Filsign - International Support Group for Filipino Sign Language
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It is a complex language, with grammar, time, vocabulary, suitable to receive and give information. It can be used even for poetry or singing songs, just like spoken language. All language has the own sign language, each of them different. So has English the British Sign Language, Greek the Greek Sign Language, Philippine the Filipino Sign Language. The development on digital tools and internet op
ens a wide range of opportunities for research and registration of signs, which had only limited possibilities earlier. Sign writing is difficult, slow, and the film production used to be very expensive before arriving at the digital age, when everyone can use a camera in all remote areas. Despite of the recent developments, Deaf people and especially children in developing countries facing horrible situations in the education, everyday life as well as related to their livelihood. The teacher have no interpretation skills, there are only few community programs, and often we find disqualification on all kind of life situations such as not allowing a Deaf person to open a bank account because she is “disabled”, or not allowing them enter the flight, up to giving somebody death penalty, because no appropriate advocacy help is available. This happens not because people would like to act so, but because there is no possibility to develop skills for learning the language which would allow the proper communication with sign language user. A Deaf child acquires the language skills – such as the hearing child does - from the parents and using it for communication in the community. Philippines is chosen for the pilot project because it has 7107 islands and appr. 104 recognised languages. When in the 90s Dr Liza Martinez analysed her findings about the consistency of Sign Language elements, she realised, that the indigenous signs are to 85% identical. This means, that an independent indigenous Filipino Sign Language is existent, all Deaf people can use and understand it throughout the entire Philippines. This findings makes possible to create a “indigenous sign language” dictionary, to help Deaf people growing their abilities and strengthening their pride on the own identity . Filsign will also rapidly help to collect signs from remote locations. The model of Philippine with the multiple spoken languages and still having one indigenous sign language will help to create e-learning facilities for other indigenous sing languages. Important Development in 2012! House Bill 6079 or the “Filipino Sign Language Act of 2012″ declaring Filipino Sign Language as the national sign language of the Republic of the Philippines, to be used as the medium of official communication in all transactions involving the Deaf which includes:
Access to education – Medium of instruction and curriculum, Early childhood care (pre-school), Hiring Deaf teachers, FSL training for hearing teachers and Sign language evaluation
Access to justice - Judiciary, Department of Justice and Local government justice system
Access to workplaces
Access to public health facilities and services
Access to broadcast media
The bill was authored by Congressman Antonio Tinio of Alliance of Concerned Teachers Party List. They invited MCCID College to participate in the media briefing last September 10. WE ARE HAPPY TO HEAR YOUR IDEAS FOR THE SUPPORT OF THIS WORK WITH www.filsign.com
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