Six out of nine justices ruled in favor of the current medical law. The ruling came as sports massage therapists petitioned for the right to hold massage therapy licenses, claiming the law violates people's right to choose their occupation and the principle of equality.

The sports therapists filed a petition after having applications for massage licenses rejected by local government bodies. The medical law currently affords massage licenses exclusively to blind practitioners trained at special schools or with over two years of massage training from institutions designated by the Ministry for Health, Welfare and Family Affairs.

The court ruled that massage is virtually the only career choice open to the visually impaired, so allowing non-blind practitioners to compete would be an unfair threat to their survival, and that it is necessary to have a measure to protect the blind -- minorities who already suffer discrimination -- in place.

This is a reversal for an earlier ruling on the issue. In May 2006, the Constitutional Court ruled the law unconstitutional by seven votes to one, saying that it violates freedom of choice. In the face of protests from the blind, the National Assembly reverted the law back again four months later, prompting sports massage therapists to file their petition.

(englishnews@chosun.com )