disabilities, but rather the fact that children have various abilities should naturally be accepted right from the beginning, and some kind of support should be provided for those who need it. This debate took place not from the perspective of the education of disabled children, but from the perspective of the education of children with special needs. The support given in accordance to their needs is very important. In June 1996, UNESCO and the Spanish government held a World Congress on Education for Children with Special Needs, and the Salamanca Declaration and Action Principle was adopted, based on the principle of inclusive education, or inclusion.
Inclusion International's policy is inclusion. The organization is trying especially to realize inclusive education. Besides this, other policies of the organization include full citizenship, self-determination, and family support. These policies aim to solve the problems of people with disabilities or unusual characteristics by supplementing the environment surrounding them. In other words, the way the problem is to be solved is by completing the support system. Through regarding disability as a characteristic that entails special needs, we can consider that people with disabilities are to be given the support that they need and, by this, that services are beginning to become guaranteed as a system, and not just as something that is available in special places.
I. Miscellaneous
1. Influence of the Great Hanshin Earthquake and Relief Measures
In the unprecedented disaster of the Great Hanshin Earthquake, more than 6,000 people died, and hundreds of thousands of people suffered injuries and/or damage to their property. This large scale disaster, striking directly at modern city life, gave many people problems such as have never been experienced on that scale in Japan. Especially unimaginable were the hardships of people with disabilities and their families living in the community. Various kinds of reports were published in order to have a record for the future of these sad, serious experiences, and to be able to plan measures for the future; also included were statements of appreciation for the rescue and support activities. Some of the major relevant reports will be introduced here.
"Parents and Children Who Fought the Earthquake -- Testimonials of 100 Persons" is a report of experiences of members of the Hyogo Prefecture Parents' Association for the Mentally Retarded; it consists of testimonials (notes) by the parents. Many members of the Association were victims of the earthquake, including its vice president. The testimonials are very vivid, describing individuals' experiences, the role of the Association, community living and the disaster, the meaning of the support centers as a basis for help, and the difficulties of the community workshops that had been managed with poor support.
"Catch That Person's Voice -- the Great Hanshin Earthquake and People with Disabilities" was edited by the Hyogo Committee for a Survey of the State of Affairs, National Association for the Study of People with Disabilities; it consists mainly of survey reports, together with some notes on experiences and proposals. Because it is a research organization, it used survey research methods to identify problems; it proposes sharp insights that are true across all kinds of disabilities.
One very special report is "The Great Hanshin Earthquake -- Relief Volunteer Activity Reports". This describes in detail the involvement of the National VYS Liaison Association in the relief activities of the Japan Epilepsy Society, mainly through reports that were received by facsimile at that time. Among other reports there is "At That Time, 'Ostomate' Was (Japan Ostomy Society), and "Report of the Survey of Refuges Taken by Persons with Visual Disabilities in Areas Stricken by the Great Hanshin Earthquake" (Japan Committee on Welfare for the Blind). "The Great Hanshin Earthquake -- Records and Recommendations" (Kinki Block Association of Directors of Facilities and Directors of Rehabilitation Consultant Officers for People with Physical Disabilities" is an excellent report, but "Support for People with Disabilities in Disasters" by the National Social Welfare Council is a meaningless report, lacking a feeling of reality.
