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On February 15, 2020, Mr. José Carrión Cabrera filed a public complaint on Facebook against the manager, Jorge Mendoza Ríos, of the restaurant La Panka on the Costa Verde.
José Carrión Cabrera reported on social media that when he arrived at the La Panka restaurant on the Costa Verde with his mother, who uses a wheelchair, and his daughter, who has a visual disability, he found a pickup truck parked in a no-parking area that was also blocking the ramp for persons with disabilities. After confronting the restaurant staff about this, they told him that the vehicle belonged to the manager (Jorge Mendoza Ríos), who later came down and told him that if he did not like it, he should leave.
The public complaint can be read in the following post:
Almost immediately, La Panka announced through its official social media accounts the closure of one of its franchised locations on the Costa Verde; La Panka Bordemar. This occurred because La Panka, through its General Manager, owner and founder, Denisse Nossar, stated that it did not share the attitude of the manager of the Costa Verde location, Mr. Jorge Manuel Mendoza Ríos, and that measures would be taken so the corresponding authorities could impose sanctions. La Panka also terminated the franchise agreement. The official statement can be seen in the following post:
Because of the wide dissemination of the case and the accusations against Mr. Jorge Mendoza Ríos, he responded in an interview with RPP, stating the following:
“At no point did I tell them to leave. The man said to me arrogantly, “you know you have to move your car.” They had already entered, but the man was completely upset. I told the young woman at the door, “let them in” (...) I am sorry that this woman had to go through this,” he stated. Mendoza. (PERU21: 2020).
In view of the various statements issued by State institutions, the AIEDI team contacted Rosa Paredes, Representative of the Program for the Defense and Promotion of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities of the Office of the Ombudsperson, to learn what actions could be taken regarding the conduct of Mr. Jorge Mendoza Ríos. This is what she told us:
“There are two significant facts. The first is the car parked in a no-parking area and blocking part of the ramp for persons with disabilities. In this case, according to the National Traffic Regulations, the person who commits this act must be fined 8% of one Tax Unit (UIT) (S/ 344). The second fact is discrimination. First, there is discrimination as a criminal offense, which is punishable by two or three years. On the other hand, discrimination in consumer relations falls within INDECOPI’s jurisdiction, which may receive a complaint or act on its own initiative. In this case, I believe it has already acted ex officio. An investigation will therefore assess whether there was differential treatment for a prohibited reason—in this case, disability—which could lead to a fine of up to 450 UIT (S/ 1,935,000). It is also important to remember that public and private institutions must comply with the Technical Accessibility Standard. If they fail to do so, the municipality with jurisdiction is responsible for inspection and subsequent sanctions,” commented Rosa Paredes, Representative of the Program for the Defense and Promotion of the Rights of Persons with Disabilities of the Office of the Ombudsperson..
Along the same lines, INDECOPI has already opened an investigation and issued a statement rejecting all forms of discrimination in consumer relations. If the complaint proceeds and an act of discrimination is found, the fine could be up to 450 UIT, equivalent to S/ 1,935,000. It also recalled that no consumer may be discriminated against under the Consumer Protection and Defense Code (Law 29571).
We hope that those responsible are sanctioned, because no act of discrimination should be tolerated; such conduct is inconsistent with the principles of an inclusive city for everyone.
