Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, Nov 22, 2009 - Today, the members of the International Paralympic Committee (IPC) present in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, for the 2009 IPC General Assembly (GA) elected a new Governing Board.

It was the largest GA to date, with more than 350 participants from 100 National Paralympic Committees, five Regions, four IOSDs (International Organizations for the Disabled) and 22 Sports.

Sir Philip Craven (Great Britain) was re-elected President with 118 votes out of 130 possible for another four year term. Greg Hartung (Australia) was elected Vice-President by majority receiving 66 votes.

The following people were elected Member at Large:

Dato' Zainal Abu-Zarin, Malaysia
Mr. Jose Luis Campo, Argentina
Ms. Ann Cody, USA
Mr. Alan Dickson, Great Britain
Mr. Ali Harzallah, Tunisia
Ms. Hyang-Sook Jang, Korea
Mr. Patrick Jarvis, Canada
Mr. Andrew Parsons, Brazil
Mr. Miguel Sagarra, Spain
Ms. Rita van Driel, The Netherlands

The IPC Chief Executive Officer Xavier Gonzalez and the Chairperson of the IPC Athletes’ Council, Bob Balk, are also ex-officio members of the IPC Governing Board.

The Governing Board is the representative of the IPC Membership, elected at the General Assembly in accordance with nomination and election procedures adopted by the IPC Membership at the 2004 Extraordinary General Assembly. The GB is responsible for overseeing the affairs of the IPC in between meetings of the General Assembly. It is comprised of 15 members and holds meetings at least three times a year.

The IPC GB is primarily responsible for the implementation of policies and directions set by the GA. Additionally, the Governing Board provides recommendations on membership (conditions for membership and fees) to the General Assembly, including motions received from members. It is also responsible for approving budgets and audited accounts, IPC Rules and Regulations, membership of IPC Committees and the Paralympic Games.

The International Paralympic Committee (IPC) is the global governing body of the Paralympic Movement. The IPC organizes the Summer and Winter Paralympic Games, and serves as the International Federation for nine sports, for which it supervises and co-ordinates the World Championships and other competitions. The IPC is committed to enabling Paralympic athletes to achieve sporting excellence and to developing sport opportunities for all persons with a disability from the beginner to elite level. In addition, the IPC aims to promote the Paralympic values, which include courage, determination, inspiration and equality.

Founded on 22 September 1989, the IPC is an international non-profit organization formed and run by more than 160 National Paralympic Committees (NPCs) from five regions and four disability specific international sports federations (IOSDs). The IPC Headquarters and its management team are located in Bonn, Germany.

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EMPLOYER RESOURCES LAUNCHED AT NATIONAL EMPLOYMENT AND DISABILITY CONFERENCE

The United Nations Development Programme (UNDP), in collaboration with the Ministry of Women, Family and Community Development and the Johor State Government is organizing the National Conference on Employment and Disability.

Geared towards employers in the public and private sector, education and employment service providers, disability advocates and community support agencies, the Conference will be an interactive experience bringing participants together with international and national experts in the field, as well as Malaysian employers with direct experience in employing persons with disabilities (PWDs). This one-day conference will feature presentations on innovative employment practices and policies followed by feedback sessions for participants to offer reactions, suggestions and policy implications.

Two resources for employers will also be launched: a video aimed at encouraging employers to hire PWDs and counteracting negative stereotypes that they might hold regarding PWDs; and a booklet containing state-related information to guide employers in their efforts to successfully employ PWDs.

Additionally, an exhibition of prize – winning photographs courtesy of the International Labor Organization (ILO) will be held in conjunction with the Conference. The exhibition is titled “Beyond Barriers: Images of decent work for persons with disabilities in Asia and the Pacific“. It comprises 30 photographs from the 2007 Decent Work for Persons with Disabilities photo contest. This is the first time the photographs are exhibited in Malaysia.

PWDs represent an important development challenge worldwide as they are disproportionately undereducated, untrained, unemployed and poor. Employment is touted as crucial in promoting economic as well as social independence among the disabled.

The International Labour Organization (ILO) estimates that there are 370 million PWDs in the Asia Pacific region, with 238 million of them of working age. Their unemployment rate is usually double that of the general population and often as high as 80% or more.

There are currently 220,250 PWDs registered with the Social Welfare Department, of which 27,554 or 12 per cent of total registered PWDs are in Johor.

Y.A.B. Dato’ Hj. Abdul Ghani Othman, Menteri Besar Johor, Y. Bhg. Dato’ Meme Zainal Rashid, Director General of the Department of Social Welfare Malaysia, and James George Chacko, Assistant Resident Representative, UNDP  will officiate the event.

Details of the event are as below:

DATE & TIME	Monday, November 23, 2009 @ 9.30 a.m. (Refreshments are served at 11:00 a.m.)
VENUE	CH 301, Persada Johor International Convention Centre, Jalan Abdullah Ibrahim, Johor Bahru

 For more information, please contact ---

•  Anita Ahmad, Programme Manager, UNDP, T: +603-20915105,E: anita.ahmad@undp.org
• Mary Chen, UNDP Communications Consultant, M: +6013 - 6011 515, E: marywchen@gmail.com  
• Suriani Kempe, UNDP-UPENJ Project Manager, T: +607-266 6608, M: +6012-7900 204, E: suri.kempe@yahoo.com/ suriani@johor.gov.my

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Malaysia plays host to the 14th International Paralympic Committee (IPC) Conference and Assembly in Kuala Lumpur from November 19-22.

The General Assembly will see the election of a new committee which will set fresh directions for the movement from 2009-2013 term.

The IPC is the global governing body for the Paralympic Movement which organises the Summer and Winter Paralympic Games.

Founded on 22nd September 1989, IPC is an international non-profit organization formed and run by 162 National Paralympic Committees (NPCs) from five regions and four disability specific International Sports Federations (IOSDs).

The IPC currently recognises four Regional Organizations; the African Sports Confederation of Disabled (Africa), the Asian Paralympic Council, the European Paralympic Committee (Europe) and the Oceania Paralympic Committee (Oceania).

The Asian Paralympic Committee is the regional organization for the Asian region, based in Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia.

The ASIAN Paralympic President is Dato’ Zainal Abu Zain, who is also the President of the Malaysian Paralympic Council and Chairman of the 2009 IPC General Assembly Organising Committee.

Dato’ Zainal said the 14th IPC General Assembly and Conference will be crucial in further raising the profile of the Paralympic Movement in the region as well as globally.

Besides this, the conference will see in depth discussions on a myriad of issues such as eligibility for athletes with intellectual impairments, anti-doping education, IPC athlete licensing as well as a sports data management system.

It is hoped that the IPC gathering here will recommend action plans which can be translated into projects and bring about enormous benefits for family members, stakeholders as well as the movement itself.

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Date: 7 Nov 2009 (Saturday), Time: 5pm
Venue: Main Concourse, Bangsar Village II, Bangsar Baru, 59100 Kuala Lumpur
Attire: Something in Pink, the more outrageous, the more likely you might get spotted and win a prize!!

Programme (please note, this may be subject to change on the day of the OPN itself due to circumstances beyond our control) 5.00pm Arrival of Guests & Media
5.30pm KL Dumline Corps Kicks Off 5.40pm Abseilling by Rene’e Aziz Ahmad Aziz (guided by Ms Chan Yuen Li, Malaysian Eco-Challenge (BVII wall outside Coffee Bean) 6.00 pm Arrival of Harley Owners Group (Malaysia Chapter) with Pink Challengers (Dragon Boat team) 6.10pm Arrival of Mini Club
6.20pm Pink Fashion Show
6.40pm Welcoming Remarks by MC Reuben Anson
6.50pm Opening Songs by Juwita Suwito (singer-songwriter)
7.00pm Bhangra Jam by Celebrity Fitness
7.10pm “Boob Bobbing” Game
7.25pm Salsa Demonstration by DanceKL.com
7.40pm Radiology Malaysia OPN2009 Prize Presentation for Slogan and Digital Video Contests Winners!
7.50pm Laughter Yoga by Nomad Adventures
8.05pm Swing Demonstration by KL Swing!
8.15pm Topless Contest
8.35pm Jazzexercise by Celebrity Fitness
8.45pm Singing Performance by Elvira Arul
9.00pm Closing Performance by Sem Poi Fire Crew

Other activities:

• Get Spotted
• Face Painting
• Balloon Sculpting
• Hair & Nails…
• Health Care Booths: Sime Darby Healthcare, Gleneagles Intan
• OPN Opinion Polls

Harley Owners Group Ride for OutRageously PiNK Nite 2009 4.30pm: Harley Owners Group (Malaysia Chapter) – dressing of Harley Bikes at HQ, Lot 1480 Jalan 51A/221. 5.30pm: HOGs with Pink Challengers will take off from HQ , via Jln 222, Federal Highway to Bangsar. The HOGS will be wearing pink bras, sponsored by Xixili in support of breast health/cancer awareness.

The OPN2009 is sponsored by Bangsar Village II in collaboration with Venusbuzz, Lariche Community, College of Radiology Academy of Medicine of Malaysia and the Malaysian Breast Cancer Council. OutRageously PiNk Nite 2009 will be a culmination of the month-long Stand Up For Pink celebration in October at Bangsar Village. It’s going to be an exciting night, 7 Nov 2009! SEE YOU THERE!!!

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