Gwangju City Inspects Human Rights Violation Factors Around Local Election Polling Stations

[Asia Economy Honam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Yoon Jamin] Gwangju Metropolitan City is inspecting inconveniences around polling stations ahead of the June 1 local elections.

On the 25th, Gwangju announced that it will conduct a human rights impact assessment of 26 early voting stations within the jurisdiction for the 8th nationwide simultaneous local elections on the 26th.

The human rights impact assessment of polling stations is being promoted as a policy to improve inconveniences for mobility-impaired groups such as the disabled, elderly, and pregnant women in exercising their voting rights, thereby enhancing human rights in daily life.

Since April, the city has held preliminary consultations with the Gwangju Metropolitan Election Commission, the citizen human rights practice group ‘Gwangju Inkkotjigi’, and the Gwangju Coalition for the Elimination of Discrimination against Persons with Disabilities to prepare evaluation criteria.

The evaluation team, consisting of 30 members including Gwangju Inkkotjigi and members of disability organizations, selected 26 out of a total of 97 early voting stations in the jurisdiction and plans to examine on-site whether there are any human rights violation factors.

The evaluation criteria are divided into areas such as ▲polling station accessibility ▲polling station entrance ▲inside the building where the polling station is installed, including the polling station location, entrance ramps, width of internal corridors, installation of elevators, and disabled-only restrooms.

Gwangju plans to analyze the inspection results (checklist) together with the evaluation team and request the Gwangju Metropolitan Election Commission to improve the human rights environment of polling stations regarding any human rights violation factors.

Yoon Mokhyun, Director of the Democratic Human Rights and Peace Bureau of the city, said, “We will do our best to improve citizens’ human rights awareness and sensitivity in daily life, ensuring that there are no inconveniences in exercising the voting rights fairly given to everyone.”

Meanwhile, ahead of the 7th local elections, Gwangju conducted a human rights impact assessment of 42 polling stations in the jurisdiction in April 2018 in cooperation with the Gwangju Metropolitan Election Commission, the citizen human rights practice group, and disability organizations, improving temporary ramps, temporary voting booths, and the placement of guides.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.