Transforming Aotearoa into a non-disabling society.

Late last year I had the opportunity to invite the then Minister of Disability Issues, Hon Poto Williams alongside That Blind Woman, Julie Woods to talk about the launch of the new Ministry, Whaikaha - Ministry of Disabled People, in July 2022. This is New Zealand’s first Ministry with an NZ Sign Language name and Te Reo Māori and English names.

Ms Poto Williams has announced her retirement from Parliament at the upcoming election, and Hon Priyanca Radhakrishnan became the Minister for Disability Issues in January 2023.

This is an excerpt from my conversation in October 2022.

Hon Poto Williams acknowledged the efforts of disability champions, previous ministers and key officeholders for their contributions in the past. She thanked Ms Carmel Sepuloni the previous minister for spearheading the creation of the new Ministry and acknowledged the then Chief Executive, Paula Tesoriero MNZM , the former disability rights commissioner, the first disabled chief executive of a government Ministry. 

“It is about recognising the fact that we have moved from the notion that disability is about health. It is not. It is about supporting a community to be as well-resourced and supported, to do everything that they truly want to do and need to do in a way that recognises the person, recognises this is a social imperative as opposed to a health one.”

- Hon Poto Williams.

Moumita: Budget 2022 underlined the government's commitment to delivering bold and transformational change for the disability community, with over $1 Bn. of new funding for the sector. Can you please share with us a few specific plans to enable the community and create a more inclusive and accessible Aotearoa?

Hon. Poto Williams outlined the Ministry's plans to embed the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities into all government agencies, enabling it to be the starting point for their work with disabled people. The funding will be used to develop the disability support service, enabling people to maximize their engagements, such as employment or education.

The Ministry will work with other agencies and give them the necessary tools to support disabled people within their own capacity. However, with a small team of fewer than 200 people, the Ministry will have to work in a way that maximizes the opportunity by collaborating with other agencies and developing processes to build capacity.

Working closely with other ministries, such as addressing the issue of disability being assigned as an acceptable standard of health for immigration is another step toward an inclusive and accessible society in Aotearoa.

Read about the Accessibility for New Zealanders Bill.        

Julie Woods: As a blind woman and not a lawyer to either support or not support the accessibility legislation, it is very hard to tell what impact it may have on my life or on the everyday lives of disabled people in Aotearoa, New Zealand. What impact do you expect the accessibility of New Zealander’s legislation to have on disabled people?

Hon. Poto Williams emphasised the need to raise issues of accessibility and identify areas where disabled communities face the most apparent access issues, such as housing, support and education, employment, and transport.

The legislation is placed to a committee, at the time of the conversation, and the committee will form a group with disabled people to advise the government on areas of priority. The recommendations from this committee will be taken through to Cabinet for endorsement, and the process of working on them will be put in place in an iterative process.

There will be cases where regulations and standards will need to be set depending on the issue being addressed. Ms Williams stated the government is using various formats to make the process as accessible as possible, including accessible software and apps, and will go out to different parts of the country if people wanted to present directly to the committee.

The committee's approach will facilitate as many people as possible to be part of the conversation, and everyone is encouraged to submit their opinions, in areas where there are a lot of discussions plus an opportunity to do things differently.

"If this legislation is passed, would it be reasonable for me to expect at the 2025 local body elections for me to have the voting papers available in a preferred format of my choice? As we know, women died for the right to vote and at the moment, blind women can't vote independently. I'll be very excited when that day happens."

- That Blind Woman Julie Woods 

The former Minister mentioned that work was already underway, irrespective of the legislation and part of that discussion is how to create the environment to provide more options for people to engage in a process of standing for public office, being able to vote and getting the information that they need to make important decisions.

Julie Woods: Why is the language in our sector so complicated? 

The former minister agreed that language used in the disability sector can be difficult and that everyone should have the opportunity to participate. Private sectors need to do more to provide material in formats that meet the needs of people with disabilities. The government is keen to engage with the private sector about this opportunity. Ms Williams wished that language in the disability sector be made more accessible so that people do not become disengaged.

Moumita Das Roy: What role can the industry play, in following up on the government's work in this sector, to bring the policies to life? How should the industry step up to support, including small and medium-sized businesses?

Hon Poto Williams: The shift towards a social model of disability, which involves involving disabled people in policy-making and decision-making, is important for creating support mechanisms for disabled individuals. There is a need to build capacity and understanding across the government and the private sector to ensure that opportunities are available for disabled people to engage. Education of employers is also necessary to create workplaces and employment opportunities for disabled people. It is important to synthesize different pockets of work into a program that utilizes the outcomes and options under the Disability Action Plan, such as the use of sign language or captioning. Elevating disabled people in decision-making positions is crucial for creating better support mechanisms.

Moumita Das Roy: What is it that you love about your job? What brings you back to your office every day?

This discussion is too precious to not publish and share with a wider audience, even if delayed. A technical issue kept me from publishing this earlier.

Looking forward to continuing these conversations for a more inclusive and accessible Aotearoa, New Zealand.

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LinkedIn Audio Event hosted on October 31, 2022, details here.

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