During the time doing Assignment 1 for this class, as we chose the women’s restroom at Alden Library as the place to examine, I realized that while accessible restrooms in public facilities are common in the US, they are pretty rare in Vietnam. I had not seen them at schools and universities when I was growing up. In other public places, they are not common either. I have only seen some in big shopping malls, airports, and central hospitals. A basic and daily activity like using a restroom could be extremely difficult for people with disabilities (PWDs). Thus, I would like to dive deeper into this topic to understand the situation of how PWDs use public restrooms in Vietnam.
The Ministry of Construction of Vietnam regulates that
in public buildings, there must be at least one restroom for PWDs, and such restrooms
must account for no less than 5% of the total number of restrooms. The ministry
has also set out specific standards for the construction of accessible
restrooms, such as the size of the room and the design of the door, toilet, and
sink. However, in reality, there is a lack of restrooms for PWDs, or the
restrooms do not meet the required standards. In Ho Chi Minh City, the largest
and most populous city in Vietnam, a survey by the Disability Research and
Capacity Development Center reveals that PWDs face many issues when using these
restrooms. The entrances are steep and narrow, making it difficult for
wheelchair users to enter. In addition, the sink is positioned too far away,
making it impossible for wheelchair users to reach the faucet even when they
lean forward from their wheelchairs. Narrow doors and slippery floors are other
difficulties (Duy Linh, 2017).
In Da Nang, a popular tourist city in Vietnam, the
situation is not better. Ms. T, a street lottery vendor, shared that she has
been doing this job for about ten years. Every day, she works from early
morning until late at night and travels throughout the city, but she has not
found a single public restroom that is accessible to people with disabilities
like her. When she needs to use the restroom, she goes to gas stations or
strangers’ houses. However, the doors are too narrow for her wheelchair, so she
has to leave it outside and pull herself inside using her hands. To avoid this
inconvenience, she avoids drinking and eating when she is outside (Duy Linh,
2017). Similar to the stories discussed in Imrie (2004), these restrooms, which
are not designed to accommodate PWDs, cannot adequately support PWDs and
require better design.
Public facilities are not only about physical access.
Physical access is also social access, as discussed in the video Examined
Life with Judith Butler and Sunaura Taylor. If PWDs cannot use public
restrooms easily, they have to stay at home more and
lose their connection to the community. Nguyễn Ánh Ngọc, who works at the
Center for Supporting Community Development Initiatives, expressed that: “For
people with disabilities, having easy access to an accessible public restroom
is very meaningful. It enables them to feel more confident when going out to
work, participating in social activities, and becoming more integrated into the
community” (Duy Linh, 2017).
In conclusion, restrooms are significant and meaningful to PWDs, and the
Vietnamese government should pay more attention to planning and building these
restrooms. Although there are already regulations and standards for accessible
restrooms, the situation in reality shows that more attention is still needed
to make sure that PWDs can actually use these restrooms.
References
Duy Linh. (2017, December 5). Nhà vệ sinh công cộng:
Chuyện không hề nhỏ với người khuyết tật. Hòa Nhập. https://hoanhap.vn/chi-tiet/nha-ve-sinh-cong-cong--chuyen-khong-he-nho-voi-nguoi-khuyet-tat-22210.html
Examined Life with Judith Butler and Sunaura Taylor.
(n.d.). YouTube. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=k0HZaPkF6qE
Imrie, R. (2004). Disability, embodiment, and the meaning of the home. Housing
Studies, 19(5), 745–763.
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