Activists call for passage of traffic safety bills for children

Parents and activist groups as well as lawmakers have urged the National Assembly to pass pending bills on children’s traffic safety.

In a press conference in front of the Assembly in Seoul, Monday, independent Rep. Lee Yongho, Rep. Lee Jeong-mi of the minor Justice Party and members of Political Mamas, an activist group, said there are several bills designed to protect children from traffic accidents, calling for their passage during the Assembly’s autumn regular session.

Some of the pending bills were named after children who died in traffic accidents — Choi Ha-joon, Kim Tae-ho, Jeong Yoo-chan, Lee Hae-in and Kim Min-sik.

Choi died at age four after being hit by a car that slid from an inclined parking lot at Seoul Grand Park in 2017. The relevantly named bill is aimed at strengthening the duty of drivers and parking lot owners at such inclined parking spaces to comply with safety regulations. Although the bill was submitted in July, members of the Assembly Land, Infrastructure and Transport Committee have not started discussions on it yet.

Kim Tae-ho and Jeong, both eight years old, were two of eight students who were on their way home from a soccer club in Songdo, Incheon, in May, when the van crashed into a car and the two were killed. Other than the driver, there were no adults onboard who could supervise the children, as soccer club vehicles are not subject to relevant regulations.

Relevant bills have been submitted to the Assembly to include all sports club vehicles in the school bus category, so stronger safety regulations will be applied.

Choi’s mother and Kim Taeho’s father also participated in the press conference.

“A number of bills named after children who died in tragic traffic accidents have been proposed, but none of them have been passed at the Assembly,” Kim Jung-deok, an activist of Political Mamas, said during the press conference.