The National Human Rights Commission (NHRC) recommended that the Chairperson of the National Election Commission and the Chairperson of the Korea Media and Communications Commission improve systems to effectively guarantee the suffrage of people with disabilities.
On the 10th, according to the NHRC, a civic group filed a petition with the NHRC, saying that many people with disabilities were not provided reasonable accommodations in the process of exercising their suffrage during the 20th presidential election in 2022 and the 8th nationwide local elections the same year.
The NHRC dismissed the petition because it was not among those surveyed as it related to legislation by the National Assembly, but it issued a "policy recommendation" to the Chairperson of the National Election Commission and the Chairperson of the Korea Media and Communications Commission.
First, the NHRC recommended to the Chairperson of the National Election Commission that ▲ the number of pages of braille election brochures not be limited ▲ an implementation plan be established to provide ballots and election brochures that are easy for people with developmental disabilities to understand ▲ an amendment to the Public Official Election Act be pursued so that, when it is difficult for a person with a developmental disability to mark a ballot, the person can receive assistance from a voting assistant ▲ all polling stations, including early voting stations, be installed on the first floor or in locations with elevators.
The NHRC also proposed actively reviewing a plan to assign at least two Korean Sign Language interpreters when there are two or more speakers at interviews, debates, and policy debates organized by the Election Broadcasting Debate Commission. To that end, it recommended that the Chairperson of the Korea Media and Communications Commission revise the "Guidelines for Providing Broadcasting Programs for People with Disabilities" to expand sign language interpretation broadcasts across public broadcasting.
The NHRC said, "Providing reasonable accommodations for people with disabilities during the election process has a very significant impact on guaranteeing their voting rights," and added, "We hope to see system improvements that will practically guarantee the suffrage of people with disabilities."