Draft of Angolan sign language created, now seeking official approval

From here in Portuguese:

Sign language is the instrument of communication for the deaf community in Angola, but it has not yet been recognized. For this reason, the National Institute for Special Education created a draft for standardization of sign language, where the protagonists are those from the deaf community itself. The deputy director of the National Institute for Special Education, Jorge Pedro, explained that there is a draft for sign language whose approval depends on the Ministry of Culture, which has not yet recognized Angolan sign language. "Not being recognized legally, we cannot get interpreters in institutions such as hospitals, prisons and police stations, because we cannot afford it." he said. Jorge Pedro explained that only with the recognition of the language interpreters could find room in the Ministry of Public Administration, Employment and Security, andc in the Ministry of Finance. "Up to now, interpreters serve without a legal base in those institutions that hire them for a specific purpose", he said. For example, he said that recently the National Police force contacted the National Institute for Special Education to ask for an interpreter to help understand a disabled citizen who wished to make a complaint.