{"id":46250,"date":"2026-09-23T12:51:42","date_gmt":"2026-09-23T10:51:42","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/?post_type=news&#038;p=46250"},"modified":"2026-09-23T12:51:42","modified_gmt":"2026-09-23T10:51:42","slug":"international-day-of-sign-languages-calls-for-action-on-deaf-peoples-human-rights","status":"publish","type":"news","link":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/news\/international-day-of-sign-languages-calls-for-action-on-deaf-peoples-human-rights\/","title":{"rendered":"International Day of Sign Languages calls for action on deaf people\u2019s human rights"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"uSg02\">\n<div class=\"DrnCK\">\n<div class=\"HwXOf\">\n<div class=\"kcAOr t9ThB\" data-testid=\"RecipientWell\">\n<div data-tabster=\"{&quot;mover&quot;:{&quot;cyclic&quot;:false,&quot;direction&quot;:2,&quot;memorizeCurrent&quot;:false}}\">\n<div id=\"MSG_QAEu8\/EeQAA_TO\" class=\"___sj378o0 fly5x3f f1l02sjl f113hnb5\" role=\"heading\" aria-level=\"3\">\n<div id=\"61\" class=\"EditorClass ___18acxwi ftgm304 fr7e4de f1ids18y f1ohdurq f1fa7rqs f10pi13n f1a3p1vp fkhj508 f1hu3pq6 f11qmguv fly5x3f f1g0x7ka fhxju0i f1qch9an f1cnd47f f19f4twv f1tyq0we fz5stix g7toD\" tabindex=\"-1\" role=\"presentation\" aria-multiline=\"true\" aria-readonly=\"true\" aria-label=\"To: Wendy Mothata\">The world is marking International Day of Sign Languages this Wednesday, with the United Nations (UN) calling for greater action to recognise, protect and promote the human rights of deaf people.<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<div data-test-id=\"mailMessageBodyContainer\">\n<div class=\"XbIp4 jmmB7 customScrollBar GNqVo allowTextSelection\">\n<div id=\"UniqueMessageBody_38\" class=\"OuGoX BIZfh\" tabindex=\"0\" role=\"document\" aria-label=\"Message body\" aria-live=\"polite\" aria-atomic=\"false\" data-fui-focus-visible=\"\">\n<div>\n<div class=\"rps_46c8\">\n<div dir=\"ltr\">\n<div><\/div>\n<div>This year\u2019s commemoration is being observed under the theme, \u201cDeclaring Deaf People\u2019s Human Rights\u201d, which calls for action to make deaf people\u2019s human rights a reality in all areas of life, including ensuring full access through national sign languages.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>The UN says the day highlights the importance of recognising, protecting and promoting the rights of deaf people globally.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>According to the World Federation of the Deaf, there are more than 70 million deaf people worldwide, with more than 80% living in developing countries. Collectively, they use more than 300 different sign languages.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>The UN says sign languages are fully fledged natural languages and are structurally distinct from spoken languages. The Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities recognises sign languages as equal in status to spoken languages and calls for their recognition and promotion.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>This year\u2019s International Day of Sign Languages also coincides with two significant milestones for the global deaf community.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>The year 2026 marks the 75th anniversary of the World Federation of the Deaf and 20 years since the adoption of the UN Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>The UN says the Convention has played an important role in advocacy, driving change, shaping policies and strengthening the recognition of national sign languages.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>The UN says that while the milestones celebrate decades of progress made by deaf communities in advancing their rights, they also serve as a call for greater action to accelerate the full realisation of deaf people\u2019s human rights.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>International Day of Sign Languages is observed annually on September 23 and forms part of the International Week of Deaf People, which is being observed from <span class=\"x_spanWithBackgroundColor\">\u00a0September<\/span> <span class=\"x_spanWithBackgroundColor\">21 to 27, 2026<\/span>\u00a0under the same theme.<\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div><\/div>\n<div>&#8211;ChannelAfrica\/WendyMothata&#8211;<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n","protected":false},"featured_media":32562,"template":"","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_links_to":"","_links_to_target":""},"news-type":[78,26],"class_list":["post-46250","news","type-news","status-publish","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","news-type-featured","news-type-general_news","entry"],"acf":{"short_description":"This year\u2019s International Day of Sign Languages also coincides with two significant milestones for the global deaf community.","published_date":"","news_description":"This year\u2019s International Day of Sign Languages also coincides with two significant milestones for the global deaf community.","form_embed":"","author":"","image_caption":""},"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/46250","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/news"}],"version-history":[{"count":1,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/46250\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":46251,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news\/46250\/revisions\/46251"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/32562"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=46250"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"news-type","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/www.channelafrica.co.za\/channelafrica\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/news-type?post=46250"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}