South Korea’s parliament is likely to allow guide dogs entry to the chamber, officials said Monday, 16 years after they were banned under a rule prohibiting “disruptive objects or food”.

The ruling should allow Kim Ye-ji, a blind pianist who earned a seat last week as proportional representative MP for the opposition Future Korea party, to be accompanied by her labrador retriever guide dog, Joy.

The country’s first blind MP, Jung Hwa-won, was prohibited in 2004 from being accompanied by his guide dog and had to be helped by a human assistant.

But newcomer Kim protested on her Facebook page on Saturday, and her cause won support from MPs of all stripes.