The year 2004 is outstanding for the Union of the Deaf in Bulgaria (UDB). The organisation celebrates its 70 th Anniversary.
History goes back to the distant 1898 when the German Deaf pedagogue Ferdinand URBIH arrives in Bulgaria and lays the basis of the education of Deaf children. An eminent Bulgarian socially active man Dr. Stoyan BELINOV follows him and supports and enables the unification of hearing impaired persons. On his initiative the Society for the protection of the Deaf-Mute in Bulgaria is established, and on 12 July 1934 the constituent assembly of the Society of the Deaf-Mute in Bulgaria was held and attended by 61 delegates from around the country. The present Union of the Deaf in Bulgaria is its successor.
Nowadays the Union of the Deaf in Bulgaria has nearly 9000 members organised in 12 Regional organisations in the largest cities and 156 territorial and primary organisations around the country.
The Union of the Deaf carries on activities on the rehabilitation and social integration of persons with hearing impairment: looks after their social development, assists them in their educational and intellectual growth, carries on multilateral organisational, cultural, publishing and tourist activities. It also maintains the one and only Bulgarian Centre for Early Hearing and Speech Rehabilitation for children from 0 to 3 years of age with 5 cabinets in different cities around the country.
Having its own economic and manufacturing activity is one of the achievements of UDB, who owns 13 enterprises around the country called “Tih Trud” (“Silent Labour”). The main activities are sewing, knitting, furniture making, printing services and cardboard, electromagnetic valves, illuminants, shoe making, plastic processing, non-standard metal works, construction painting, etc. In 1999 UDB established its 14 th company which major line of activity is the provision of tourist services and hotel management and trade.
The social policy of UDB for decades has been accomplishing a number of advantages for its members. A great number of them have privately owned apartments and special attention is paid to the socially disadvantaged members by allotting financial aids, assisting them in obtaining social pensions, hearing aids and batteries.
The cultural traditions are as old as the Union of the Deaf itself. The first pantomime group is formed in the early 1930’s. Every two years the National UDB Art Festivals are organised. In recent years Deaf artists gained popularity through participation in concerts and a number of TV shows and proved themselves as talented hearing-impaired performers. In 1997 was printed the first Bulgarian Sign Language dictionary with more than 3000 words. Also sign language interpretation of the news was obtained. Bulgarian National TV presents once a week a specialised TV program for hearing impaired persons.
The international relations and cooperation are broad and comprehensive. The Union of the Deaf in Bulgaria is a Full Member of the World Federation of the Deaf (WFD) and works in close co-operation with similar organisations on the Balkans and in Europe. UDB is one of the founding members and UDB President Mr Vasil PANEV was elected to be the first president of the National Council of People with Disabilities in Bulgaria uniting 10 nationally represented NGOs of people with disabilities.
One of the greatest testimonies for the organisation was the hosting of the 8 th World Congress of WFD in Varna. The fact that the President of the Union of the Deaf in Bulgaria has been holding the Vice-Presidency of WFD for more than 24 years, and now is a WFD Honorary member fills us with pride.
In the hard times of political and economic changes in the country, despite the proposal of Comité International des Sports des Sourds (CISS) to renounce from this commitment, we hosted the 17 th World Games for the Deaf in Sofia in 1993 and we were acknowledged for our courage. The Union management found sponsors, organised and conducted the Games brilliantly and won the respect of international and Bulgarian society.
The strategy of the Union of the Deaf in Bulgaria is prompted by the new conditions in the country. UDB makes continuous efforts to demonstrate to society that hearing-impaired people can serve society not less than hearing people. UDB actively insists and fights for the consideration of Deaf people’s rights, for full access to information and communication through contemporary technical and communicative means, for the fulfilment of UN Standard Rules on the Equalization of Rights for People with Disabilities, for a fair social legislation. Many of these are already a fact, but of course, there is still a long fight with state institutions and society itself ahead of us. |
