Ensuring equal and effective access for deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals to early warning systems is an obligation of the state, according to a report by Maria Stylianou-Lottidi, Commissioner for Administration and the Protection of Human Rights.
The Commissioner had examined a complaint filed on July 31, 2025, by the Pan-Cyprian Organization of the Deaf against the Civil Defense Department, regarding the need to ensure that deaf individuals have access to information about emergency situations.
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As stated in its report, timely notification and warning of the population in the event of an imminent or unfolding danger is an essential element of civil protection and is directly linked to the protection of the life, physical integrity, and safety of every individual, as well as their property.
Access to these services, he emphasizes, cannot, therefore, be contingent upon a person’s ability to perceive an audible message or danger signal, nor may it be restricted or impeded for reasons related to disability.
In particular, it states that ensuring equal and effective access for deaf and hard-of-hearing individuals to early warning systems is a state obligation.
“It follows, therefore, that with regard to deaf individuals—and more broadly, with regard to people with disabilities— it is not sufficient to merely include them in the measures applicable to the general population; rather, it is necessary to adopt differentiated measures or procedures, which ensure in practice that any messages or warnings from Civil Defense reach these individuals in a timely, clear, and understandable manner, as well as that these individuals can, in an emergency, communicate effectively with the relevant government agencies,” he notes.
It is certainly positive, he adds, “that Civil Defense recognizes the existing gap in planning and in providing adequate and accessible means of communication for people with hearing or speech impairments in emergency situations, considering as a key priority the need to comply with the principles of universal access, equality, and non-discrimination, and expressing its intention to review the policies and technological measures it implements.
However, it notes, “the ongoing delay in implementing specific measures for the tangible inclusion of people with disabilities—and specifically, the exclusion of individuals—from timely emergency notification systems continues to place responsibility on the state and makes it accountable, first and foremost to its citizens and, secondly, to its international obligations.”
Therefore, the Commissioner states, all planned measures—specifically, first, the updating of the Special National Plans; second, the operation of CY-Alert; and third, the implementation of NG112, be advanced as a priority in a manner that ensures equal access for people with disabilities to early warning systems and emergency services, based on specific timelines, a roadmap with concrete actions and procedures, and close consultation with KYSOA and the Pan-Cyprian Organization of the Deaf.
This, it concludes, is also its recommendation to the Director General of the Ministry of the Interior and the Deputy Commander of Civil Defense, to whom the Report is submitted. The report is simultaneously forwarded to KYSOA and the Pan-Cyprian Organization of the Deaf.
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Source: CNA
