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RIAC condemns changes to Victoria’s disability regulators
RIAC Ambassador calls out Qantas over disability failures
Rights Information & Advocacy Centre (RIAC) Ambassador Carol Cooke AM has added her voice to growing criticism of Qantas, after ABC reporting exposed repeated accessibility failures across Australia’s transport system.
Cooke, a Paralympian and long-time disability advocate, shared her own recent experience with the airline.
“Because of my cycling accident I couldn’t take my own chair. The Qantas lady told me to wait in the disability seats for someone to come with one of their chairs. I sat there with an elderly gentleman… I must have waited over 40 minutes before anyone came, and even then, the staff member said he hadn’t been told we were waiting. He asked if I could walk myself through screening, juggling hand luggage, a stick, and one arm in a sling, because he could only push one wheelchair at a time.”
Cooke said this wasn’t an isolated incident.
“There are numerous times I’ve arrived somewhere, and my chair hasn’t been at the plane door. Sometimes it’s sent straight to the next flight. Once I arrived home and was told my chair had gone to oversize luggage.
“I can’t understand how anyone wouldn’t realise that a wheelchair is someone’s legs, it has to be at the door. For the amount I’ve travelled in the last 14 years, most experiences have been okay. But even one of the above is unacceptable.”
Her comments come as yesterday’s ABC coverage revealed other Australians facing similar barriers, including artist Anwen Handmer, who was forced to accept a $6,400 business-class seat after Qantas failed to provide an economy-class wheelchair-accessible option.
RIAC CEO Dr Sandy Ross said Carol’s reflections point to a much broader issue.
“Airlines make the headlines, but for most people with disability, the barriers are in the day-to-day: getting onto a bus, into a shop, or through a health service in their local community. Carol’s story is a reminder that accessibility is not about convenience, it’s about dignity and independence.”
RIAC encourages people with disability across regional Victoria to share their own stories of everyday accessibility.
“Every story matters,” Dr Ross said. “When people speak up, it helps shine a light on where improvements are still needed in regional communities as well as in the cities.”