Minister Park Hong-geun of the Ministry of Planning and Budget, addressing the National Solidarity for the Elimination of Discrimination against Persons with Disabilities (Jeon Jang Yeon), which has been holding rush-hour commute protests day after day, said, "The government budget is not a subject of negotiation determined by the intensity of rallies or protests."
The Minister wrote on his Facebook page on the 19th, "Jeon Jang Yeon's rush-hour commute protests continued for a third week," adding, "Many citizens using the morning commute once again suffered inconvenience and harm."
Park said, "Please stop holding protests that repeatedly cause harm and inconvenience to citizens' daily lives, including their morning commute, by disrupting normal subway or bus operations," adding, "Voices calling for guaranteeing the rights of persons with disabilities must, of course, be respected, but to that end we cannot infringe on the rights of persons without disabilities or the nation's laws."
The Minister said, "We have consistently worked to guarantee basic rights such as the right to mobility and the right to work for persons with disabilities, and in the process of formulating next year's budget I am personally reviewing matters more meticulously than ever to ensure nothing is neglected," listing projects including ▲ strengthening vocational rehabilitation services for persons with severe disabilities ▲ expanding daytime and after-school activity services for persons with developmental disabilities ▲ expanding integrated care services for persons with the most severe developmental disabilities ▲ income security through expanding disability pensions and jobs for persons with disabilities, and added, "We are doing our utmost to further expand necessary support."
Regarding the "disability call taxi support project," for which Jeon Jang Yeon is demanding a budget increase, Park said, "With the 2005 budget, the work was transferred to local governments as a local administrative matter, changing to a system supported by local governments, but the state supports part of the vehicle purchase costs and operating expenses every year."
The Minister said, "We will responsibly review necessary disability policies and budgets based on the lives of persons with disabilities, policy needs, project validity, and fiscal principles," adding, "Conversely, we will not change budget principles and screening standards on the grounds of protests or sit-ins that disrupt subway or bus operations."
Jeon Jang Yeon, urging the guarantee of next year's disability rights budget, has been carrying out weekly subway boarding protests during the morning commute this month. The group said the previous day, "We will protest every day until a response comes from the Ministry of Planning and Budget." Due to this protest, at one point the previous morning, some trains on Seoul Station Lines 1 and 4 passed through without stopping.