Persons with Disabilities Are Also Masters of Society

 

December 3 is the international day of persons with disabilities.

In October 1992 the 47^th Session of the UN General Assembly designated this day with the purpose of raising the social awareness of and concern for the problem of persons with disabilities, defending their rights of and encouraging them to participate in social life including politics, the economy and culture.

On this occasion we will see the situation of the person with disabilities in the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea.

The DPRK respects the personality of persons with disabilities and ensures their socio-political rights and interests by law.

The Labour Law for Factory and Office Workers in North Korea, promulgated in June 1946 after the liberation of the country from the military occupation by Japan, advanced measures for providing living conditions for persons disabled while working and by vocational disease; this was the beginning of protection of persons with disabilities in this country.

Later, the Law of the DPRK on the Protection of Persons with Disabilities was promulgated.

This law, which regulates the standard of the law on the protection of persons with disabilities, their rehabilitation, education and cultural life, labour and so on, contains articles on protecting their rights and interests in all sectors of social life and providing them with more stable and convenient living environment and conditions.

The Cabinet of the DPRK issued as its decision the Regulations for the Implementation of the Law on the Protection of Persons with Disabilities.

Modern prosthetic appliances factories have been built in several parts of the country, and a well-regulated national rehabilitation system for persons with disabilities is in place.

The Korean Association for Supporting Persons with Disabilities, organized in 1999, was reorganized in 2005 as the Central Committee of the Korean Federation for the Protection of the Disabled for the provision of better living conditions and environment for persons with disabilities.

The Central Committee of the KFPD carries on the work of improving the contents of vocational education in special schools for persons with disabilities and, at the same time, leads the vocational schools for the disabled to teach diversified knowledge of various sectors to the graduates of those special schools so that they could lead a diversified working life after graduation. In order to bring the hopes for art of persons with disabilities into full bloom, special schools including Taedong School for the Bind and Songchon School for the Deaf and Dumb are putting their artistic activities on a regular footing; on the other hand, the Korean Art Association of the Disabled is making the arts specialized by persons with disabilities. The Korean Sports Association of the Disabled is increasing the number of sport events for persons with disabilities, including table tennis, swimming, shooting and archery and is paying great efforts to raising promising sportspeople among them, with the result that great successes have been achieved in international sports games of the disabled.

The audience who saw the international tour performance of Pyongyang exchange group said that it was unbelievable they performed musical instruments and dancing as good as professional artistes, it reflects the realities of Korea where a protection policy for persons with disabilities is fully ensured.

Persons with disabilities in the DPRK are proud of the fact that they are also masters of society free from all cares in social life. They believe that they can, and should, also devote themselves to the development of society, for society expects them to do so and provides them with every necessary condition.