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Korea Herald
July 7,
2003
Summary:
Editorial in favor of political and economic
reforms to help South Korean women, including raising the required
ratio of female candidates for the legislature.
Editorial: A gender-equal society
July 7, 2003 President Roh
Moo-hyun's freewheeling words often raise eyebrows but at times he
is humorously on target. During a live broadcast campaign last
November, his audience burst into laughter when he explained his
proposed state-subsidized childcare program. Roh asserted: "Now,
please have as many babies as you want. Roh Moo-hyun will raise your
babies." The liberal candidate seemingly understood the day-to-day
battle working mothers with little kids wage. He promised that, if
elected, he would ensure that the government will shoulder half of
all day-care expenses for working women's children. He also
accommodated most other feminists' proposals, including abolishing
the patriarchal family registration system and expanding women's
political participation. Observing the eighth annual Women's Week
that ends today, the nation's feminists should be deeply
disappointed that the Roh administration has failed to formulate
strategies that actualize the president's grandiose pledges. The new
administration has been remiss in honoring its promises to women.
Probably, the administration couldn't afford to worry about
gender-related problems when it faces a spate of urgent issues such
as the nuclear crisis, labor unrest and the recession, to itemize
just a few. Unfortunately, the cause of women cannot be postponed
as it is the cause of social progress itself. Roh must find ways,
before next year's general elections, to raise the ratio of female
candidates to 30 percent for regional constituencies and 50 percent
in the national proportional representation system. He also promised
to abolish the controversial family registration system by 2007, and
he pledged to increase female officers to 20 percent of all fifth
grade or higher public servants by 2006. This is not an arbitrary
numbers game left over from the past election. All the issues are
enormously significant for mid- and long-term national development.
This is because, in spite of their conspicuously improved status in
recent years, most women here must still fight prejudice. Women are
the neglected half of Korea's human resources, not only politically,
but economically and in other professional areas too. Although she
can marry freely and divorce if she chooses, the average Korean
woman has to constantly struggle against discrimination in her
family as well as her workplace. These updated figures should open
the eyes of our officials, policymakers, civic leaders and women
themselves: 72.1 percent of women get a university education, but
only 49.7 percent of women engage in economic activities; women earn
64 percent of what a man is paid for the same work; women account
for 12.3 percent of new recruits at 20 leading public corporations;
and the National Assembly has less than 4 percent female
representatives, compared to the world average of 13.8 percent.
South Korea ranks 61st in the Gender Empowerment Measure, while its
overall Human Development Index ranks 27th, according to UNDP
statistics last year. |
