Following upon the hugely expensive Beijing Olympics are the 2008 Paralympics Games, which began last Saturday. Groups of the disabled in China hope to use the Games as a chance to call attention to their plight.
Many public letters to Paralympics officials and handicapped athletes have shown up on China’s unofficial Internet sites, and there have also been organizations for the disabled calling for demonstrations against the Paralympics Games.
Liu Chunbao, a disabled person from Liaoning Province in China recently published an open letter on the Internet. The letter stated that he had been appealing for state assistance because of his disabilities for over 30 years. Instead of his receiving assistance, he was repeatedly threatened by the Chinese regime because of his appeals.
In his letter, Liu lodged a strong complaint against the Chinese Communist Party (CCP). He said that the current rules and regulations on appealing are only meant to fool people. Liu also described the Security Administration Punishment Act as an abuse of power by the Chinese regime. The law is used to oppress the Chinese people. Its system of labor camps is unconstitution and constitutes a regime sanctioned abuse of human rights.
Liu said that China’s one-party dictatorship and autocratic rule have made a mockery of its Constitution and system of laws. The judicial system is corrupt with court cases often decided based on hidden government political agendas. Human rights for the average Chinese citizen are never guaranteed.
Yang Wen, a paraplegic from Xi’an, Sha’anxi Province of China, agreed to a telephone interview with Radio Free Asia. Yang said that although there are laws providing for assistance to disabled persons, the laws are not enforced. At present, there are many cases of discrimination committed against disabled people in China. Even the facilities for disabled people are insufficient to meet current demands.
An organization calling itself the “Underground Chinese Federation of the Disabled” issued an appeal calling for the disabled who have suffered discrimination to go to Tiananmen Square on the opening ceremony day of the 2008 Paralympics Games to demand their rights. The federation has also called for support from kind-hearted people from both within China and the international community.
The Chinese Federation of the Disabled notes that there are over 80 million disabled people living in China today. Most disabled persons in China continue to face challenges because of their disabilities on a daily basis. There is a long history of prejudice against disabled persons in China and violations of the rights of the disabled happen frequently.
Original article in Chinese: http://www.epochtimes.com/gb/8/9/5/n2252784.htm
