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| Challenging Patrilineal Descent at the Grassroots Level |
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In search for our unalienable rights
On Jan. 29, about 40 women, including Lee Kyongja of the Jongjegong branch of the
Sungju Lee clan, held a demonstration condemning the men in their clans. They claimed
that their male kin had arbitrarily amended the clan entailments to exclude the married
daughters, after which they proceeded to inherit all the clan property among themselves.
From 1997, the price of land in Yongin, Kyonggi-do, skyrocketed thanks to the
government's plans to develop a new city in the area.
The Sungju Lee, Chungsong Shim and Yongin Lee clans that had their roots in the area held clan meetings without the clanswomen and amended the clan entailments, changing the qualifications of a clan member from 'any descendent bearing the family name' to 'only men twenty years old and above,' The men then split the profits from selling the clan-owned real estate among themselves.
The clanswomen, claiming that an amendment made without their consent should be nullified, filed a lawsuit against their clansmen. Based on the Supreme Court's judicial precedents, the women lost the case in the first trial. But they are intent on fighting to the end, planning to appeal to the high court and then take the case to the constitutional court if that fails.
Shin Hoyang, the lawyer in charge of the case, says that there are no statutes governing clans, only judicial precedents that have been passed down from Japanese colonial rule. During that time, the Supreme Court had defined a clan as an arbitrary group formed spontaneously by customs to observe ancestral worship and strengthen family ties. Traditionally, only the men were considered members of the clan.
But Shin claims that in today's society where gender equality is stipulated in the constitution and upheld in the process of inheritance, clinging to Confucian ethics dating back to the Yi dynasty is an anachronistic attitude. Shin adds that furthermore, any amendments made without the consent of the women, whose clan membership had been acknowledged before the amendment, should be null and void. However, the lawsuit only has the Supreme Court's judicial precedents to go by, meaning that this could be a long, drawn-out affair.
reported by Booja Choi
| Exclusive Interview with the first Minister of Gender Equality |
Striking a balance between the two wings called 'man' and 'woman'
The Ministry of Gender Equality is the first-ever Ministry in Korea to take charge of
women's policies. The first person appointed to head this new Ministry is Millennium
Democratic Party's Han Myongsook. The 57-year-old Minister Han used to head the
Presidential Commission on Women's Affairs, and is also a co-representative of the
Korea Women's Associations United (KWAU).
This is the first time that a progressive women's rights activist has won a post in Korea's Cabinet. The Women's News met Minister Han to hear about her blueprint for the Ministry.
Q: When The Women's News was founded, the majority took issue with the "Women's" part. Many are showing the same response to the Women's Ministry. Could you give the public an easily understandable explanation of the Ministry's job?
A: The Ministry's official name in the Ministry of Gender Equality. A bird that has one strong wing and one weak wing cannot fly freely. For this bird to take flight, you must strengthen its weak wing and strike a balance between both wings. Likewise, the Ministry's role is to eliminate gender discrimination from all corners of society and to create an egalitarian environment, thereby helping men and women live as equals.
Q: What kind of Minister do you want to be?
A: Rather than give off a strong image, I'd like to be hardworking, always on the move. I want to get close to the lives of women from all walks of life, accurately assess problems and come up with the right solutions, so that all women can benefit from the Ministry's work.
Q: Do you intend to stand up to the other ministries if there is a difference of opinion on an important issue?
A: Coordinating women policies between the other administrative branches is an important part of my job, so there will be times when I have to take a stand on certain issues. But it is also important to have a balanced viewpoint in cooperating with men.
Q: Many pending issues await the Ministry. For example, there is the abolition of the hoju system, which women groups regard as a major task. But the past Presidential Commission on Women's Affairs was criticized for its lukewarm attitude. How will the Ministry respond to this issue?
A: Personally, I am for the abolition of the hoju system. So is the Ministry. We will make our position clear on this issue and launch publicity activities and other public campaigns to form public consensus.
Q: Your son bears your surname as well. It seems that for quite some time, you have joined the campaign by anti-hoju activists to encourage people to use both parents' surnames.
A: It was something I had always wanted to do as a women's rights advocate, and so when my son was born in 1985, I tried to do that, only to be refused at the birth registration office. So I named my son Hangil, so that my surname would be included at least in his given name, This was probably the beginning of the campaign to use both parents' surnames.
Q: Any issues you personally think are especially urgent?
A: We have to pass maternity protection laws as soon as possible, to create a better working environment for women. The fertility rate in Korea stands at 1.42 babies per woman, which is lower than the world average of 1.56. A growing number of women wish to remain single. All these reflect the difficulties Korean women face in making a family and having a job at the same time. It is a pity that the management of child-care services was not transferred to the Ministry, but we will try to tackle that as the Ministry expands its size and duties. I am also interested in the proper utilization of the female workforce, and women-to-women exchanges between North and South Korea. Although the latter is my biggest interest, I am not about to make detailed plans yet. For now, I will make modifications and recommendations within the framework of the government's master plan for reunification.
Q: A sufficient budget is vital for a strong ministry. What are your plans in this regard? A: Currently, the Ministry has a starting budget of about 30 billion won. The small budget is a measure of the Ministry's weak executive capabilities. But I believe that 'where there's a will, there is the money,' So increasing the budget depends on how hard we work for it. Q: Partnership between the officers in charge women policies posted in 6 administrative branches is essential. How will you bring this about?
A: First of all, we must appoint such officers in all the administrative branches. Then comes the task of strengthening the coordination capacities of each officer, which we are planning to achieve by forming a network including regular meetings with the Ministry. When the Presidential Commission was in charge, it was hard to form a relationship with the local governments. But now that we have a proper Ministry, I plan to establish direct connections between the Ministry's policies and the local governments.
Q: The Ministry owes its existence in large part to the efforts of women groups. But reality will not permit the Ministry to accept all their demands. How are you going to handle possible clashes of opinion?
A: It is important for the government to collect the opinions of women groups. But
there will be differences in the levels set by each side even as we head in the same
direction. When that happens, we will have to adjust our levels. We are also planning to
hold workshops with women from all walks of life in order to set the direction that the
Ministry should take.
Q: Anything else you wish to say to the readers of The Women's News?
A: I am determined to give our juniors and daughters strong and balanced wings. But
resistance from vested interest groups will not be easy to ignore, So I plan to do things
one step at a time: quietly, but always making a difference.
reported by Junghee Kim
| Minister Han Myongsook is... |
Equipped with both theory and practice, "someone who always gets the job done"
Minister Han has both the theoretical and practical training she needs for the job. She
has been an activist with the women's movement for 30 years. She has an accurate
impression of current issues concerning women, and also a post-graduate degree in
Women's Studies. She is said to be the most suitable person for the job. I
n the 70s, Han lectured at the Christian Academy, the pioneer of the women's movement in Korea, It was during this time that Han threw herself into the women's movement. She was even sentenced to two years in prison for her involvement in the Christian Academy incident of 1979. While serving as the president of Womenlink Korea and the co-representative of the KWAU, she established herself as a leading women activist, She is also known for her wide range of commitments, including her role on the founding committee of The Women's News in 1988.
Last year, she won a seat in the 16th National Assembly through the proportional representation system. The KWAU staff who have worked closely with Han say that at work, she is a woman of principle and drive.
Ji Eunhee, her old-time colleague and a senior representative of the KWAU, calls her "someone who always gets the job done." She recalls the times when Han was on sick leave. All it took was a job that needed her there, and she would jump out of bed to get it done, Minister Han is known to have gentle manners and friendly interpersonal relationships.
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| Maids and Governesses Are Also Part of the Workforce |
The Korean Women's Trade Union (KWTU) has demanded the government and legislators to eliminate the Labor Standard Act (LSA) clause denying legal protection to people employed to do housework. These household employees are definitely wage workers, but article 10 of the LSA stipulates that the Act does not apply to these people. They are not even eligible for the protection offered by minimum wages. T
he Ministry of Labor argues that relevant labor regulations in neither the US nor the EU have any provisions for household employees. It also expresses doubt that applying the LSA to such workers would actually have much of an effect. The LSA defines workers as people who provide their labor to businesses in return for wages, Considering today's social norms, the Labor Ministry claims, regarding households as businesses will surely raise a controversy.
However, the KWTU interprets the government's reluctance as basically a refusal to acknowledge housework as paid work. Another reflection of this attitude is the judicial precedents ruling that family drivers are household employees if they help family members with the shopping and wage workers if they drive family members to and from work. Likewise, full-time housewives are excluded from the population that engages in economic activities, but are considered employed if they help in the family-owned farm or factory for no pay.
Housework accounts for 25.9% of GDP, and yet is not considered an economic activity. This explains the public's failure to regard a household as a business. President Chung Yanghee of the KWTU points out that there is no reason not to acknowledge the labor of household employees, since they also work in return for wages.
The LSA Commentary explains that the Act is not applied to household
employment because it is related to individual privacy and because it is usually not
within the realistic scope of government regulations in terms of working hours and
wages. But Chung argues that the first priority of government regulations should be
dealing with workers who are in difficult situations.
reported by Euna-Song
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Campaign to use both parents' surnames
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