Rough and Winding Road to Polls

As the 16th presidential election comes up, many people demand that the current balloting system be changed in a fashion that could guarantee more voters easier access to ballots.

Presently, voters have to report to ballot posts in person to exercise their rights. Therefore, a large number of the disabled and the ailing elderly are not in substance allowed to cast their votes.

Therefore, even a sick person has to pull him/herself to the polls. In fact, there is no way to bring him/herself up to the polls. Furthermore, they have not received sufficient information regarding candidates.

Nationwide, the handicapped people reach up to 1.18 million, and the elderly living along occupy 5% of the total registered voters, or 3,501 people.

▽ Voter-unfriendly balloting; Park Sung-hyun, person with first degree disability (33, Seoul), went to a nearby local office to cast his ballot in the last local elections in June. The office did not have any ramp for the handicapped. Thus, four government officials had to lift him up. Park said, "Of course, peoples with disabilities come to vote. When setting up polls, the government should count us in."

This time, he received an application for the "residence ballot" sent from the local government office a couple of days ago. The residence ballot system enables disabled people or ailing people who have been hospitalized for a long time to vote in their residents or hospitals. But Mr. Park brushed off the offered by the office.

"When you tell me to vote at home, it means the handicapped should not come to the polls. It`s wrong. What should come first is to guarantee us easy access to the polls."

A civil rights organization conducted a research on the structures of the polls during the Oct. 8th by- and re-elections. Among the 97 polls in Seoul, only less than half (i.e. 45) had ramps.

Let`s take the United States for example. Details vary from state to state, but, generally, the disabled people can vote on the streets near the polls or through the drive-in polls. The French government gives money to the disabled for transportation charge.

Kang Min-soo, an official of Korea Differently Abled Federation, criticized, "Now, the government offers residence ballots. The government officials may think they do all they have to do. It`s wrong. We need access to the polls like any other normal person."

▽ Lack of information and support; Especially, the ailing senior citizens are left helpless. First, they have no access to the election-related information and the information on the candidates. Second, moving means a great hassle to them.

Kim Tae-boon (74), who lives alone in Yongsan Gu, Seoul, got a stroke three years ago and paralyzed in the left part of her body. Even though she has got better, she could not take a step without assistance.

Kim said with a grim look on her face, "When I went out, the three neighbors living upstairs would take me to my destinations. But I`m not sure whether they would help me on Election Day."

The elderly, who live alone, could apply for residence ballots, but most of them do not know of it.

Professor Suh Hye-kyung at Hanrim University remarked, "The ailing senior citizens living alone are left unattended due to the insufficient support and provision of information from the government. We need government actions not just for balloting, but also for improving their quality of life."

Dong-Yong Min mindy@donga.com