Hi Yuna Kim,
I just stumbled upon your blog and I think it is such a great idea! I just
wanted to ask and discuss... Does Korea have any laws that are similar to
the ADA (1990) in America? As a Korean who is handicapped, I've always been
curious about this topic. Many Koreans still have the mind set of disabled
people being incapable and discriminate against them. In addition,
transportation and wheelchair accessibility still lacks in many public
places in Korea, not including the rural areas.
Thank you,--H
I just stumbled upon your blog and I think it is such a great idea! I just
wanted to ask and discuss... Does Korea have any laws that are similar to
the ADA (1990) in America? As a Korean who is handicapped, I've always been
curious about this topic. Many Koreans still have the mind set of disabled
people being incapable and discriminate against them. In addition,
transportation and wheelchair accessibility still lacks in many public
places in Korea, not including the rural areas.
Thank you,--H
First off, thank you very much. I hope this can be helpful.
Korea does have similar laws, the most prominent being the Act on Guarantee of Promotion of Convenience of Persons with Disabilities, Elderly People, Pregnant Women, etc. Article 4 of that guarantees “the equal right to use facilities and equipment.”
This may make you wonder why access is lacking in so many areas. (Although, to be fair, access is improving steadily, particularly in areas of public transit and new buildings in larger cities.)
First, the ADA itself has numerous exceptions, including “grandfathering in” old buildings. Korean law has a similar exception.
Second, laws do not equal enforcement. Korea has laws prohibiting speeding, red lights, and prostitution. Most US states have laws against underage drinking and marijuana. Neither seem to matter too much to most citizens (that is, the significant percentages who are breaking the law).
A way of making the law have more “teeth” has to do with statutory and punitive damages—the ability of a plaintiff to receive money above and beyond any actual harm suffered. By forcing defendants to pay, the law creates a strong incentive against behavior, and by giving plaintiffs extra money, the law gives an incentive to sue (so that private citizens, instead of police or prosecutors, wind up enforcing the law).
Whether this is a good approach or not is a subject of intense debate (more enforcement of law versus seemingly disproportionate outcomes—death penalty for a speeding ticket would stop speeding, but does it seem fair?). In any case, while the USA generally uses both statutory and punitive damages (minimum damages are part of the ADA), Korea does not. Hence the ADA equivalent in Korea has very few people interested in enforcing it, and very little teeth.
This doesn’t mean there are no options in Korea. If a building does not comply (and there are numerous and detailed standards in Presidential Decrees and Regulations) then an offended person could complain to the appropriate regional office (Si-cheong or Gu-cheong) and ask local regulators to ask the offender to come into compliance. Not as forceful as statutory or punitive damages, but such a procedure also avoids the flood of (sometimes unnecessary or ideological) lawsuits the US sees.
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