Taiwan Church News 3246 Edition May 12 - May 18, 2014 Headline News Tainan Decides to Become The Most Friendly Barrier-Free City! Reported by Lin Yi-ying On May 6th, in parliamentary's public hearing , titled as "If this is not barrier, then what is barrier? How to become a barrier-free and accessible city?", Lin Bun-hoa -Managing Director of Cheng Fong-hsi Culture and Educational Foundation - frankly complained: "We, the disabled people in the city, are just like dogs running in the bush. We always get stuck by barriers and felt no dignity"! According to the law, People with Disabilities Rights Protection Acts, the government should offer barrier-free space for the disabled. But, in current Taiwan environments, there are always many barrier or road block located before the entrance into park, school and pedestal avenues. These barriers actually bring extreme threat and danger to the disabled people. As a disabled person with an electric wheeler and always blocked by these barriers, Lin Bun-hua urges every city government in Taiwan to remove these barrier or blockade as soon as possible. Liu Jin-chon, Board Director of The League of Welfare Organization for the Disabled, expressed this barrier-free issue for the disabled has been raised by their organization since 2006. Liu said that there must be 150 cm wide space to enable an accessible environment for the disabled. Yet, Professor Chang Heng-hau of Sociology Department from Taipei University talks in straight: "It is a discrimination against the disabled to set up kinds of barrier in Taiwan's public spaces". Professor Chang also criticizes the commonly held mindset on setting barrier or blockade for public safety reason, as it easily sacrifices the accessible rights and freedom of the disabled. To respond an earnest call of removing all barriers in Tainan, effected through a city council's public hearing and a wave of media coverage on March 19, Tainan City Government agrees and promises to remove about 400 barriers at the entrance of each park before the end of June 2014 in order to let Tainan become the most friendly accessible city for the disabled. Translated by Peter Wolfe |