All polling stations should be made accessible for the physically challenged prior to January’s elections, disability activists said yesterday during a protest outside the Central Election Commission in Taipei.
“Participating in elections and politics is a basic human right of every citizen of the Republic of China,” Thousand Barrier-Free Organizations for the Disabled convener Ken Liu (劉俊麟) said, criticizing the commission for failing to make voting booths accessible for the physically challenged.
Taiwan March Foundation head Chen Hui-min (陳惠敏) said the government is choosing to “cut corners,” citing expense and hassle as an excuse to ignore physically challenged people’s constitutional right to “participate in politics.”
“The right to participate in politics is not just another benefit, it is something that should have been there all along, but has never been realized,” she said.
Activists cited polling stations that were inaccessible to people with physical disabilities, as well as a lack of braille ballots for the blind, poor sign language interpretation and lack of provisions for the disabled living in institutions to vote in nearby booths.
“Every time I go to vote, it is extremely hard. After I have gone through the trouble of marking my ballot, sitting in a wheelchair, there is still a huge gap between me and the ballot box,” said Vincent Huang (黃智堅) of the Disabled Hope Project Association, adding that he did not want voting booth staff to place his ballot in the box for him because his privacy would be compromised.
Liu said that rules requiring ballots be cast at the site of one’s household registration further undercut the rights of the severely disabled, many of whom live in institutions far from their registered addresses.
“As we need societal support and the provision of disabled-friendly facilities if we are to maintain our dignity, making sure political figures are aware of our needs is extremely important,” said Chuang Chi-ming (莊棋銘), an employee of the Taipei Independent Living Association. “If we are stripped of our voting rights, which political figures would care about the problems we face?”
In a break with typical official practice, no commission officials emerged to accept a petition from the protesters.
Neither a spokesman for the commission nor the responsible department director could be reached for a response, despite repeated calls.
SPACE VETERAN: Kjell N. Lindgren, who helps lead NASA’s human spaceflight missions, has been on two expeditions on the ISS and has spent 311 days in space Taiwan-born US astronaut Kjell N. Lindgren is to visit Taiwan to promote technological partnerships through one of the programs organized by the US for its 250th national anniversary. Lindgren would be in Taiwan from Tuesday to Saturday next week as part of the US Bureau of Educational and Cultural Affairs’ US Speaker Program, organized to celebrate the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, the American Institute in Taiwan (AIT) said in a statement yesterday. Lindgren plans to engage with key leaders across the nation “to advance cutting-edge technological partnerships and inspire the next generation of scientists and engineers,”
UNREASONABLE SURVEILLANCE: A camera targeted on an road by a neighbor captured a man’s habitual unsignaled turn into home, netting him dozens of tickets The Taichung High Administrative Court has canceled all 45 tickets given to a man for failing to use a turn signal while driving, as it considered long-term surveillance of his privacy more problematic than the traffic violations. The man, surnamed Tseng (曾), lives in Changhua County and was reported 45 times within a month for failing to signal while driving when he turned into the alley where his residence is. The reports were filed by his neighbor, who set up security cameras that constantly monitored not only the alley but also the door and yard of Tseng’s house. The surveillance occurred from July
A Japan Self-Defense Forces vessel entered the Taiwan Strait yesterday, Japanese media reported. After passing through the Taiwan Strait, the Ikazuchi was to proceed to the South China Sea to take part in a joint military exercise with the US and the Philippines, the reports said. Japan Self-Defense Force vessels were first reported to have passed through the strait in September, 2024, with two further transits taking place in February and June last year, the Asahi Shimbun reported. Yesterday’s transit also marked the first time since Japanese Prime Minister Sanae Takaichi took office that a Japanese warship has been sent through the Taiwan
‘SAME OLD TRICK’: Even if Beijing resumes individual travel to Taiwan, it would only benefit Chinese tourism companies, the Economic Democracy Union convener said China’s 10 new “incentives” are “sugar-coated poison,” an official said yesterday, adding that Taiwanese businesses see them clearly for what they are, but that Beijing would inevitably find some local collaborators to try to drums up support. The official, speaking on condition of anonymity, made the remark ahead of a news conference the General Chamber of Commerce is to hold today. The event, titled “Industry Perspectives on China’s Recent Pro-Taiwan Policies,” is expected to include representatives from industry associations — such as those in travel, hotels, food and agriculture — to request the government cooperate with China’s new measures, people familiar with
RSS