The idea that Chonnam National University (CNU) is thought to be the leading university in this region has been caused by the expectation that CNU will serve for the community. This is the theory of Oh Su-seong, professor of the department of Psychology at CNU. As an activist to make a contribution to society, he practices what he has advocated and he has worked for the Psychological Rehabilitation Center which was established in 2003. Tribune meets him to hear his opinions.

             Professor Oh explained the reason why he opened the center.  “I’ve been working at CNU for 26 years. Though I am not from Gwangju, Gwangju  provided me with a job and gave me an opportunity to explore the areas I was interested in, such as the Gwangju Democratic Uprising, reunification, conflicts among regions, and human rights. I received benefits from Gwangju and I would like to pay them back by serving this community. Also, I think CNU should not only focus on academics, but also build up a close relationship with the regional society.  I did not want to give lectures outside of the campus until I gave lectures in Germany.  Then I did not want to get paid money for my lectures, but they insisted on paying me.  That is how I saved money for 10 years and decided to establish the Psychological Rehabilitation Center. The center is designed to help those who are suffering from mental disorders so they can adjust themselves to society, and to provide on-the-job experience for both undergraduate and graduate students.”    

             When asked what efforts should be made to help them, he said, “There should be a big change in recognition.”  While many people have sympathy for the mentally disabled, they do not attempt to spend time helping them. Though the disabled are not responsible for their disability, it seems that people blame them. 90% of the disabled used to be ordinary people before they had accidents. This shows that anyone has the potential to become mentally or physically challenged.  Nevertheless, people are still unwilling to realize that they need to live and work with the disabled. Not only do we need to provide financial support for them, we also should consider their quality of life. The disabled are not too different from average people in most ways. They think of how to spend free time like us. There should be allowances to provide disabled people with a better quality of life and the entertainment that they also desire out of life. I believe that this is the direction the welfare system intends to go.

It seems that people have a prejudice against the mentally disabled in comparison with the physically disabled.  The mentally disabled have to bear two types of hardship: their own disability and the prejudice of the people around them.  According to Professor Oh, people need to find out a motive that makes us believe that life is worth living.  When he tried to establish the center, he had many difficulties. At first, CNU refused to support the center, so he provided funds for the center himself with the money he saved from lecturing at other institutions. However, eventually, he started to get help from the like-minded people and came to be able to manage the center in this way. He stated, “Try to find a meaning to your life. Once you change your way of thinking, the world is going to change.  Don’t be captivated by the ideas of others--find your own.”