President Ma Ying-jeou on the morning of October 7 at the Presidential Office met with International Committee of Sports for the Deaf ( ICSD) President Dr. Donalda Ammons. In addition to expressing appreciation to Dr. Ammons, the president said the government is making every effort in preparing to hold the 21st Summer Deaflympics Taipei 2009.
Prior to holding discussions with Dr. Ammons, President Ma upon meeting his guest used sign language to express a warm welcome. During the meeting, President Ma said that Taipei City in 2003 successfully bid for the right to host the 2009 Summer Deaflympics. The president noted that this is the first time for Taiwan to hold an international scale athletics competition sanctioned by the International Olympic Committee. Nearly 4,000 athletes from over 80 countries have already registered to participate in the event. He said he is confident that the Deaflympics will be an athletics meet that will draw great attention.
President Ma furthermore said that the more a society is able to emphasize the rights of physically and mentally challenged individuals, the more civilized that society is. He said that during his tenure as the mayor of Taipei City, the city began offering news broadcasts on television in sign language. He said that this enabled the over 100,000 people in Taiwan with hearing impairments to be able to watch the morning news in sign language and understand what was happening in society. In addition, he said that select employees in the city government's Department of Health, Department of Civil Affairs, and Police Department have been trained to be able to communicate using sign language. The objective of this is to enable government agencies to better understand the difficulties encountered by residents with hearing impairments. The president said that the city government has also encouraged colleges, universities, high schools and vocational institutes to establish sign language clubs so that more students will learn how to communicate with the hearing impaired and be able to better understand their needs.
ICSD President Dr. Ammons said that she is delighted to see a country and a city place such importance on the rights of the hearing impaired. She said next year's Deaflympics will bring together the largest number of hearing impaired athletes in history. Dr. Ammons said she feels this is something Taipei should feel quite proud of and that the event carries deep meaning for the athletes participating. She expressed her appreciation to President Ma and the hosting body for the many efforts they are making in preparing for the event.
President Ma reiterated his gratitude to Dr. Ammons for visiting to Taiwan. He said he expects that Dr. Ammons will gain a comprehensive understanding of the work that Taiwan has carried out in preparation to hold the Deaflympics.
ICSD President Dr. Ammons and ICSD Vice President Mr. David Lenesman were accompanied to the Presidential Office in the morning to meet President Ma by Taipei City Mayor Hau Lung-bin, Sports Affairs Council Minister Tai Hsia-ling, 2009 Deaflympics Commissioner Emile C. J. Sheng, and Chinese Taipei Sports Association of the Deaf Chairman Chen Chi Ho.