Australian Internet Sites Must be Accessible to the Disabled

In contrast to the recent U.S. case that held that websites are not covered under the Americans With Disabilities Act, (see E-tips, October 24, 2002), the Australian Human Rights Commission has reaffirmed that equality of access is still a requirement under Australian law. The media release notes that Australian websites must follow the World Wide Web Consortium (W3C) Web Accessibility Initiative Guidelines ("Guidelines") to avoid violation of Australian law. To view the Australian Human Rights and Equal Opportunity Commission's press release, visit: http://www.hreoc.gov.au/media_releases/2002/72_02.html For the Guidelines, visit: http://www.w3.org/WAI/