Motivation Australia
08/06/2011
The Hon. K.L. VINCENT (15:34): Today I rise to speak about Motivation Australia, a not-for-profit disability organisation that works in partnership with local communities to improve the lives of people with mobility disabilities in the Asia-Pacific region by promoting mobility and inclusion. I was fortunate to speak at Motivation Australia’s Mobility Symposium for Aboriginal and Torres Strait Islander people a number of weeks ago, and I want to share some of the things I learned at that symposium with my fellow members today.
Motivation Australia focuses on improving wheelchair provision in low income communities by working in partnership with local organisations and government to provide low cost, appropriate quality wheelchairs for use in remote and rural areas. By that I mean wheelchairs that are designed both to meet the physical needs of the person and to suit the environment in which they live.
However, this organisation does not simply offer wheelchairs, it focuses on capacity building in individual communities. By this, I mean that Motivation Australia looks to create local wheelchair services in communities which cater for all the needs of wheelchair users, whether it be assessment, sourcing of wheelchairs, training in maintenance and use, clinical and technical support, or repairs, as well as referral to other disability services.
What do such services mean for people with mobility issues in low-income countries? These services have a positive impact on the individual’s physical, social and economic life, enabling the person to participate in their community. Imagine being confined to your home, crawling from room to room because you are unable to walk, or stuck in bed, reliant on your family for your every need. Imagine how much difference a wheelchair would make. I have always disliked the term ‘wheelchair-bound’, because one only need think about the people who are currently housebound due to the lack of a wheelchair to understand that a wheelchair can really set you free.
Unfortunately, Motivation Australia has a big job ahead. Approximately 20 million people living in low-income countries require a wheelchair but do not have one. It is simply unfathomable to think that the equivalent of 90 per cent of the Australian population requires a wheelchair. The problem is not confined to other countries: right here, right now, in Australia there are people who need wheelchairs.
As my fellow members know, article 20 of the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities provides that state parties should facilitate the personal mobility of people with disabilities. However, despite Australia being a signatory to this convention, many of our Indigenous brothers and sisters do not have access to the very devices that could help them realise their right to mobility.
According to the Australian Federation of Disability Organisations, we have 27 aids and equipment schemes in Australia, most of which are underfunded and none of which are portable. My fellow members will recall the Productivity Commission’s declaration that ‘the current disability support system is underfunded, unfair, fragmented and inefficient, and gives people with disability little choice and no certainty of access to appropriate supports’.
I know from personal experience that here in Adelaide it can be very difficult to source an appropriate wheelchair, but for people in remote communities it is often much harder. Not only do people have funding issues to deal with and problems with the fragmented system, there are challenges of rugged terrain, a lack of maintenance options, and sheer distance. As Damian Griffis, the executive officer of First Peoples Disability Network explained, ‘In some communities, everyone struggles, so having a disability is not particularly viewed as something different.’
So it is not surprising that community consultations undertaken by Motivation Australia and the First Peoples Disability Network found that there are people with disabilities living in remote locations in Australia who are denied their basic right to mobility. Motivation Australia is working with the First Peoples Disability Network to solve this problem by raising awareness, identifying barriers and planning for potential solutions.
As I said at the symposium, it is a very sad state of affairs when people in a country as rich as Australia have to rely on the non-government sector to ensure that a right to mobility is realised. It is not just sad, it is outrageous. All I can say is: hats off to Motivation Australia for making a positive impact, not only in far-flung countries but also in our own backyard.
