Johannesburg, South Africa (Commonwealth Union)_The power of hearing is a sense most take for granted but for those who are hearing impaired, being unable to hear also means the inability to participate in discussions, pursue academics, enjoy entertainment and even be left out of sports and other extracurriculars. South Africa is changing that. President Cyril Ramaposha signed a law that recognizes Sign as an official language in South Africa.
South Africa’s recognition of Sign as its twelfth official language is a massive breakthrough, signaling new hope for the hearing impaired. Sign is now accepted officially in South Africa alongside English, isiZulu, Afrikaans and some other languages, to help protect the rights of the deaf and promote inclusivity in the nation.
For the hearing impaired, even every day activities like getting into a bus and communicating the destination has been a challenge. In fact, getting by every single day was challenging. Now with Sign becoming an official language, the pathway is open for the hearing impaired to have better access to most things taken for granted by regular citizens.
South Africa has only about 40 schools and one tertiary school for the hearing impaired. While accessibility for the hearing impaired is an imperative and recognizing Sign as an official language is a step in the right direction, there’s still much work to be done to improve access.
Language activists call Sign a rich and beautiful language but the snag occurs when everyone is not equipped enough to understand or reciprocate. But ever positive, these activists do believe that Sign can be developed even more to add to this richness and the diversity of languages in South Africa.
South Africa joins 41 other countries who recognize Sign as an official language. Of these, only four countries in Africa – Kenya, South Africa, Zimbabwe and Uganda officially recognize Sign as an official language. South Africa has one Member of Parliament who is hearing impaired and who has been campaigning for this law.
The journey has now begun and with the signing of this law, barriers are being removed and dreams are coming true for the hearing impaired in South Africa.
