TAIPEI, Taiwan -- President Ma Ying-jeou (pictured) vowed Oct. 29 to help a 12-year-old wheelchair-bound girl make her dream come true by improving the country's barrier-free facilities.
Ma said he instructed Transportation Minister Mao Chi-kuo to improve railway facilities first so that disabled persons could lead more convenient lives.
Chen Wan-ping (pictured), who suffers from Nemaline Myopathy, a group of disorders that cause problems with the tone and contraction of skeletal muscles, expressed her aspiration in a letter to Ma written on July 30 before she received the 2010 Presidential Education Award.
"My biggest dream is that barrier-free facilities can be available everywhere in Taiwan, " Chen wrote in the letter, which she was not allowed to present to the president at the award ceremony but which later reached Ma.
Speaking at an anniversary celebration of a Taipei elementary school, Ma said he was deeply moved by her passion for life and "I made my promise and she has my word now."
Friday, October 29, 2010
Taiwan President vows to make country more accessible
From CNA: