Should Guide Dog be Allowed to Use in China's Subway

　　Recently, a visually impaired¹ man was prevented from taking the subway for the 11th time in Beijing when taking his guide dog with him. This triggered another round of discussion on whether the visually disabled should be allowed to use guide dogs when taking public transportation. Li Dong has the details.

 

　　On July 22 this year, a visually impaired man was stopped by staff at Tian Tongyuan subway station. This marked the 11th time he was rejected by the Beijing subway. Customer service says guide dogs are forbidden on public transportation.

 

　　"Sorry, guide dogs are not allowed on the subway."

 

　　Ping Yali, a gold medal winner in Beijing's 2008 Paralympics says she that she had been optimistic about the temporary regulations issued that year, which enabled disabled people to bring their guide dogs with them when taking public transportation. But Ping Yali says the new policies were discontinued after the Paralympics finished.

 

　　"At that time, I thought that it wouldn't be long before the temporary policy was made into more perfected regulations. But when the Paralympics was over, the policy halted too."

 

　　According to the Law of China on the Protection of Disabled Persons, a visually impaired person who brings a guide dog into a public place shall abide² by the provisions of the state.

 

　　Currently, regulations in Shenzhen, Hangzhou and Chongqing Municipality authorize³ people with visual disabilities to bring their guide dogs with them when taking public transportation.

 

　　But the current regulation in Beijing stipulates⁴ that guide dogs are still regarded as pets and subsequently, their owners are not allowed to take them into markets, stores, restaurants, public gyms and other public community facilities.

 

　　In May, 2006, the China Disabled Person's Federation⁵ authorized⁶ the Dalian Disabled Person's Federation and Dalian Medical University to establish China's first guide dog training base.

 

　　Surveys by the base show that 16 million Chinese people suffer from blindness and visual impairments, so there are many potential users of guide dogs.

 

　　But there are few guide dog organizations in the country and only four to five guide dogs can be offered annually⁷.

 

　　Meanwhile, more than 50,000 people apply for one of the highly trained canines⁸ every year.

 

　　Statistics released in 2008 show the United State has 10,000 guide dogs, Britain has 4,000 and Germany 1,100.

 

　　Chinese universities and colleges have no courses on guide dog training. Although some grads have majored in zoology⁹, they have to learn how to train guide dogs by themselves.

 

　　For CRI, I am Li Dong.

1 impaired   

adj.受损的；出毛病的；有（身体或智力）缺陷的v.损害，削弱( impair的过去式和过去分词 )

参考例句：

• Much reading has impaired his vision. 大量读书损害了他的视力。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• His hearing is somewhat impaired. 他的听觉已受到一定程度的损害。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》

2 abide   

vi.遵守；坚持；vt.忍受

参考例句：

• You must abide by the results of your mistakes.你必须承担你的错误所造成的后果。
• If you join the club,you have to abide by its rules.如果你参加俱乐部，你就得遵守它的规章。

3 authorize   

v.授权，委任；批准，认可

参考例句：

• He said that he needed to get his supervisor to authorize my refund.他说必须让主管人员批准我的退款。
• Only the President could authorize the use of the atomic bomb.只有总统才能授权使用原子弹。

4 stipulates   

n.（尤指在协议或建议中）规定，约定，讲明（条件等）( stipulate的名词复数 )；规定，明确要求v.（尤指在协议或建议中）规定，约定，讲明（条件等）( stipulate的第三人称单数 )；规定，明确要求

参考例句：

• The trade contract stipulates for the settlement of balances in RMB. 贸易合同规定余额以人民币结算。 来自《现代汉英综合大词典》
• The contract stipulates for the use of seasoned timber. 合同上订明用干透的木料。 来自辞典例句

5 federation   

n.同盟，联邦，联合，联盟，联合会

参考例句：

• It is a federation of 10 regional unions.它是由十个地方工会结合成的联合会。
• Mr.Putin was inaugurated as the President of the Russian Federation.普京正式就任俄罗斯联邦总统。

6 authorized   

a.委任的，许可的

参考例句：

• An administrative order is valid if authorized by a statute.如果一个行政命令得到一个法规的认可那么这个命令就是有效的。

7 annually   

adv.一年一次，每年

参考例句：

• Many migratory birds visit this lake annually.许多候鸟每年到这个湖上作短期逗留。
• They celebrate their wedding anniversary annually.他们每年庆祝一番结婚纪念日。

8 canines   

n.犬齿( canine的名词复数 )；犬牙；犬科动物

参考例句：

• For example, the teeth are more primitive. There are large canines and unusually shaped incisors. 譬如，牙齿更为原始，有大的犬齿和非常合适的门齿。 来自辞典例句
• Well-to-canines can attend doggy daycare centers while their owners work. 富人家的狗在主人上班的时候可以去狗狗托管中心。 来自互联网

9 zoology   

n.动物学，生态

参考例句：

• I would like to brush up my zoology.我想重新温习一下动物学。
• The library didn't stock zoology textbooks.这家图书馆没有动物学教科书。