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- Kang Kum-sil - Justice, Han Myung-sook - Environment, Kim
Hwa-joong - Health & Welfare, Ji Eun-hee - Gender Equality
 ˘¸
From left: Minister of Justice Kang Kum-sil, Environment Han
Myung-sook, Health and Welfare Kim Hwa-joong, Gender Equality
Ji Eun-hee
'The birth of four woman Ministers.' Women have made it big
in the first Cabinet of the new administration.
President Roh Mu Hyun concluded his deliberations on the line-up
for his new Cabinet, appointing Lawyers for a Democratic Society
vice-president Kang Kum-sil (aged 47) as Minister of Justice.
Other women in the Cabinet include Kim Hwa-joong (aged 58)
as Minister of Health and Welfare, Ji Eun-hee (aged 57) as
Minister of Gender Equality, and Han Myung-sook (59), former
Minister of Gender Equality, as Minister of Environment.
President Roh announced his Cabinet organization the day after
the National Assembly passed the much-debated bill to appoint
Goh Kun as Prime Minister on February 26. It is told that
Roh's criteria for appointing Cabinet members are ˇă Stability
for external affairs, reform for domestic affairs ˇă New faces
ˇăSpecial consideration for women.
Minister Kang Kum-sil's appointment was by far the most phenomenal,
as it was made against vehement protest from the Ministry
of Justice and prosecutors. It was unclear to the last minute
whether Kang would make it or not, considering that the Ministry
of Justice and the Prosecution Office are organizations that
characteristically conform to a rigid hierarchy. Kang did
win the appointment, however, thanks to strong support from
the non-government legal circle and women groups.
Minister Kim Hwa-joong, former president of the Korean Nurses
Association, was in charge of developing the framework for
the health and welfare policies of the new government. Such
records and her past efforts to improve health and medical
conditions in the rural areas helped her get appointed as
the Minister of Health and Welfare. On retrospect, prospects
for her appointment were shaky to the last minute due to opposition
from labor and civic groups skeptical about her "reform-mindedness."
As for Minister Ji Eun-hee, there was a time when it seemed
that she would be passed over, due to rumors that Minister
Han would stay on as Minister of Gender Equality for another
term. But her appointment was confirmed when it was decided
that Han would move to head the Ministry of Environment. Conditions
that worked in her favor were expectations that her intimate
relationship with Minister Han would make for smooth continuity
in Ministry affairs, and the advice to Roh's team that the
new government should not put new wine in old bottles.
Former Minister of Environment Kim Myung-ja, who was being
considered as Minister of Construction and Transportation,
a typically male-dominated position, lost her chance at the
last minute to former Blue House Policy Planning Chief Choi
Jong-chan. Congresswoman Lee Mi-kyung of the New Millennium
Democratic Party was a strong candidate for Minister of Environment
from early on, but was left out in consideration of her plans
for the General Elections next year.
Women groups unanimously issued statements welcoming the new
government's appointment of women to the Cabinet. The Korea
Women's Association United (KWAU, representative Jeong Hyun-baek)
issued a statement on February 27 saying, "We welcome
President Roh's appointment of numerous woman Ministers despite
strong opposition from conservative media and men. We promise
to create and support an environment conducive to the woman
Ministers' good performance."
ˇăMinister of Justice Kang Kum-sil = Famous in the non-government
legal circle for having the trust and respect of her younger
female colleagues. Far removed from the prejudice that most
people have against legal experts, she is unpretentious when
meeting people, and known to be particularly kind to the low-income
clients who seek her counsel. She shows excellent judgment
regarding current issues as well as drive and initiative,
and is thus expected to produce results in reforming the Ministry
of Justice and Prosecution Office.
After passing the bar examination in 1982, she worked for
11 years as a judge in the Seoul and Busan District Courts
and the Seoul High Court. She started her practice as a lawyer
in 1996, and was vice-president of the Lawyers for a Democratic
Society since 2000. Born in Jeju-do in 1957, majored in Law
at Seoul National University.
ˇă Minister of Health and Welfare Kim Hwa-joong = She is a
mother-figure for nurses who started her career as a nurse
in the University Hospital in the early 1960s, moved on to
teach nursing in universities, and served as president of
the Korea Nurses Association. She has been an active member
of numerous nursing-related organizations. She has shown particular
interest in the welfare of the under-privileged, founding
the National Association for the Advancement of Health and
Medical Care in Rural Communities in 1999. During the presidential
election last year, she was in charge of the basic layout
of Roh's campaign pledges regarding health and welfare, but
it has been pointed out that her "reform-mindedness"
has yet to be proven. Born in Nonsan, Chungcheongnam-do in
1945, majored in Nursing at Seoul National University.
ˇăMinister of Environment Han Myung-sook = The first Minister
of Gender Equality in 2001, her appointment as Minister of
Environment was thanks in no small part to the fact that she
led the Minister of Gender Equality for two years without
any serious hitches. During the years of military dictatorship,
she started her career as a social activist in the Korea Christian
Academy, only to be imprisoned for two years soon after. She
has also been a leader of the women's movement, serving as
the president of Womenlink Korea, co-representative of the
KWAU and the Citizen's Council for Broadcast Media Reform.
Born in Pyongyang, Pyongannam-do, majored in French Language
and Literature at Ehwa Women's University.
ˇăMinister of Gender Equality Ji Eun-hee = Together with Minister
Han Myung-sook, she has been a major figure in Korea's feminist
movement for more than 20 years. She also became a familiar
face to the general public after successfully leading the
controversial rejection campaign against unfit candidates
as a co-representative of the Citizens' Alliance for General
Elections 2000. After serving for five years as senior representative
of KWAU, she went on to become senior representative of Civilnet
(alliance of civic and social groups in Korea) to command
the civil movement. Born in Seoul in 1947, majored in Sociology
at Ehwa Women's University.
<reported by Bae Young-hwan ddarijoa@womennews.co.kr>
- 'Appointment that shocked many,' determined to live up to
expectations
"The general direction of legal reforms lies in getting
the Ministry of Justice and the Prosecution Office to find
their proper positions. This means supporting prosecutors
so that they can conduct investigations based on their convictions.
I believe that the Ministry's and prosecutors' present resistance
will soon change to trust and support."
Newly appointed Minister of Justice Kang Kum-sil said on February
27, "The important task of reforming the Prosecution
Office is a heavy burden indeed. But I cannot understand the
concern that I won't be able to handle it because I'm a woman.
In a phone interview with The Women's News immediately
following the announcement of new administration's Ministerial
appointments, Minister Kang emphasized that she would do her
best to "help prosecutors be faithful to their role as
investigators."
Regarding spiteful attacks on her "lack of capability"
coming from both within and without the Ministry of Justice
before her appointment, Kang commented, "I read an article
that suggested that prosecutors who are my seniors should
all quit. It's not in my capacity as the Minister to talk
about what the prosecutors should do, but one thing is for
sure - people who say such things do not understand the citizens'
desire for reform."
Kang said that the direction of legal reforms lies in "getting
the Ministry of Justice and the Prosecution Office to find
their proper positions." Her suggestions are grounded
in basic principles such as "helping prosecutors from
the Public Prosecutor-General down to carry out investigations
based on their convictions," and "the Ministry of
Justice setting out the principles of investigations through
supervision and assisting the prosecution in investigations."
In order to block the possibility of 'political interference'
in personnel management at the Ministry, Kang revealed that
she would put in place a personnel review board made up of
outside directors and prosecutors. Said the Minister, "I
will bank on my ministerial rights of personnel appointments
in order to check and balance powers, but will also have a
personnel review board to block political interference."
Regarding the basic direction of justice-related administration,
the Minister revealed, "Welfare policies for prosecutors,
such as reimbursing investigation costs, will be implemented
so that prosecutors can be faithful to their primary role
as investigators. Administration should move in the direction
of enhancing quality of service."
Regarding the abolishment of the hoju system, the long
dream of women groups, Kang said, "I was part of the
team researching the hoju system when I was with the
Lawyers for a Democratic Society. As this isn't an issue involving
only the Ministry of Justice, and as I am now a public official,
I will approach the issue from a fresh perspective that reflects
a wide range of public opinions." In addition, Kang also
intends to "seek out and improve various gender-discriminatory
laws."
Asked if she has any requests to women groups, the Minister
said, "A Minister's duty is to aide the citizen-elected
president, and women groups should keep up their criticism
and checks so that I will be steered in the right direction."
Kang picked former Minister of Environment Kim Myung-ja as
her woman minister model, and also promised that she would
"heed the opinions of prosecutors and the people and
solve all problems through dialogue and persuasion."
<Reported by Bae Young-hwan>
˘¸<Photograph by Min Won-ki>
"I have worked with Korean feminists for over 20 years,
but this is my first visit to Korea. It's a pleasure to meet
you."
The interview began with this light greeting from 64-year-old
American scholar of feminism Cynthia Enloe, who has gained
world renown as an unparalleled expert on militarization and
women's issues and is currently a professor at Clark University
(Worcester, Massachusetts).
Visiting Seoul on February 23 at the invitation of the Asian
Center for Women's Studies (director Kim Eun-shil) of Ehwa
Women's University, Professor Enloe majored in Political Science
at UC Berkeley, and personally established the Women's Studies
Program at Clark University in 1972. Noting the influence
that the mammoth system of international politics, militarism
and the munitions industry has on women's everyday lives,
she began researching militarization and gender politics.
She also authored books on militarism and women's issues,
such as Does Khaki Become You?, Bananas, Beaches and Bases,
and Maneuvers: The International Politics of Militarizing
Women's Lives. Enloe shares a long and deep relationship
with Korean women. She was tutor to Kwon In-sook (professor
of Florida State University), who became famous for exposing
the sexual torture she faced in Bucheon Police Station during
her student activist years. Another one of Enloe's students
is Professor Katharine Moon (Wellesley University), author
of Sex Among Allies: Military Prostitution in U.S.-Korea
Relations.
Enloe gave an open lecture on February 24 at Ehwa Women's
University entitled "Making Feminist Sense of State Security:
Women, Masculinity and Militarism," before which she
held a press conference.
- Your reasons for visiting Korea?
"I wanted to meet Korean feminists to analyze the worldwide
acceleration of the war threat and to talk about Korea's particular
situation. I'd also like a chance to search for feminist alternatives
and actions."
- You majored in Political Science. What made you turn to
Women's Studies later on?
"When I was studying Political Science at UC Berkeley
in the 1960s, I wasn't interested in Women's Studies. Furthermore,
I had never dwelled on feminist politics or the recovery of
women's rights. It was while talking to feminist activists
and taking part in their activities that I developed a feminist
awareness. And in 1974, it was the students at Clark University
who took issue with the absence of a Women's Studies Program
and pressured the professors, including myself, to create
one. The Women's Studies program is not my idea; I started
teaching Women's Studies and Women's Politics at the request
of my students, to whom I am grateful."
- What are your thoughts on the Bush administration's war
on Iraq, and what actions should feminists take?
"When the American president makes announcements about
the Iraq war, he must be responsible for not just his words
but their results. The American president is currently quite
'masculinized.' Military control is only part of the authority
held by the president, but right now it seems to be the only
presidential duty.
American feminists are researching whether the Bush administration's
militarized politics is just an outcome of 9.11 or a manifestation
of some other reason found in America's political culture.
Despite having failed to gain wide popular support during
his presidential election campaign, Bush was able to push
ahead with hard-line policies with little resistance because
America's political culture has adopted the view that presidential
authority is masculine. Another reason is that feminist leanings
and intervention in American interests characterizing UN's
stance for the past 15 years may have incurred the resistance
of the US right wing. Feminist scholars must do in-depth research
on such deep-rooted political consciousness."
- What is the role of Korean feminist activists in view of
national reunification?.
"First and foremost in the minds of women when it comes
to reunification should not be whether or not reunification
should take place or how it should be achieved, but studying
how women's lives will be affected by reunification."
While meeting Korean feminist scholars after the press conference,
Enloe asked for help in gathering a variety of resources,
saying, "I'm interested in the sexual division of labor,
and would like to research the lives of women workers in the
past sneakers industry in Busan." Enloe also suggested
that another area that merits research is the activities of
Korean male factory owners who shrewdly make use of the women
workers' femininity to their profit.
<reported by Dong Kim Sung-hye dong@womennews.co.kr>
(The Women's News http://www.womennews.co.kr)
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