2022-01-04 10:50
United Nations General Assembly-proclaimed World Braille Day is commemorated on January 4 each year, with the aim to spread awareness of the importance of Braille as a universal tactile communication system that helps in enabling visually impaired and partially sighted persons to fully realise their human rights. January 4 also marks the birth anniversary of Louis Braille who invented the touch-based communication system for writing and reading for use by people living with vision issues.
People with vision issues are more likely to experience neglect, abuse and higher rates of violence and poverty. They are among the most marginalised in any crisis-battered community. Therefore, for them, a universal system of communication is necessary in education, access to information, freedom of expression and social inclusion.
Braille enables such individuals to fully realise their human rights by ensuring competency and independence through the elimination of communication barriers. It can be read by passing one’s fingertips over an arrangement of between one to six embossed dots, which represent numbers, letters and musical and mathematical symbols. It can be written using a Braillewriter or by using a pointed stylus and a Braille Slate to punch dots on a sheet of paper.
The ongoing COVID-19 crisis has further underlined the importance of Braille. Differently-abled people, even in normal circumstances, are less likely to access education, employment and health care. Pandemic-induced restrictions have made them more vulnerable.
“The pandemic has revealed how critically important it is to produce essential information in accessible formats, including in Braille and audible formats. Otherwise, many persons with disabilities could face a higher risk of contamination due to a lack of access to guidelines and precautions to protect and reduce the spreading of a pandemic. COVID-19 has also emphasized the need to intensify all activities related to digital accessibility to ensure digital inclusion of all people,” the UN says.
As we commemorate World Braille Day today, let us commit ourselves to take part in filling accessibility and disability inclusion gaps for a better tomorrow for all.
