An article on China's preparation for the next Paralympics. (Just for the record, the editor of the Rolling Rains Report did not make up the name of this conference.)
Beijing Builds 1,000 'Non-Obstacle" Restrooms
By Dave Reynolds, Inclusion Daily Express
November 17, 2004
BEIJING, CHINA--The Xinhua News Agency reported Wednesday that Beijing now has nearly 1,000 "non-obstacle" public restrooms.
Non-obstacle restrooms are accessible to people with disabilities, seniors, pregnant women, and parents with young children.
Liang Guangsheng, deputy director of the Beijing Municipal Administration Committee, told the fourth World Toilet Summit that it is important for the city to recognize the needs of these groups as it readies for the 2008 Olympic and Paralympic Games.
There were only 20 non-obstacle toilets in the city during the 1980s, according to the Committee.
"The design of public toilets should cater more on the human need and feelings instead of the style and appearance," Liang added.
Yu Changjiang, director general of the Beijing Tourism Bureau, said: "It is possible to make people enjoy using public toilets."
In August, Xinhua reported that Beijing, with a total population estimated at 14 million, had set up 32 parking lots reserved for motorcyclists and car drivers with physical disabilities. Authorities of the Beijing Municipal Traffic Administration said they plan to establish more such parking spaces around the city in anticipation of the Olympics and Paralympics.
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Source:
INCLUSION DAILY EXPRESS
International Disability Rights News Service
http://www.InclusionDaily.com