[Opinion] Rights for the Disabled

Being disabled is neither the will of the god nor the will of human beings. It comes as bad luck out of nowhere irrelevant to the will of the person targeted, and forces him or her to put up with lifelong inconveniences. From disabilities of not being able to see, hear, speak or walk to mental disabilities, the disabled usually spend their whole lives without feeling the joy of life like others do, without being treated like others. It is told that those who live with such burdens of structural unfairness take up 10 percent of the population of the whole world.

On August 25 at UN headquarter in New York, a scene of cheers, claps and tears out of dramatic impressions was created. The pact for the rights of the disabled was adopted under the name of the UN. The basic features of this pact are protection for disabled women and children, the prohibition of inhuman treatment against the disabled and the protection of their human rights, guarantees on the right of equality of the disabled, and the guarantees of the right of transportation aimed at supporting the independence of the disabled. It was an event that made it natural for anyone to say, “This is a great day for the UN and the disabled.”

The domestic population of the disabled in Korea is about 2.15 million, which is 4.6 persons per million. According to the statistics of the Ministry of Health and Welfare, surprisingly, the disability caused by diseases and accidents surpasses those born with disabilities with a percentage of 89 percent. This leads to the conclusion that the number of the disabled can decrease with proper responses on various sicknesses and with prevention of accidents out of unawareness of safety measures and car accidents. About 35 percent of the disabled population finds it difficult to lead their lives without the help of others. Some 60 percent of them cannot afford the rehabilitation support equipment even if they are in need of it. This shows well the circumstances the disabled are exposed to.

The confusion aroused by the judgment of the Constitutional Court of Korea that found only those with sight disability to obtain massage certificates unconstitutional has finally found a way to be resolved. The National Assembly passed the amendment bill on the Medicine Act so as to allow only those with sight disability obtain massager certificates. The word “handicap” itself already contains the premise that the disabled are disadvantaged than those without disabilities. A society is desirable where those without disabilities show readiness to care for and understand the inconveniency and the pains the disabled go through. Anybody can be disabled in the future, and nobody can be sure that one of his or her descendants will not be disabled.

Kim Chung-sik, Editorial Writer, skim@donga.com