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Peter Tan · 12th February 2008, 15:07

LDMA,
After the protest by disabled people against AirAsia's discriminatory policies, they met us and allowed us to book online with the condition that we inform their call centre of our condition. However, wheelchair users are required to sign an indemnity form to absolve the carrier from all responsibilities should anything happen to us. I filed a complaint with the Ministry of Transport in Malaysia regarding that. I am not sure if this condition is still in place.

josh_ingu,
I am not here to look for a quarrel, so there is no need to nitpick on the petty. If you say what you said is not your opinion, ok, fine. I was just commenting on "what you said." Additionally, I did not assume that you have a position. How you assumed that I assumed you have a position is beyond my understanding.

Flying is not a luxury. It is a matter of choice. You can decide you want to take a bus from Singapore to Bangkok. Nobody will stop you from doing that. You can even decide you want to walk the entire length of the journey. That would make taking a bus a luxury. That is also a choice.

What I am talking here is the equalization of opportunities. It is about choices. It is about providing to disabled people the same that is provided to non-disabled people. It is as simple as that. There is no reason to subject disabled people to a narrow band of services only as we live among you in the community.

A "private entity" that is providing service to the public must make that service inclusive or run the risk of being branded practicing discrimination. The policy of not allowing one category of people to buy tickets is akin to telling a group of people from a certain ethnic group that they are not allowed to buy tickets too.

Cost has often been used as an excuse not to provide services or facilities to disabled people. Providing services and facilities for disabled people should be factored in as the cost of doing business. That is what AirAsia seems to be doing now by agreeing to spend RM6mil to upgrade their facilities and make it accessible to disabled passengers.

There is one thing that I agree with you. This is a tricky issue but that does not mean that we cannot come to a win-win situation for everyone concerned. Anyway, this entire debate, argument or whatever you want to call it is summed up in the Social Model of Disability. If you have the time to spare, please do look it up.

12th February 2008, 15:07	#68 (permalink)
Peter Tan Peter Tan is..... New Member Join Date: Feb 2008 Posts: 4 vCash: 500 Rep Power: 0	Re: Air Asia Rant LDMA, After the protest by disabled people against AirAsia's discriminatory policies, they met us and allowed us to book online with the condition that we inform their call centre of our condition. However, wheelchair users are required to sign an indemnity form to absolve the carrier from all responsibilities should anything happen to us. I filed a complaint with the Ministry of Transport in Malaysia regarding that. I am not sure if this condition is still in place. josh_ingu, I am not here to look for a quarrel, so there is no need to nitpick on the petty. If you say what you said is not your opinion, ok, fine. I was just commenting on "what you said." Additionally, I did not assume that you have a position. How you assumed that I assumed you have a position is beyond my understanding. Flying is not a luxury. It is a matter of choice. You can decide you want to take a bus from Singapore to Bangkok. Nobody will stop you from doing that. You can even decide you want to walk the entire length of the journey. That would make taking a bus a luxury. That is also a choice. What I am talking here is the equalization of opportunities. It is about choices. It is about providing to disabled people the same that is provided to non-disabled people. It is as simple as that. There is no reason to subject disabled people to a narrow band of services only as we live among you in the community. A "private entity" that is providing service to the public must make that service inclusive or run the risk of being branded practicing discrimination. The policy of not allowing one category of people to buy tickets is akin to telling a group of people from a certain ethnic group that they are not allowed to buy tickets too. Cost has often been used as an excuse not to provide services or facilities to disabled people. Providing services and facilities for disabled people should be factored in as the cost of doing business. That is what AirAsia seems to be doing now by agreeing to spend RM6mil to upgrade their facilities and make it accessible to disabled passengers. There is one thing that I agree with you. This is a tricky issue but that does not mean that we cannot come to a win-win situation for everyone concerned. Anyway, this entire debate, argument or whatever you want to call it is summed up in the Social Model of Disability. If you have the time to spare, please do look it up. __________________ _____________________ The DIGITAL AWAKENING Living one day at a time. www.petertan.com/blog/