Special Child Discrimination case against Cebu Pacific Air
Recently, a certain Marites Alcantara complained that her special child John Arvin is being forced to off a Manila-bound flight last December 23, 2009. The mother said that the purser and cabin crew of the Cebu Pacific plane kept repeating that her son is banned from the plane because he was mentally-ill.
Yesterday, another mother by the name of Stella Santos told told ABS-CBN’s Umagang Kay Ganda that her son Harvy who is also a special child, suffered the same humiliating situation. Apparently, the two instances occurred on the same day in the same Cebu Pacific flight.
Santos said that after news about the incident broke out, she received a call from the Cebu Pacific management. She said the airline apologized repeatedly and even offered her 4 free round-trip tickets, but she said that it would not be able to convince them to forget the humiliating experience..
Meanwhile, Alcantara’s lawyer, Salvador Panelo, had also said that they will file charges against the airline and its crew for violating Republic Act 7610 which is the law protecting the rights of children, which includes special children.
Both mothers are now said to be preparing to file a special child discrimination case against Cebu Pacific Air.
According to Cebu Pacific Air written public apology, the incident was “a result of the cabin crew’s misinterpretation of government regulations designed to assure the safety of passengers. Cebu Pacific has no policy that discriminates against persons with special needs.”
Well, I think Cebu Pacific Air should consider re-orienting their staff about the laws and the rights of the children as well as human in general. While it may be true that they really do not discriminate special children, it is their main responsibility to ensure that it is being strictly implemented.
As a father, I agree with Commission on Human Rights (CHR) chairperson Leila de Lima who suggested that airlines and other public utilities review their policies and make necessary changes to make sure that they comply with RA 7277, which is the Magna Carta for Disabled Persons that states the refusal to convey a passenger by reason of disability is considered discrimination.
As I have been reading comments on blogs and news websites, I learned that there are other cases of discrimination and being unprofessional among the crews of Cebu Pacific Air. With that, I think this is the right time to file a formal complain while the issue is still hot. If you have evidence that you can prove Cebu Pacific Air or other airlines that show similar maltreatment cases, then there is nothing you should be afraid of.
I think this is also a wake up call to the present government and presidential candidates for 2010. That although there are lot of problems to prioritize, humans rights and discrimination against anyone is also a big problem, especially when it comes to children.
Lastly, I suppose that all of us just need to act like human. Actually, I don’t even think we need laws to refer from when it comes to respecting people. The principle is simple, what you do not want others to do you is unlawful. Therefore, you also do not have the right to do it to others.
If you have the right to live normal and be treated nicely, so as others.
Related posts:
How to Stop your Child from Bullying others
How to Teach your Teenage Boys to respect Women
How to Protect your Daughter from Sex Offenders
How to Vote Wisely this coming Philippine Automated Election 2010
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hello angel! Happy New Year pare. Yeah I saw this on TV and its sad why some people could be that insensitive and not sensible. It’s a wake up call for businesses to properly train their people in handling people with “disabilities”.
just saw this on tv now, and im soo glad out-of-court settlement did not work out because really, these airlines, specifically and specially cebu pacific need to be taught a lesson on professionalism and customer service. being a frequent flier, more often than not, i do not have a choice on the airline, and i would often be stuck with cebu pacific. i cannot even begin to comprehend the audacity of this airline to operate as a public utility service, what with the horrendous experiences ive had with them. i want to volunteer as a witness in this case against cebu pacific, but i guess i wouldn’t qualify because i understand that the thrust of their case is discrimination, if im not mistaken. but my heart is with the family of Mrs. Alcantara.