Gwangsan-gu, Gwangju, Provides Day Activity Services for Disabled Persons 'Without Age Restrictions'

Court Abandons Appeal Following 'Illegal' Ruling

Gwangsan-gu Office Building in Gwangju.

Gwangsan-gu, Gwangju, has decided to forgo an appeal against a court ruling that declared the administrative measure of stopping daytime activity services for people with developmental disabilities solely because they exceeded the age of 65 as illegal.

On the 9th, Gwangsan-gu announced that it had responded with an opinion to abandon the appeal in the administrative lawsuit. As a result, daytime activity services for people with developmental disabilities in Gwangsan-gu can now be provided without any age restrictions.

The district had been providing daytime activity services to those aged 18 and over but under 65, based on guidelines from the Ministry of Health and Welfare. Using these guidelines as a basis, the district stopped providing services last May to Mr. A, a person with developmental disabilities who turned 65.

Mr. A then filed an administrative lawsuit at the Gwangju District Court, and the court ruled in both the first and second trials that the administrative action restricting daytime activity services for people with developmental disabilities based on age limits was illegal.

Park Byung-gyu, the district mayor, said, “We hope this sets a precedent for people with developmental disabilities to receive support without age restrictions,” adding, “We hope the related guidelines will be promptly revised so that people with disabilities are not restricted in their rights for any reason and can fully enjoy their right to life.”

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