14 replies to this topic

[Apparelyzed]

Beijing guide labels disabled 'unsocial'

Disabled people can be unsocial, stubborn, controlling, defensive and have a strong sense of inferiority, according to an official Beijing Olympics guide set to spark outrage in the disabled community.

The Olympic manual for volunteers in Beijing is peppered with patronising comments, noting for example that physically disabled people are "often" mentally healthy.

Volunteers at the Olympics and Paralympics are instructed not to call Paralympians or disabled spectators "crippled" or "lame", even if they are "just joking".

The document, which indicates the Chinese hosts could use a swift education in political correctness, says the optically disabled "seldom show strong emotions".

"Physically disabled people are often mentally healthy," adds a copy of the guide, obtained by AAP.

"They show no differences in sensation, reaction, memorisation and thinking mechanism from other people, but they might have unusual personalities because of disfigurement and disability.

"For example, some physically disabled are isolated, unsocial, and introspective; they usually do not volunteer to contact people.

"They can be stubborn and controlling; they may be sensitive and struggle with trust issues.

"Sometimes they are overly protective of themselves, especially when they are called crippled or paralysed."

Volunteers are instructed never to "stare at their disfigurement".

"A patronising or condescending attitude will be easily sensed by them, even for a brain damaged patient (though he cannot control his limbs, he is able to see and understand like other people).

"Like most, he can read your body language," says the 2008 volunteer guide.

"Show respect when you talk with them.

"Do not use cripple or lame, even if you are just joking.

"Though life has handed many difficulties to them, disabled people are often independent and self-reliant.

"Volunteers should offer assistance on a basis of equality and mutual respect...

"Disabled people can be defensive and have a strong sense of inferiority."

China's treatment of the disabled has in the past angered swimming great Dawn Fraser, who cited it as one reason she won't be going to Beijing.

She said in April she had seen disabled athletes spat on in the streets in Beijing during university games in the mid-1990s.

Volunteers at the Beijing Games are also given some very specific instructions on how to sit, stand, walk and talk properly.

A handshake should last from three to five seconds, the manual states, and the body and arm should form a 60 degree angle.

An "appropriate" personal space on social occasions is from 1.2 to 3.6 metres, but for work colleagues it is 1.2 to 2.1 metres, and 2.1 to 3.6 metres is good for strangers.

When sitting, volunteers are told to avoid hooking the chair with one foot ("low-class and boorish"), stretching out their legs ("rough"), crossing the legs in a "4" shape ("cocky and impolite") and continually changing positions ("underbred").

When standing, the guide warns against shaking any part of the body ("careless"), putting two hands in pockets ("frivolous"), crossing both arms ("defensive"), standing with two arms or one arm akimbo ("offensive") and standing with two legs crossed ("too easygoing").

It says taking steps too large or too small looks "strained", though it does not specify how large the step should be.

The Olympics run from August 8-24, while the Paralympics follow from September 6-17.

Source: http://au.sports.yah...sabled-unsocial

[Trinity]

Apparelyzed, on Jun 1 2008, 07:13 PM, said:

"Sometimes they are overly protective of themselves, especially when they are called crippled or paralysed."

Because 'paralysed' is such an offensive word!!

You've got to love the Chinese and their quest to make sure nobody is offended!

Tx

[nomis]

Sounds like the 1950s.
China is catching up fast but just not there yet. Must go work on my 60deg handshake.

[Texaswheelz]

With disabled athletes like Zupan over there this year, it should be interesting.

[JT80]

that article is hilarious.

i swear it is a comedy script written by ricky gervais.

[HiltonP]

Texaswheelz, on Jun 2 2008, 04:35 AM, said:

With disabled athletes like Zupan over there this year, it should be interesting.

Being confrontational or aggressive with Orientals is a complete no-no, regardless of who you are (or think you are). If you raise your voice to them the shutters come down completely and you find yourself facing a blank wall.

The views held on disabled people by Oriental nations are little different to those held by Westerners, just not couched in politically correct wording. The West has progressed marginally in the last 30 years, only marginally, and more out of pity and guilt than genuine regard.

Edited by HiltonP, 02 June 2008 - 02:04 PM.

[HiltonP]

I've got an official letter from our government department (ITAC) which deals with tax rebates on motor vehicles warning doctors and disabled assessment agencies to beware when doing their evaluations because "disabled people lie about their condition and cannot be trusted"!

This from a government which will tell you they have the most liberal and modern constitution in the world. Like I said earlier, the Chinese are not alone in their beliefs.

[Webwych]

I read this last week on the 'Guardian' Newspaper online. I am not sure what horrified me most, the initial story or the comments that followed it from able-bodied people saying how right the Chinese were about us bitter, self-pitying disabled lot who want it all handed to them on a plate. .

I'm not surprised by this though, I mean China is not the bastion of human rights anyway so why should disabled foreigners fare any better?

[Trinity]

So was it all a case of lost in translation????


Beijing 'sorry' for offending disabled
AAP - June 2, 2008, 3:42 pm

Beijing Olympics organisers have apologised for offending disabled people and scrapped a training manual for volunteers which sparked a wave of protest.

The offending guide has been pulled while authorities revise "inappropriate language" applied to the disabled.

"Some mistakes were made in describing people with disabilities," said a website statement from the organising body BOCOG.

"We would like to express our sincere apologies to those organisations, athletes with disabilities and friends who were offended by our publication."

The manual had met with foreign and domestic criticism, the statement said.

"As such BOCOG has decided to recall and rewrite this booklet."

The manual for volunteers, first reported by AAP, said disabled people could be unsocial, stubborn, controlling, defensive and have a strong sense of inferiority.

Physically disabled people were "often" mentally healthy, it said.

Volunteers at the Olympics and Paralympics had been instructed not to call Paralympians or disabled spectators "crippled" or "lame", even if they were "just joking".

Zhang Qiuping, director of Beijing's Paralympic Games, had attributed the problems last week to poor translation.

"Probably it's cultural difference and mistranslation," Zhang told the Associated Press in Beijing.

The Chinese-language version of the text, however, was nearly identical to the English, using essentially the same clumsy stereotypes to refer to the disabled.

"For the problems ... that the guide used inappropriate language to describe people with disabilities, we've already asked the author to modify the relevant content."

"If it (language) was deliberate, than it's unforgivable," said Patrick Ng, secretary of the Hong Kong Paralympic Committee.

"But if it's just a mistake then it needs to be amended or changed so it doesn't cause more offence."

"The language used in this guide is certainly not ideal," said the British Paralympic team.

"However, the existence of such a guide shows that attitudes towards disability in China are developing and therefore should be seen as progress."

About 70,000 volunteers have been recruited for the August 8-24 Olympics, with 30,000 more being trained for the September 6-17 Paralympic Games.

But many others will work in unofficial capacities as guides at the city's bus stops and subway stations.

All told, volunteers are expected to outnumber the 500,000 foreign visitors expected for the Olympics.

Their scrapped instruction guide had told them that disabled people "show no differences in sensation, reaction, memorisation and thinking mechanism from other people, but they might have unusual personalities because of disfigurement and disability".

"For example, some physically disabled are isolated, unsocial, and introspective; they usually do not volunteer to contact people," it said.

"They can be stubborn and controlling; they may be sensitive and struggle with trust issues.

"Sometimes they are overly protective of themselves, especially when they are called crippled or paralysed."

China's treatment of the disabled has in the past angered Australian swimming great Dawn Fraser, who cited it as one reason she won't be going to Beijing.

She said in April she had seen disabled athletes spat on in the streets in Beijing during university games in the mid-1990s.

http://au.sports.yah...ending-disabled

Edited by trinity, 02 June 2008 - 04:12 PM.

[Abbey22]

About a year ago I was taking a religion class at the college I attend and halfway into the semester our prof. told us that we would be able to actually study abroad in China for two weeks. I was pretty excited, along with everybody else in the class. Our professor actually lived in China for a decade and had quite a few contacts there. Of course I signed my name up to go...and was told that I wouldn't be allowed because the people making all the arrangements refused to accommodate me-I wouldn't be allowing in many of the religious areas because I would be considered "unwholesome".

I mean I know it's China....but it still shouldn't allow them to treat people like their inhuman. China has their own Paralympic team! Come on!

Whenever I heard that Beijing was the location for the Olympics and Paralympics...I just shook my head and hope they get better treatment than I obviously would have. But after reading what you just posted...egh.

[edlee]

Everything I saw, at least in quotation marks, seem relevant and to the point. I could not find any problems with it at all, when considering who it was meant to inform.

I have never been in the politically correct crowd, and find those who are, to be hardly worth the read. It seems that they think they know, better than I, what words should offend me.

If I'm offended by something someone says to me,,, they WILL hear about it,,,, from ME thank you very much.

My tolerance for being referred to as crippled far exceeds that for being "defended" by someone who doesn't know me.
ed

[Trinity]

Although I understand what you are saying Ed, I don't agree entirely. Some of their points are very valid for example:-
"Show respect when you talk with them"
"Volunteers should offer assistance on a basis of equality and mutual respect..."
"Though life has handed many difficulties to them, disabled people are often independent and self-reliant."

However comments such as :-
physically disabled are isolated, unsocial, and introspective; they usually do not volunteer to contact people.
"They can be stubborn and controlling; they may be sensitive and struggle with trust issues.
"Disabled people can be defensive and have a strong sense of inferiority."

are gross generalisations and imo not representative of most disabled people. There are always the minority but it must be understood that they are the minority not the rule. It is like saying that black people are gun toting gangbangers or Germans are nazi loving Jew haters, clearly not the case (before anyone jumps on the band wagon these are just examples and not representative of my views!) For China to have even produced this manual is a step forward for them but it needs some modification and refinement.

Trinity X

[Yong]

HiltonP, on Jun 2 2008, 08:34 AM, said:

Being confrontational or aggressive with Orientals is a complete no-no, regardless of who you are (or think you are). If you raise your voice to them the shutters come down completely and you find yourself facing a blank wall.

The views held on disabled people by Oriental nations are little different to those held by Westerners, just not couched in politically correct wording. The West has progressed marginally in the last 30 years, only marginally, and more out of pity and guilt than genuine regard.

I don't know if you wanted to fight fire with fire, but just FYI, calling someone from ASIA an oriental can be very offensive. The term 'oriental' used to describe people of the Asian race became politically incorrect a couple decades ago.

I'm not Chinese and I don't intend to defend the Chinese on their Olympic guide to 'handling and treating' disabled -- as I was appalled at the article myself -- but just letting you know...if you want to be politically correct.

[HiltonP]

Yong, on Jun 3 2008, 05:49 AM, said:

...if you want to be politically correct.

No I don't, but thanks for the offer.

Edited by HiltonP, 03 June 2008 - 07:33 AM.

[edlee]

For me,, Political correctness is an oxymoron.

ed