Turkey's Ministry of Family and Social Policies has launched a new project designed to enhance the social life of people with disabilities by redesigning movie theaters and stores at shopping malls around Turkey.
The enhancement project will make shopping and enjoying movies easier for disabled people. However, the program will not only be limited to shopping malls. Official halls used for public services, prayer halls, private education and health facilities, cinema, theater halls, libraries, conference halls as well as public buildings such as private dormitories, sports facilities, swimming pools and parking lots will be inspected according to the new regulations.
There are over 8 million disabled citizens in Turkey, while more than 1 billion people in the world are living with some form of disability. There are close to 3,000 disabled people working in state jobs. The Turkish government and local administrations have taken many steps to improve disabled people's lives in recent years.
As part of the project, all buildings and vehicles open to the public will be given an "Accessibility License" following necessary inspections. Open-air spaces and public-transportation vehicles that fail the inspection will receive fines.
The new regulations also suggest that if there is more than one dormitory on a school campus, at least one room will be reserved in the girl's and boy's dormitories. Both the rooms and the common areas will be redesigned for the needs of disabled students. Common areas, such as cafes, resting rooms, study rooms and visitor's rooms in other dormitories, will also be redesigned to provide accessibility.
Daily Sabah
