World Report 2021: South Korea Human Rights Watch

No fewer than three presidential administrations from both sides of the political spectrum have put the integration of multicultural families among their top priorities. Yet immigrant incorporation must go beyond integrating immigrants into existing South Korean social categories because, otherwise, existing social inequalities and hierarchies will be reinforced. In 2021, the average life expectancy of women at birth in South Korea was around 86.6 years, up from about 86.3 years in the previous year. The life expectancy of a woman in South Korea has slowly increased over the past decade, from about 83 years in 2009. Authorities also sent notice of an administrative review of the registration status of 64 groups registered with the ministry as “non-profit private organizations” working in similar sectors.

The systemic abuse and torture of repatriated women in North Korean detention is a direct result of China’s decision to return defectors to North Korea, in violation of its obligations under international law. Women comprise the majority of North Korean refugees in China, many of whom are trafficked and sold to rural Chinese farmers (Congressional-Executive Commission on China 2012).

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• The government continued to struggle to address rampant problems with online gender-based violence, including non-consensually shared intimate images and molka—secretly filmed video or images of a sexualized nature posted online.
• In 2020, the rate of digital sex crimes in South Korea, of which the vast majority is against women, was a massive 7.5 times higher than in 2003.
• In the early days of its independence, North Korea promised major advances in gender equality, guaranteeing women’s empowerment and liberation from domestic work.
• The labor force participation rate for men remained steady at over 72 percent during these years.
• Women have reported labor exploitation, sexual harassment, and assault by their husband or his family .

Since 1984, South Korea’s fertility rate has consistently fallen below the population replacement level of 2.1 children per woman. It reached an all-time low of 0.84 in 2020—the lowest figure in the world that year.

Where They Stand: The Status of Women in South Korea

In today’s society, the economy of South Korea has tremendously improved due to urbanisation, industrialisation, military authoritarianism, democratic reform, and social liberalisation since the late 1960s. Thus, gender roles and gender identities eventually have been modified as a result to changing modernity. More than half(in 2018 OECD economy survey, it was 56.1%. It is lower than OECD average.) of Korean women are employed and furthermore, more than 25% of married women are employed as full-time workers. In politics, although there are not as many female politicians as male politicians, the female politicians have recently begun to participate more actively than in the past. For instance, in the National Assembly, women occupy 20 of the 299 seats, less than 10%. In 2020 parliamentary election, women occupy 57 seats in the National Assembly. North Koreans who escape to another country fit this definition, and therefore have the right to certain protections under international law, including non-refoulement .

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Women educated in these schools began to take part in the arts, teaching and other economic activities. The percentage of women in professional fields has steadily increased which has resulted in significant contributions to society, especially in terms of increasing GDP. As they took a larger role in economic activities, the educational level of women also increased, providing additional opportunities for professionalization.

Life expectancy of women at birth in South Korea from 2009 to 2021

Support for women https://thegirlcanwrite.net/south-korean-women/ in politics is also discerned in attitudes and institutions (the Korean Women’s Development Institute is government-established and funded, while the Korean League of Women Voters promotes women’s political access). Implementation of laws to prohibit gender inequalities and prejudice have increased the number of women in the workforce. Nevertheless, women’s status in South Korea illustrates the fact that Korea still has a lot of room to be improved for gender equality. Therefore, the legislation and public rules have critical and significant roles to influence Korean cities to elevate the social structure substantially.

By the time she published a widely read, anonymous memoir about unmasking the spycam operators, Park was a hero to many South Korean women. After revealing her identity, she agreed to advise Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party’s presidential candidate, on women’s issues.

Many women in South Korea will be feeling anxious today as the country inaugurates a new president Yoon Suk-yeol, a self-styled crusader for justice. Calling on Yoon to rethink his “ill-conceived plan”, the newspaper said the move could “do more harm than good” and “goes against the global trend of advocating women’s empowerment”. In September, the government faced calls to strengthen punishments for stalkers after a woman was murdered at work by a male ex-colleague who had been stalking her for three years. Yoon, a conservative who took office in May, is expected to encounter fierce opposition to the move, which will have to be approved by the national assembly, where the liberal opposition Democratic party has a majority. “In physical education class, the boys are all playing soccer and basketball, while the girls aren’t expected to do much besides chit-chatting in the corner,” she says. Koo Hyun-kyung, 29, owner and personal trainer at Timber, a women-only gym that specialises in strength training and weightlifting, says that for many clients, priorities have shifted from losing weight to enhancing their quality of life. Asia Society takes no institutional position on policy issues and has no affiliation with any government.