social-justice – YEWON KIM

2022.05.04 07:00
Kim Ye-won is a disability rights lawyer and a visually impaired survivor who lost an eye in a medical incident. Working at the Disability Rights Law Center, she became an outspoken advocate because she was outraged that society routinely ignores people who cannot easily speak for themselves. Kim has spoken publicly on heated national debates—such as subway protests led by disability activists and the recent overhaul of prosecutorial powers—and has written a book reflecting on everyday violences that wound marginalized people.

On criminal justice reform, Kim rejects the current “complete removal of prosecution’s investigative powers” approach (commonly debated as 검수완박) as a flawed outcome that could disadvantage ordinary citizens. She supports the principle of separating investigation and prosecution, but argues the real reform should restore prosecutorial investigative supervision while making police the primary first-responders. That supervisory “double-check” would protect victims who find it difficult to pursue appeals: Kim notes only a small fraction of police non-prosecution decisions are contested, leaving many aggrieved citizens without effective remedies.

Kim defends disability-led protests—such as actions by the National Solidarity for the Elimination of Disability Discrimination (Jeonjangyeon)—as necessary to expose persistent barriers to mobility, and criticizes political leaders for stoking blame instead of seeking solutions. She points out that Korea’s Disability Discrimination Act already requires reasonable accommodations, but implementation fails mainly for lack of political will and funding. Kim urges policymakers to invest in accessible infrastructure, stop weaponizing public frustration for political gain, and cultivate solidarity so that disabled people’s dignity and practical rights can be restored; her book and legal work stem from that conviction that change is possible when society chooses to act.

Original source: [피플&포커스] 거침없이 외치는 변호사 김예원 “약자 목소리 외면에 ‘분노’” (Source: the news outlet; please refer to the original article.)

2020.08.31.
16:08

Kim Ye-won, founder and sole operator of the non‑profit Disability Rights Law Center, has spent her legal career representing people who cannot advocate for themselves — pro bono. Though she was born with the loss of one eye, Kim says she only recognized the depth of systemic discrimination after becoming a lawyer. Her work combines individual litigation with policy research and institutional reform to protect the rights and dignity of marginalized groups.

High‑profile abuse and embezzlement cases, including the 2012 Wonju Girae Sarang’s House and the 2013 Hongcheon Siloam Pond House, convinced Kim that confronting direct violence is only part of the task. Many clients face severe communication barriers, so she insists on exhausting all methods to obtain testimony and access to justice — even using iris‑recognition technology to capture the statement of a client with profound motor and speech impairments when conventional methods failed.

Beyond litigation, Kim urges a shift in language and attitudes: replace the term “socially weak” with “social minorities” to avoid defining people by helplessness. She stresses the importance of equal, not patronizing, communication — for example, allowing visually impaired people to state their preferred mode of assistance — and envisions a society where diverse voices are heard and each person’s agency is respected.

Original source: “‘사회적 약자’ 대신 ‘사회적 소수자’로 불러주세요” – 더나은미래 (Source: the news outlet; please refer to the original article.)