Gwangju Disabled Group: "Restrictions on Special Transportation for Severely Disabled Are Discrimination"

Complaint Filed with National Human Rights Commission by Jang Cha-yeon and Others

On the afternoon of the 11th, in front of the Gwangju Office of the National Human Rights Commission in Dong-gu, Gwangju, the Gwangju Solidarity for the Elimination of Disability Discrimination and the Disability Discrimination Prevention Coalition held a press conference regarding a complaint to the National Human Rights Commission about discrimination in the restriction of special transportation services for people with severe disabilities. Photo by Min Chanki

Disability organizations in the Gwangju area have filed a complaint with the Gwangju office of the National Human Rights Commission, stating that "the restriction on the use of special transportation services for some severely disabled people in Gwangju is discrimination."

On the afternoon of the 11th, the Gwangju Disability Discrimination Abolition Solidarity and the Disability Discrimination Prevention Promotion Solidarity held a press conference at the Gwangju office of the National Human Rights Commission in Dong-gu, stating, "In 2019, the disability grading system was revised so that grades 1 to 3 were classified as severe and grades 4 to 6 as mild. According to related regulations, although existing grade 3 disabled persons fall within the scope of severely disabled, Gwangju restricts their use of special transportation services."

They said, "Special transportation services for the disabled were created as a remedial measure to resolve fundamental rights violations and discrimination issues arising from the inability of disabled people to access public transportation," adding, "This is not a privilege for the disabled but a right that must be provided by the state and local governments to address discrimination in mobility rights that they have failed to resolve."

They continued, "Disabled people who have difficulty using public transportation should be able to use special transportation services regardless of the type and degree of their disability," explaining, "The 'Enforcement Rules of the Act on the Promotion of Mobility Convenience for Transportation Disadvantaged' and the 'Gwangju City Ordinance on the Promotion of Mobility Convenience for Transportation Disadvantaged,' which legally define the eligibility criteria, specify that people with walking disabilities are eligible users."

Furthermore, they stated, "However, despite these regulations, Gwangju has simply defined the scope of walking disabilities based only on whether a person uses a wheelchair," and added, "Through this complaint, we raise issues regarding the transportation environment and demand institutional improvements to ensure that many disabled people do not experience inconvenience."