Hello, everyone. I’m Lin Chun Chieh. I’m from Taiwan. It’s been a while, but about twenty years ago, I came to Japan for training. I’m Duskin 6th trainee. Today, I would like to share my activities in Taiwan. Thank you for your attention. Currently, I work for Taipei Independent Living Association in Taiwan. First, let me start with self-introduction. I’m from Taipei, and I live with an electric wheelchair and personal assistant service. I was born with a disability called osteogenesis imperfecta, which makes my bone fragile and prone to breaking. I’ve broken my bone dozens of times, since when I was a child, there were even times when I was denied entry to school or had to stay in facilities. When I was a student, barrier-free and community service had not yet been developed, so my family and I had to overcome many challenges on our own. I eventually went to university, but after the graduation, there were many environmental barriers and it was hard to find the job. I couldn’t find the job. However, I found out about a scholarship program online and applied. I was very lucky to be awarded the scholarship, which allowed me to come to Japan.

My life completely changed after joining the Duskin training program. For the first time in my life, I used an electric wheelchair and personal assistance service. My life became unbelievably more free. This is the picture during my training. My life has become much more free after I started using electric wheel chair and assistance services. Even though it was difficult in Taiwan, I could go out on my own, drive, even go skiing. That was something I could never have done in Taiwan. I studied independent living and met many people, including mentors. I was amazed by what I learned. Ultimately, I realized that disability itself is not the problem, but it’s the barrier created by society are the real issues. I met seniors and leaders with even more sever disability, I was deeply inspired and I returned to Taiwan with a strong desire to create independent living services and the system also in Taiwan.

In 2007, many of my friends such as the members of Human Care Association, Mainstream Association, Partner, and Muchu center who had supported me from Japan came to Taiwan for support the establishment of our center of independent living. The center is managed by staff with disabilities as part of an initiative, and we provide services that promote independent living. In Taiwan, there are only a few organizations that focus on people with disabilities or rights advocacy. So, we are building networks with other organizations. Such as organizations those focused on women’s rights, LGBTQ+ issues, indigenes people, homeless people and lawyers organizations. This time, before I came to Japan, with organization working for homeless people, I held a press conference to discuss the welfare system in Taiwan. The welfare system in Taiwan is not good, so I am working on a movement to push for the creation of laws to improve the welfare system.

We also do development activities in the local community. This is our office. From last year, we introduced AI technology such as Google, In the trial room, If you give voice commands, such as,“Google, put the rights on”, or “turn on the AC” automatically control the lights or other electric appliance. You can also control auto-reclining beds by using Google. Google and smartphones are making life more convenient for people with disability. So, in June, we launched the second AI independent living trial room in Shinpei City, by collaborating with the other disability organization. Now, we are advocating for the government to include this technology in the national grant system. This assistive devices costs about 500,000yen to buy. It is difficult for most people to afford, apply, or buy. Therefore, I am working to ensure that such technology becomes accessible through government grant, making it easier for everyone to afford.

This is our history. Our center was established in 2007, and we did not have any formal system in place. However, we took the initiative to write proposal for our project and launched a pilot project. We introduced independent living service and assistant system for the first time in Taiwan. By 2011, this system became a part of a national system. Today, every prefecture and city in Taiwan is required to provide assistant service and peer counseling service. From 2012 to 2018, our center received various projects and commissions from the national government. However, the system was not functioning effectively, so we engaged in negotiations and advocacy efforts to address these issues, and ultimately completed the project while ceasing to accept new commissions. However, this period was really challenging. We were not able to get money at that time. Despite these difficulties, we discovered the new path forward. Now, the supporters are increased. We began securing grants from the private sector, which has helped stabilize our center’s operations. Since we stopped accepting government grants, it has become easier for us to negotiate and advocate for change. We now have the freedom to speak up a wide range of opinions.

In addition, the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities was ratified in Taiwan, and we have been involved in several court cases. In 2014, workplace assistant services were introduced. I’m grateful that I had the opportunity to come to Japan and participate in this training, using workplace assistant services and the national system. After this, we focused on developing leaders with disabilities and sent them from Taiwan to Japan to further expand our efforts. In 2020, we began campaigns to push for revisions to the Disability Rights Guarantee Act and the enactment of anti-discrimination laws for people with disabilities. While Taiwanese government is working on building more facilities, we continue to focus on local movements and providing support. We believe that the services should continue to be improved that allow them to live in their local communities. That’s why we are involved in lawsuits and various activities to advocate for this.

This year, the government decided to allocate a budget to establish 25 Independent Living (IL) centers across Taiwan. Initially, there were no IL centers at all, but now there is a budget for them, and the government is listening to our voices. I am committed to continuing negotiations to ensure that people with disabilities in cities across Taiwan will receive support from IL centers rather than from institutions. I hope we can achieve a truly inclusive society with the help of my friends and colleagues.

The picture on the right shows a moment when we were involved in a series of court cases. At that time, the courtrooms were not barrier-free, but as wheelchair users, we took the initiative to negotiate, and as a result, the courts and courtrooms added wheelchair seating. This was a significant change.

After I finish this training, I will go back to Taiwan, we will hold an exhibition for Independent Living in Takao. This time, in Takao, we have been holding this exhibition since last year. It has been very well received and it has become an important opportunity to raise awareness about people with disability in society. And then, this time we are holding it in Takao, and the friends from Iruka independent living center came to support us. I would like to make the opportunity to build stronger relationships. Not only making the system or involving court cases, but also, it is important that people in society get to know about us, so that we hold this exhibition. It is the space where people can learn about the experiences of their daily life and personal stories of people with disabilities. There are arts as well. Please come to Takao if you have a chance to come to Taiwan in July.

Finally, I believe everyone has the power to change society. And I visited the Presidential Office two years ago. I visited with nine wheelchair users, but at that time, the office was not barrier-free. But after our visit, the Presidential Office made the ramp making it barrier-free now. Therefore, I think it is very important to connect people through the independent living movement, forming a circle of love, and working together to change society. At very last, I would also like to express my deepest gratitude for Duskin Ainowa Foundation and JSRPD, and all my friends who supported me during this training. I learned so much during this follow-up training, so I want to commit to working hard for the next 20, 40 years. Thank you for your support. Thank you.