Jeonjangyeon Resumes Subway Delay Protest During Morning Commute... 51-Minute Delay
Collision Accident Involving Man in His 60s on Seoul Line 1... Subway Stopped for About an Hour
“Please get off quickly!” On the morning of the 13th around 9 a.m., activists with the National Solidarity for the Elimination of Discrimination against Persons with Disabilities (Jeonjangyeon) blocked the departure of the subway bound for Oido Station at Samgakji Station in Seoul, prompting citizens to urge them to disembark. One citizen hurled insults and physically lunged at a disabled activist, but the police intervened. Amid the chaos, the disabled activists remained unmoved and called on the government to include the “Disability Rights Budget for 2023” in the national budget.
The morning subway commute in Seoul was disrupted due to Jeonjangyeon’s protest and an accident involving a homeless person. After about an hour of halted subway service, waiting citizens expressed their frustration.
At around 7:30 a.m., Jeonjangyeon held a press conference titled “The 29th Morning Subway Ride to Work” at Hyehwa Station in Seoul and conducted a delay protest on the subway. They blocked subway operations by standing in the subway doors and chanting slogans before disembarking at Samgakji Station. The total delay caused by Jeonjangyeon’s protest was 51 minutes. Normally, it takes about 16 minutes to travel by subway from Hyehwa Station to Samgakji Station.
Citizens’ dissatisfaction was intense. Some shouted, “Hold your assemblies and protests properly,” and “This subway is not for disabled people.” One citizen complained, “Can’t you protest while moving?” before getting off the subway. During this process, a commotion broke out involving the police and disabled activists. Some citizens engaged in violent behavior, including swearing and pointing fingers aggressively.
Park Kyung-seok, co-representative of Jeonjangyeon, apologized, saying, “We are sorry to the citizens inconvenienced by the morning subway protest,” but also shouted, “We cannot tolerate a society where families kill disabled people.” He added, “Last month, we requested a meeting with Deputy Prime Minister for Economy Choo Kyung-ho regarding the 2023 Disability Rights Budget but received no response. We hope at least a staff member will come out to discuss.” Since last month, Jeonjangyeon has been demanding that the Ministry of Economy and Finance (MOEF) include the Disability Rights Budget in the 2023 budget, but MOEF has not responded.
Subway Line 1 operations in Seoul were also halted for about an hour. At around 6:36 a.m., a train heading from Yongsan Station to Namyeong Station collided with a man in his 60s, presumed to be homeless. According to Korail and others, the accident occurred as the man was crossing the tracks illegally.
Due to this accident, northbound train operations from Namyeong Station to Cheongnyangni Station were temporarily suspended. Subway service resumed normally from around 7:32 a.m. The police reported that they evacuated about 1,000 passengers from the train to Namyeong Station and managed the accident scene.
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