Dancing and music mark first anniversary of Disability Center, Unhas

Brightly coloured dancers from the diffable community stole the show during celebrations for the first anniversary of Pusat Disabilitas Unhas, the centre aimed at empowering students with disability.

The event also served as an opening ceremony for the new Jalinan Jiwa Inclusive Park and the Mosaic of Identities Lounge, the park featuring wheelchair ramps, pedestrian markings and swings for wheelchair users.

The dancers included people with down syndrome as well as parents and student volunteers from Sahabat Sindrom Down Istimewa (SSDI) or Special Down Syndrome Friends.

It was a moment of celebration for the centre and its home of Universitas Hasanuddin (Unhas) and also for the Partnership for Australia-Indonesia Research program (PAIR).

PAIR research has covered a range of issues related to the diffable community and supported the establishment of the centre as a way to show what was possible in a university setting.

The concept was driven by the rector of Unhas, Jamaluddin Jompa and the Indonesian Disability Movement for Equality, PerDIK (Indonesian Difabel Movement for Equality).

Co-founder of the PerDIK Foundation, Ishak Salim said the one-year anniversary marked important progress.

“This is a development at Unhas that we can feel, as we have been striving for a more inclusive Unhas over the past year.”

Dr Salim shared the story of the people who were instrumental in establishing the disability centre highlighting the efforts of PAIR research coordinator Nana Saleh, who invited him to join the PAIR South Sulawesi team during the pandemic and Eugene Sebastian, executive director of the Australia-Indonesia Centre which manages the PAIR program.

Dr Saleh attended the event and noted the significance of something as simple as a swing.

“Such a simple swing yet so full of inclusivity. It was an eye-opener for me,” she said.

“I never realised before how those in wheelchairs couldn’t enjoy these simple things. I was deeply moved to see the rapid development of the [centre] which seems to be running swiftly.”

She praised the role of its “truly commendable” leaders Dr Ishak Salim and his associate Ida Arianti Said as well as the support of Unhas leaders Professors Jompa, Adi Maulana, Ruslin and Anwar Daud, “who have all worked tirelessly to overcome various bureaucratic barriers” to establish the centre.

Dr Salim recalled discussing the need for a centre with the former Australian Consul-General in Makassar, Bronwyn Robbins, eventually realised with the encouragement of AIC senior fellow Sudirman Nasir and Dr Saleh.

During the celebration, the vice rector for cooperation, innovation and partnerships, Professor Maulana, expressed gratitude for the disability centre’s impact on the university over the past year.

He noted that discussions on disability issues and the provision of accessibility and reasonable accommodations for students with disabilities have been intensified and taken more seriously.

The Disability Center aims to improve the competency of lecturers and teaching staff when working with students with disability, as well as provide counselling services and support.

Inclusivity for people with disability has been an important theme for the Australia-Indonesia Centre and its PAIR program.

The AIC recently published a report into digital inclusion guidelines for people with disabilities at Universitas Hasanuddin, based upon the Melbourne Social Equity Institute at University of Melbourne.

Feature image by PerDIK.