To whom it may concern,

I am writing to voice my objection to the recent application made by Village
Roadshow, Greater Union, Hoyts and Reading Cinemas requesting exemption from
the Disability Discrimination Act for a period of two and a half years.

The request from these major corporations for exemption is at odds the
Federal Governmentıs Media Access Discussion Report, the Cultural Ministers
Council National Arts and Disability Strategy and Article 30 of the UN
Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.

As one of the nearly 4 million Australians who have hearing impairments
along with an aging population, technological solutions to access such as
captioning and audio description for cinema is a priority to ensure the
rights of all Australians (regardless of impairment) to full participation
and enjoyment of our communityıs cultural life.

I strongly oppose the application by these cinemas and urge the Commission
to reject this application for exemption.

Yours Sincerely
Amr Abdallah