SANTA CRUZ DE TENERIFE, June 14. (EUROPA PRESS) –
The Parliament of the Canary Islands hosted this Tuesday the commemorative act of the ‘National Day of Spanish Sign Languages’, where the president of the Chamber, Gustavo Matos, encouraged to continue “working daily for the integration of all people, giving the sign language the space it should occupy in society”.
The event was attended by the president of the Federation of Associations of Deaf People of the Canary Islands (Fasican), Kevin Pérez, and the president of the Parliament’s Disability Commission, María del Río, as well as other members of that body , representatives of different institutions and entities.
In his speech, Matos recalled that the Spanish Constitution includes the right to equality for all people without any discrimination due to personal or social conditions or circumstances.
“The Statute of Autonomy is also clear in this sense. In this text, which turns forty on August 10, it is emphasized that the Canarian public powers will ensure individual and collective protection and rights,” he said.
Therefore, he stressed that it is the obligation of democratic institutions “to ensure every day that everyone’s right to be able to communicate is guaranteed, promoting measures to normalize the use of sign language in all areas and favoring the creation of healthy and accessible”.
The president defended “the freedom, equality and empowerment of deaf people, so that they can fully develop and be what they want in life.”
In this sense, he highlighted the very important work carried out by professionals, associations and groups in this area, for their work also in early care, for the right to a comprehensive quality education and, also, the linguistic rights of deaf children.
Gustavo Matos recalled that the Parliament of the Canary Islands is “an open parliament and in permanent contact with the reality of the islands”.
In this way, he indicated, “deputies from all the islands bring to the plenary session and commissions questions related to the daily life of people, every day, in commissions and plenary sessions, issues that have to do with the reality of the families of our land and these initiatives arise from the previous work of deputies with groups, families and those affected”.
LIVING “WITHOUT CONTROVERSIES OR IMPOSITIONS”
For his part, Kevin Pérez demanded that the linguistic rights of deaf children be guaranteed “so that they can live freely and fully, without controversy or impositions” and indicated that Spanish sign languages are valued today in society thanks to the associations.
“It is a right and we need society to value it as such, a fundamental and human right. A child can know and understand the world thanks to sign language,” he stressed.
Pérez insisted on the need for deaf children “to be able to live freely and fully, without controversies or impositions, that they are not forced to choose between sign language and oral language, since as a society we have the obligation to educate to a happy deaf childhood, with the necessary resources and support and not subtracting”.
The president of Fasican also demanded that early care and quality comprehensive education be provided, including sign language, in order to avoid barriers.
“It is about having the same rights as the rest of society, with healthy, accessible and inclusive environments to be able to have the same success as hearing people. Freedom is the recognition of our dignity,” he said.
For her part, María del Río thanked the work of Fasican for access and integration at all levels of society and valued the coordination of the associative movement of deaf people in the Canary Islands.
“Count on the Parliament, with the groups and with this commission to fulfill those purposes with which they dignify the living conditions of deaf people and their families in the Canary Islands,” he stressed.
