The Organisation for deaf people in Flanders, Doof Vlaanderen, has launched a crowd-funding campaign so it can take Flemish Minister Jo Vandeurzen (CD&V) to court. The aim is to force Vandeurzen to provide more interpreting hours per deaf person per year, the Het Nieuwsblad, Gazet van Antwerpen, and Het Belang van Limburg reported on Saturday.
Deaf people have the right to a Flemish sign-language interpreter for 36 hours a year. That’s less than an hour a week. Doof Vlaanderen has been trying to get this changed for years, unsuccessfully.
“We are trying to raise 20,000 euros through a crowd-funding campaign, which will pay for the lawyers and cover the legal fees”, says Maartje De Meulder from Doof Vlaanderen. They had already raised more than 10,600 euros by Friday evening.
The Flemish agency for disabled people says the system should be reviewed this year. “We will see if we can increase the number of hours, if they will agree”.
The Brussels Times
