Seoul City Proposes Meeting with Jeonjangyeon... January 19 Before Seol Holiday

Final Proposal for Private Joint Meeting with Disabled Persons Organizations

[Asia Economy Reporter Kiho Sung] The Seoul Metropolitan Government and the Seoul Transportation Corporation announced on the 17th that they will engage in talks with Jeonjangyeon to minimize citizen inconvenience caused by subway protests. In particular, as the prolonged protests continue to cause difficulties for citizens, a final private joint meeting with Mayor Oh Se-hoon and disability organizations is requested on the afternoon of the 19th, before the Lunar New Year holiday.

So far, the city and the transportation corporation have made considerable efforts, holding five rounds of consultations to arrange a meeting with Jeonjangyeon. Currently, Jeonjangyeon continues to demand a one-on-one meeting, making it difficult to reach an agreement, but continuous discussions are underway.

The city has proposed free discussions on mobility rights and disability rights budgets during meetings with disability organizations. On the 9th of this month, a joint meeting was also held with nine disability organizations to listen to their difficulties, showing efforts to communicate with disability groups.

Jeonjangyeon's demands include a 1.3 trillion KRW increase in the national budget for the "Disability Rights Budget," which covers increased funding for deinstitutionalization of disabled persons, disability activity support, and lifelong education support. They have also demanded one-on-one meetings without the presence of other organizations and have expressed refusal to accept joint meeting formats.

However, there are pros and cons regarding deinstitutionalization, and to gather opinions from all disabled persons, it is necessary to hear voices from various organizations. Therefore, the Seoul Metropolitan Government holds the position that social consensus must be reached and that joint meetings with various organizations are essential for rational discussions.

Since the deinstitutionalization discussion concerns demands for all disabled persons, collecting opinions from only a specific organization limits the ability to listen to difficulties and apply effective policies, and may also raise issues of fairness with other organizations.

The city plans to discuss the city's role and support measures regarding the disability rights budget through future joint meetings. In particular, although the "Disability Rights Budget" demanded by Jeonjangyeon falls under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Economy and Finance and other government bodies, the city intends to actively engage in discussions on role-sharing and conveying opinions with the government, even if it is not directly responsible.

The 1.3 trillion KRW national budget for disability rights, including deinstitutionalization, activity support, and lifelong education support demanded by Jeonjangyeon, is under the jurisdiction of the Ministry of Economy and Finance and other government agencies.

Meanwhile, the Seoul Metropolitan Government is steadily implementing transportation welfare policies, including mobility rights for the disabled, centered on its core policy of "Walking Together with the Vulnerable."

Regarding the "one station, one route" initiative, through continuous efforts by the Seoul Metropolitan Government, elevators have been installed in 319 stations, accounting for 95% of the total 337 stations, and efforts are being made to install elevators in all 337 stations by 2024 to improve mobility rights.

A Seoul city official stated, "We hope that diverse discussions will take place in the process involving disability organizations, and we ask for active participation in the joint meetings."

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