Victorian launch of the Companion Card
| Speech by Susan Halliday Federal Acting Disability Discrimination Commissioner, 6 December 2000 |
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As Federal Acting Disability Discrimination Commissioner, I'd like to take this opportunity to congratulate the Victorian Government and venues that have supported the Companion Card concept.
Rest assured, being equal isn't about equal treatment. It's about understanding difference, valuing it and ensuring equity via equilibrium. Communities are made up of a diverse range of clients and customers, each of whom is equally entitled to experience entertainment, whether visual, sporting or musical.
It is important to reflect on the fact that non discriminatory access to goods and services has been covered by the Federal Disability Discrimination Act since 1992. I'd also like to draw your specific attention to Section 8 of the Act, which is a general purpose provision defining discrimination. Put simply, it means one would contravene the Act if one was to discriminate on the basis of the need to be accompanied by an assistant or carer. While the extent of the provisions have yet to be fully tested in a court of law, failure to fulfil this requirement clearly runs the risk of liability, for everyone involved.
With the SOCOG v Maguire experiences fresh in our minds, as Disability Discrimination Commissioner, I'd advise people to think carefully before working against the tide. And indeed, in my humble view, SOCOG' s refusal to fix its website so all people could utilise it has distinct attitudinal similarities when it comes to an outright decision not to consider ways to accommodate individual's needs by mechanisms such as the Companion Card concept.
Choosing not to implement change strategies and processes that allow for equality of opportunity and equitable access may well be far more expensive than the implementation of the change process. This is particularly so if one factors in both product image and company reputation are at stake as well as legal fees and possible compensatory damages.
Some think about the Companion Card as "losing one seat", but without it the new client wouldn't otherwise be there, occupying a seat. We need to focus on the half-full, rather than the half-empty, glass scenario.
Another section in the Disability Discrimination Act covers non-discriminatory access and provision of goods and services to people who utilise assistance animals. I'll leave it with you to contemplate how it is that the Australian community and business sector are more au fait and accepting of people who utilise assistance animals, than they are of people who rely on other people to provide assistance in order to participate.
Many organisations have lodged Disability Discrimination Action Plans with the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission, a measure of their proactivity and commitment when it comes to working to achieve the spirit and intent of the Disability Discrimination Act. There is a need for more proactivity across the entertainment industry.
I congratulate the Victorian Government, in it's role as manager/owner of many large venues for their leadership. Village Roadshow has lodged a public Disability Discrimination Action Plan and along with the Melbourne Grand Prix and Melbourne Ball Park are supporting the Companion Card. The Companion Card is an excellent way of meeting some of the obligations service providers have under the Disability Discrimination Act. Congratulations also to all the people who have worked so hard to progress the scheme to the current stage. I call for national adoption of the scheme and note the Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission supports the ongoing development of the Companion Card concept.
