Look and listen as sign language takes its place
Bridging the divide between the deaf and hearing
SIGN language will become South Africa’s 12th official language. That was the word from former Constitutional Court Justice Zak Yacoob, who attended this year’s launch of the Talk Sign Campaign at Chateau Gateaux in Durban North on Wednesday.
The campaign aims to promote awareness about the issues faced by the deaf and hard of hearing.
Talk Sign Day will be held next Friday, March 10, and people are encouraged to buy stickers in support of the campaign. Yesterday was World Hearing Day.
As chairman of KZN Blind and Deaf Society, Yacoob has championed the cause of those who cannot hear. On Wednesday he urged businesses and government departments to have at least one staff member able to use sign language.
“Sign language is going to become our 12th language; I have no doubt it is going to happen,” said Yacoob, who is blind.
Highlighting the loneliness which a deaf person can face daily, he said: “What is a blind person doing talking about deaf people?
“We all have some disability or another and we can get too introspective about ourselves instead of worrying about others.
“I am conscious of people with all disabilities. For me, hearing is vital. To be deaf can be to live in an isolated and lonely world; with no one to sign for them it is absolutely horrendous. People with hearing should help break the communication barriers.”
On February 11, it was reported that Parliament’s constitutional review committee was preparing to present its findings to the National Assembly that SA Sign Language (SASL) be recognised as the country’s 12th official language.
Hearing tests
The issue was expected to be presented before the end of this year. The change would require an amendment to the language clause of the constitution.
Yacoob said it was estimated that KwaZulu-Natal was home to about 500 000 deaf people. He said the organisation would like compulsory hearing tests for Grade 1 pupils to be introduced, to better understand the challenge.
“It will not only start giving us a better idea of numbers, but early identification of hearing difficulties means these can be addressed, resulting in a better outcome for the child,” he said.
The Talk Sign campaign was first launched by KZN Blind and Deaf Society four years ago. The society’s director, Shamila Surjoo, said this year was the first time the campaign would go national through their partnership with well-known Durban patisserie Chateau Gateaux, who would sell stickers at all their franchises in KZN and Gauteng.
She supported the call for sign language to take its place as the 12th language in South Africa, saying: “This is about bridging the communication divide between the deaf and the hearing. Apart from being able to join in social chat among family and friends, it is also difficult for deaf people when they go to the doctor, police station, shop or business.
“We have just started a sign language training programme for front-line staff with the Department of Health in eThekwini hospitals. We would like to see this replicated in other government departments, as well as in companies,” said Surjoo.
Talk Sign campaign manager, Alice Leah, said this was the first time the campaign was being supported by a large retailer, taking it to a national level.
“This skyrockets the availability of stickers. The money raised from sticker sales is used for the education of the deaf and hard of hearing and to assist with job creation and placement,” she said.