov.my). I used the JAWS (Job Access With Speech) screen reader in accessing the site’s pages. The Web Content Accessibility Guidelines 2.0 (WCAG 2.0 is the document I used in doing the review.