Being Disabled in Bangkok: A Conversation with Sawang Srisom (2.18)

No one is going to say that Bangkok is an easy city to
navigate. Near-constant congestion, poorly paved sidewalks,
non-existent pedestrian crossing areas… that's just a start. Now
imagine that from the point of view of someone who uses a
wheelchair. Suddenly these difficulties seem like insurmountable
obstacles.

The show starts with a recap of the new "blowing up on
social media" scandal: It seems some mototaxi
drivers are placing a surcharge on passengers with additional
mass. But that's not the injustice we're talking
about on this episode. On today's show we chat with
Sawang Srisom, Secretary for Transportation for
All (T4A), a grassroots organization that's forcing
Thailand's bureaucracy to actually follow the law and make the
city -- specifically the BTS skytrain system -- fully accessible
to people with disabilities. Laws aimed at
supporting the rights of the disabled have only been on the books
in Bangkok since 1991, and that one didn't even address
accessibility. That didn't happen until 2005. Yes, you read that
right: There were no laws governing accessibility requirements
just over a decade ago. And since the BTS system construction
started 10 years before that, enabling officials a convenient
excuse for not including things like elevators in all but five of
the 29 stations. Amazing. To get action, T4A started
filing lawsuits against the BMA (Bangkok Metropolitan Authority
who oversee the BTS system) for failure to comply. The goal
wasn't financial compensation, but to force change. It went all
the way to the Supreme Court, and it's now been ruled that all
stations must have lifts installed on both sides of the
tracks. If you've used the BTS and thought "but I
see lifts and other accessibility additions. What's the problem?"
Listen to the show to find out how insane it is for wheelchair
users like Sawang to try and use those accessibility additions
you've seen. It often involves taking a taxi just to cross the
street. Fair warning? It's maddening to listen to.
The good news is that Thailand has the right policies on
the books. The problem -- and stop us if you've heard this one
before -- is getting bureaucrats to follow them. Good luck,
Bangkok. You've got a lot of work ahead of you. But clearly it's
the right thing to do. Because accessibility is for
everyone.
Love, Loathe, or Leave?

Not this week. Evo's voice (as you noticed) is giving out.
We'll try again next week.
Want more?

Drop us a line over at
 bangkokpodcast.com, or leave a
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at @bkkgreg or
@evoterra. We'll see you next week on The
Bangkok Podcast!


(Direct download .mp3)