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| Adoption in Korea, Revisited |
| [Opinion] Government subsidy is far below the real cost of taking care of a child |
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Kim Ae-rin (withlynn)  |
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Published 2008-07-10 15:29 (KST) |
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Korea celebrated its third Adoption Day on May 11, 2008. The date itself conveys a special message; May is considered family month in Korea, and the 11th was selected in the meaning of one family plus one adoptee making a new, loving home.
The day was designated in 2006 to raise awareness of domestic adoption and to promote it. The designation has been a very special and significant step as the beginning of efforts to bring positive attitudes toward adoption.
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FROM THE SECTION |
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| Korea has a bad reputation as a "baby-exporting" country. According to the GAIPS (Global Adoption Information Post Service), as of September 2007, 229,784 Korean babies have been adopted. Among them, 159,795, or 69.5 percent, have been "exported" to foreign countries, while Korean families here have adopted 69,989 children. It is common for Koreans to read news about an event where overseas-adopted people are invited to or to watch a TV program where they meet their birth mothers.
The modern history of Korea has been spotted with a variety of hardships such as the Korean War in 1950. During this difficult period, a lot of children lost their parents and families, and most of them had little choice but to be adopted into foreign families.
Although economic hardships have been considered a major reason making people here shun adoption, the biggest hamper of adoption is a deep-rooted notion in our society that emphasizes blood ties. Many Koreans still place importance on bloodlines, which is significant in Confucian culture. As a result, around three-fifths of families keep to adopt a child secret.
According to the GAIPS, in 2004, only 165 out of 534, or 30.9 percent, of domestic adoptions were open. In 2005, this went up to 42.6 percent, and in 2006, it was at 41 percent. Although the number has been increasing, around 60 percent of families still want a secret adoption. However, Korean adoption culture cannot improve in this social circumstance.
As Stephen C. Morrison, founder of Mission to Promote Adoption in Korea (MPAK) said, "Adoption is nothing that we should be ashamed of. People should know that babies are born of wombs, but also they are born of hearts. Through adoption, they are born of hearts." The most urgent task now is the creation of a social environment that accepts adoption as a matter of course.
It is also undeniable that the Korean government is not giving adopting families full and active support, and this also hampers adoption in our country. The government's support for adopting families is still not sufficient.
Since 2007, it has lowered its necessary qualifications for domestic adoption and provided financial assistance; it has become possible for singles who are aged over 35 or who have less than a 50 year age gap to adopt children, and the government has reportedly given them 2 million won (US$2,000) in a lump sum when they adopt a child and grants 100,000 won (about $100) a month for childcare expenses to adoptive parents until the child turns 13.
It also supports a physically-challenged adoptee with 551,000 won (about $551) a month and 2,520,000 won (about $2,520) for medical expense a year until (s)he reaches 18. But the subsidy is far below the real cost of taking care of a child.
The government is requested to work out more comprehensive and active measures to encourage adoption in our society. It should support adoption institutions more actively. However, a more important thing for invigorating adoption here is the change of attitude among people. There should be improvement in mentality about adoption and persistence on bloodlines.
We should try to make an open society where babies are not hurt by unwarranted prejudice just because they are adoptees. Koreans stick too much to blood ties, but it is time for us to realize that we are now living in a global community where all the unwarranted prejudice is getting dimmer.
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©2008 OhmyNews
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 Comments Note: Kindly refrain from personal attacks and profanity. |
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1. Right on!
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jbryant , 2008-07-12 12:00
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