.

"NSW practices electoral apartheid"
says Ann-Mason Furmage,
President of the Physical Disability Council of NSW.

Equality of access to the democratic system is the basic right of every eligible voter in NSW.

Voting is the fundamental act and responsibility of citizenship in this country; it is so fundamental that we fine those who don't vote.

People with physical disabilities are being discouraged from voting by the State Electoral Office's inability to place polling centres within accessible community venues.

An audit of accessible polling places in NSW today, reveals that only 14% of polling places are accessible. Four electorates have no accessible polling places at all.

If you live in the electoral districts of Bathurst or Goulburn and have a disability requiring an accessible polling place, you cannot vote on Saturday March 24th.

Postal voting and pre-polling are inappropriate as they keep people with physical disabilities out of sight. People with physical disabilities are not eligible for postal voting as they do not satisfy the eligibility criteria.

The State Electoral Office has had four years to plan for this election. In spite of Access to Democracy consultations and Disability Action Plans, the State Electoral Office has failed to take into account the needs of people with disabilities to vote as equal citizens with and within their own local communities.

One thing is certain; any person with a disability who doesn't vote will be fined.