THE RIGHT TO EDUCATION FOR CHILDREN WITH LEARNING DISABILITIES – FOCUSING ON PRIMARY EDUCATION 52 WELCOMING REMARKS 4. Tan Sri Hasmy Agam welcomed everyone to the forum and iterated the following: • Being a State Party to the Convention on Rights of the Child as well as the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities, Malaysia was obliged to ensure the right to education of children with disabilities including those with learning disabilities, was respected and recognized. Malaysia was duty-bound to extend all necessary assistance to children with disabilities to ensure that they have effective access to, and receive education in a manner conducive to achieve the fullest possible social integration and individual development. The Government was also duty bound to ensure that these children were not excluded from an inclusive, free and compulsory primary education on the basis of their disabilities. • While noting the Government’s many initiatives and commitments in ensuring equal access to education for children with disabilities, he highlighted the concerns of many quarters regarding the accessibility for children with learning disabilities. The categorization of children with disabilities as “educable” and “non-educable” made it almost impossible for children who suffer from serious learning disabilities to have access to education. He added that SUHAKAM was concerned over this legal categorization57 and argued that it raised a variety of problems as well as discriminated against children with learning disabilities. • The need for qualified and trained teachers in special education in particular the area of learning disabilities was also emphasized. He stressed that teachers are important players in order to ensure that effective education for children with learning disabilities thus enabling them to achieve their full potential. PLENARY SESSION I VOICE IT OUT: SHARING OF EXPERIENCES AND UNDERSTANDING THE CHALLENGES Panel 1: Long Life Learning or Mainstream Education? by Ms Teoh Hooi Ting, Secretary of United Voice 5. 57 Ms Teoh Hooi Ting has cerebral palsy and shared the following: • She attended mainstream school as a child as her parents were unaware of her learning disabilities. • Apart from having balancing problem due to the differences in the size of her legs (left leg is smaller than the right), she also has problems with her eyesight. Education (Special Education) Regulations 1997.