Republic of Korea - Seventh periodic reports of States parties [2010] UNCEDAWSPR 25; CEDAW/C/KOR/7 (9 November 2010)

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Consideration of reports submitted by States parties under article 18 of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women

3. Number of organizations conducting gender impact assessment and number of projects

4. Gender ratio of civil servants by rank in central and local governments (2008) 45

6. Gender ratio of scientists in 99 government-affiliated research institutes 46

7. Gender ratio of teachers, deputy principals, and principals in primary and secondary schools 46

21. Resident foreigners by country of origin (unskilled workers-legalized, work permit,

27. Female composition of successful candidates in national exams for high-ranking

32. Employment rate of four-year university graduates (within one month of graduation) 55

34. Vocational training and employment support for women by the Ministry of Gender

35. Vocational training and employment support for women by the Ministry of Gender

36. Women’s participation in vocational training programs by the Ministry of Labor 57

48. Beneficiaries of the basic livelihood security program by age and gender (2008) 61

1. This seventh periodic report of the Republic of Korea under the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women covers the years between 2006 and 2009. Korea ratified the Optional Protocol to CEDAW in 2006 and the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities in 2008. During that time, Korea has pursued strategies to more effectively implement the laws and policies established for the purpose of realizing gender equality. Using the various laws enacted during the 5th and 6th reporting periods as a starting point, Korea has moved forward to set long- and short-term plans, secure the budget, establish necessary organizational structures, and engage in policy dissemination and education of public officials and the general population. Particular emphasis was placed on finding concrete measures toward such goals as: elimination of discrimination in employment practices, prevention of violence against women, expansion of women’s participation in public sectors, elimination of lingering prejudices against women, facilitation of women’s access to health care, and reduction in women’s poverty. Another high priority was the effort to establish gender equality as the norm in mainstream policies.

2. This report includes case law on issues arising from the newly enacted and amended legislations, as well as selected actions of the central and local governments and by NGOs. This will demonstrate that not only the central government is making the effort to eliminate gender discrimination; but rather, the entire nation, from a grassroots level, is making the effort to achieve this goal. This report also introduces the efforts made by the central and local governments to improve the rights of women in various socio-economic strata, including immigrants and migrants, rural women and other underprivileged women. It also discusses the unintended results of various policy measures, including the actual and potential retraction of women’s rights, and proposes strategies for their resolution.

3. This report was drafted by the researchers of the Korean Women’s Development Institute and other experts under the leadership of the Ministry of Gender Equality. Each of the ministries of the government reviewed the drafts, and the report was revised based on their reviews and on additional discussions of the advisory committee, which was comprised of various government officials. The final draft was completed with the additional input of more than 110 organizations, including the Korean National Council of Women and the Korean Women’s Association United, and the National Human Rights Commission.

4. In 2008, the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family was reorganized, and the current Ministry of Gender Equality was established. Except as indicated, however, we use the title “Ministry of Gender Equality” even where the events in reference occurred prior to the 2008 reorganization.

5. The National Human Rights Commission Act defines ‘discriminatory acts’ as acts that violate a person’s right to equal treatment. In its article 2.4, a discriminatory act is defined as:

“Any of the following acts committed, without reasonable cause, based on gender, religion, disability, age, social status, region of birth, national origin, ethnic origin, appearance, marital status (i.e. married, single, separated, divorced, widowed, and de facto married), race, skin color, thoughts or political opinions, family type or family status, pregnancy or birth, criminal record of which effective term of the punishment has expired, sexual orientation, academic background, medical history, etc.: (a) Any act of favorably treating, excluding, differentiating, or unfavorably treating a particular person in employment (including recruitment, hiring, training, placement, promotion, wages, payment of commodities other than wages, loans, age limit, retirement, dismissal, etc.); (b) Any act of favorably treating, excluding, differentiating, or unfavorably treating a particular person in the supply or use of goods, services, transportation, commercial facilities, land, and residential facilities; (c) Any act of favorably treating, excluding, differentiating, or unfavorably treating a particular person in the provision of education and training at or usage of educational facilities or vocational training institutions; and (d) Any act of sexual harassment.”

6. An act of favorable treatment for the purpose of remedying existing discrimination, however, is not deemed discriminatory, thus allowing by law temporary special measures for women. The National Human Rights Commission includes both direct and indirect discrimination in its actual work on complaints and policy recommendations regarding discrimination.

7. The government classified gender discrimination into two categories, ‘direct’ and ‘indirect’ discrimination, and declared the prohibition of indirect discrimination in 2001. Indirect discrimination refers to the discrimination women face when laws and policies are seemingly neutrally applied, but women are still discriminated against because of their gendered roles and status in the family and society. According to the Act on Gender Equality in Employment and Support for Work-Family Reconciliation (amended in December 2007), indirect discrimination refers to the discrimination resulting from the lack of consideration for the different characteristics of the two sexes. To eliminate direct and indirect discrimination against women in the workplace, amendments were made to the provisions related to childbirth or childrearing that incurred disadvantages to women in such rules as the Act on Civil Servants Pension, Act on Private School Teachers Pension, Act on National Civil Servants, Act on Local Civil Servants, Act on Public School Teachers, Act on Private Schools, Act on Military Compensation, Act on Military Personnel, and Act on Military Pensions. The amended provisions count the duration of maternal and childcare leaves as years of employment.

8. The Act on Family Relations Registration (enacted on May 17, 2007) introduces a new personal identification registration system which replaces the traditional system that became obsolete when the family headship system had been abolished. This Act specifies the procedures for maintaining records of individuals’ status changes such as birth, marriage and death, managing the files and issuing relevant certificates (see para. 144 below).

9. The Anti-Discrimination against and Remedies for Persons with Disabilities Act (enacted on April 10, 2007) is intended to prohibit discrimination based on disability and guarantee the rights of persons with disabilities. The act prohibits discrimination against women with disabilities in all life spheres including childbirth, childrearing, housework and sexual relations, and specifies the obligations of the central and local governments to achieve that goal.

10. The previous Act on Mandating Electronic Positioning Devices on Certain Sex Offenders (enacted on April 27, 2007) intended to prevent recidivism by mandating an electronic positioning device on those sex offenders who had been sentenced to imprisonment and were at high risk for recidivism. On May 9, 2009, the act was revised and renamed as the Act on Mandating Electronic Positioning Devices on Certain Criminals to include those criminals who had been involved in the kidnapping of children. According to the revised law, for those who committed sex crimes repeatedly or against youth under the age of 13 and are believed to be at risk for recidivism, prosecutors may submit a petition to the court to request a court-ordered installation of an electronic positioning device for a period of up to 10 years.

11. The Support for Multi-Cultural Families Act (enacted on March 21, 2008) is intended to prevent prejudices and discrimination against the increasing number of multi-cultural families that consist of parents of different ethnicities and their children, and to establish a support system for them to sustain stable family lives and become integrated into society. This act mandates that central and local governments establish policies providing support for education, counseling, language, and childbearing and rearing and to designate the corporations or organizations providing such services as “multi-cultural family support centers” (see para. 146 below).

12. The Marriage Brokerage Control Act (enacted on December 14, 2007) contains guidelines for the marriage brokerage industry, outlining healthy businesses practices, and also provides protection to the clients of brokerage services, so that a healthy marriage culture and practices can be established. Specifically, the act focuses on preventing violations of human rights in the process of mediation of international marriages and curtailing problems caused by the lack of information (see paras. 59–60 below). According to the Act, international marriage brokers are obligated to register with a government office, draft formal contracts with clients, and cannot make false or exaggerated advertisements, as failure to meet these requirements will result in a penalty.

13. The Act on Promotion of Family Friendly Social Environments (enacted on December 14, 2007) is intended to promote the formation of family-friendly social environments where family and work are compatible, which is imperative in the changing social context of a low fertility rate, an aging population, and an increase in women’s labor force participation. The act imposes several mandates on the central and local governments: to establish comprehensive social policies, to conduct relevant research, to develop and disseminate indices of family friendliness, and to evaluate the family friendliness of corporations and public organizations.

14. The Act on Promotion of Women’s Economic Activities (enacted on June 5, 2008) is intended to establish a comprehensive system to promote the economic activities of the female labor force. Focusing on women who dropped out of the labor force due to pregnancy, childbirth, childcare or other family care-giving, and women who have never participated in the labor force, the act mandates conducting surveys, establishing polices, providing support for job training, and facilitating family-friendly businesses. The act also provides a legal basis to establish and operate support centers for women who have dropped out of the labor force.

15. The National Finances Act (enacted October 4, 2006), which combined two existing laws, the Budget Accounting Act and the Basic Law on Fund Management, is the basic law governing national financial management. This new act includes a provision that mandates the government to assess the differential effects of budget expenditure on men and women and to adjust the budgets based on the findings. The act also mandates that the government submit gender responsive budgets and accounts beginning in the 2010 fiscal year.

16. The Civil Law (amended on December 21, 2007) set the legal age for marriage at age 18 to be the same for the two genders in order to actualize the principle of gender equality (see para. 141 below). The law also newly introduces a requirement for couples in agreement for divorce to undergo a waiting period, three months if the couple has a child and one month if they do not, after which the family court will confirm the intention of the divorce for both spouses and allow a divorce. The law also requires the divorcing couple to reach an agreement on childrearing including custody of children and child support payment, as well as designation of legal parent.

17. The Civil Law (amended on May 8, 2009) further strengthens the responsibility for child support payments by divorced parents by mandating divorcing couples to enter into a written payment agreement at the time of divorce under the supervision of the family court (see para. 142 below).

18. The Act on the Prevention of Prostitution and Protection of Victims Thereof (amended on March 21, 2008) mandates surveys every three years on prostitution at the domestic and international levels to provide basic data that helps establish the most effective policies. Further, the act expands prevention education, which had been formerly imposed only on primary and secondary schools, to include the central and local government offices and public institutions, and allows the government to subsidize the nonprofit organizations that provide shelter and assistance to victims of transnational trafficking.

19. This Act was further revised on June 13, 2008, to establish a “center for women’s human rights” for the purpose of coordinating activities aimed at preventing prostitution and supporting the victims.

20. The Act on Punishment of Sexual Violence Crimes and Protection of Victims (amended on October 27, 2006) strengthens the protection of human rights for victims of sexual crimes during the investigation and trial process and increases the penalty for crimes of sexual violence against youths under the age of 13. Mandatory tape recordings of statements, which used to be applicable to victims under the age of 13, is now applicable to all victims under the age of 16 and, if petitioned for, a trusted acquaintance can accompany the victim during the investigation and trial process. In addition, a new provision specifies the penalty for quasi-rape of youths under the age of 13. An amendment on June 2008 increased the penalty for crimes of sexual violence against youths under the age of 13, including rape, quasi-rape, and sexual molestation.

21. The Act on Prevention of Domestic Violence and Protection of Victims (amended on May 8, 2009) obligates the central and local governments to provide shelter to victims of domestic violence who have left home to escape violence by giving them access to public rental housing on a priority basis. The act also provides a legal basis to establish a telephone “Hotline 1366” which is available 24 hours a day throughout the year and accepts urgent requests for help from victims of domestic and sexual violence. In addition, the act mandates the re-education of counselors dealing with domestic violence issues to update and expand their expertise and capacity to support victims.

22. The Act on Ethics and Safety of Life (amended on June 5, 2008) increases the penalty for enticement or procurement of the illegal sale of eggs or sperm to be equal to the penalty for the actual sale of eggs or sperm. This act requires the medical institutions in embryo production to protect the donors’ health by providing medical examinations and limiting the frequency of donations. The act also provides that the donors are allowed to receive some monetary compensation, in terms of the actual costs incurred during the donation process, such as transportation and lodging.

23. The Act on Maternal and Child Health (amended on January 7, 2009) considers pregnant women as well as all women of childbearing age to be protected under this law. The scope of maternal and child heath services has been expanded to include reproductive health management as well as support for pregnancy, delivery and childrearing, thus providing the legal basis for the establishment of intensive health care facilities for newborn babies and subsidies for infertility clinics. The act also mandates facilities for postpartum recovery to maintain records of patient transfers to hospitals in case of infection, disease and negligent accidents so as to prevent reoccurrences in the future.

24. The Act on Protection of Children and Youths from Sexual Violence (amended on June 9, 2009) increases the penalty for sexual crimes against children and youths, newly criminalizes the act of soliciting sex to youths, and adopts an internet library system providing access to personal information on sex offenders against children and youths. If the perpetrator is a parent or guardian, prosecutors or the head of the local government can file a request to the court to deprive parental rights or guardianship. Under the act, restrictions on the employment of sex offenders are further imposed to expand the types of work places and the duration of time for which they are not permitted to work.

25. The Family Litigation Act (amended on December 21, 2007) was revised following the amendment of the Civil Law (on March 31, 2005). The new Act prescribes in more detail the parental rights and obligations of a biological mother and requires the family court to play a stronger role in making childrearing arrangements between divorcing parents (see paras. 142 and 143 below).

26. The Labor Standards Act (amended on March 21, 2008) ensures that employers permit pregnant workers to take time off from work for medical examinations and prohibits employers from reducing wages for the time taken at the medical examination. Another amendment promulgated on March 28, 2008, provides that women who return to work after a maternity leave are entitled to the same position as the one held before the leave or to positions of equivalent job descriptions with similar pay levels, to ensure that female employees are not disadvantaged as a result of maternity leave. Also, when business owners submit a report on their employment policies to the Ministry of Labor, they are obliged to also report on ways in which they plan to support their employees to balance family and work and ways to improve the workplace environment to meet the diverse needs of employees differing in gender, age, and physical condition.

Act on Gender Equality in Employment and Support for Work-Family Reconciliation

27. The Equal Employment Act (amended on December 21, 2007) was changed to the Act on Gender Equality in Employment and Support for Work-Family Reconciliation. This act requires businesses to enhance measures to reconcile work and family in order to enable more women to participate in the labor force (see paras. 92 and 98 below).

28. The Act on Elections for Public Officers (amended on October 4, 2006) mandates that political parties recommend equal numbers of female and male candidates in elections of city or town council members, similar to the existing requirement for elections of provincial council members. Specifically, women should be listed in odd-numbered spots on the list of candidates for the proportionally elected seats. If this rule is violated, none of the listed candidates from the party are allowed to register as candidates.

29. The Statistical Data Act (amended on April 27, 2007) recommends that all government offices planning to produce any statistics obtain approval in advance from the Minister of the National Statistical Office to use gender as a classification item so that they can produce gender-specific statistics at the time of data compilation.

3. Status of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women as a domestic law and advocacy training

30. As Korea ratified the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, the Convention has the same effect as domestic law. Among the court cases using the Convention, two precedents can be given. One is the ruling of the illegality of excluding female members from distribution of clan assets, and another is the declaration of unconstitutionality on the policy of giving extra points in government exams to men who completed the compulsory military service. These decisions were based on the provisions of the Convention that the government is obligated to take appropriate steps to eliminate prejudices, customs, and all other practices related to the preconceptions about male and female roles”. To encourage the production of more precedents based on the Convention, the Ministry of Gender Equality held a symposium for women lawyers in October 27, 2007, titled ‘CEDAW in Asia’. The participants discussed the status of implementation in other countries and the legal implications in ratifying the Convention. Also, a public forum was held on December 7, 2007, with participants from the legislature, judiciary branch, academia, relevant government ministries and NGOs to share the concluding observations of the 5th and 6th periodic reports (CEDAW/C/KOR/CO/6) and to discuss ways to implement the recommendations made by the Committee and future tasks. On November 24–26, 2008, the Gyeongnam provincial government, hosting a World Conference on Women’s Human Rights in which five members of the Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women participated with 3,000 people from inside the country and abroad, raised awareness on the Convention and its Optional Protocol as well as key issues on women’s human rights. After the World Conference in Gyeongnam, a public forum on the Convention was also organized in Seoul, jointly by the Korean Women’s Development Institute and the National Human Rights Commission, with the participation of four experts on the Convention. Most recently on December 2, 2009, the National Human Rights Commission held, with the participation of the judiciary, a conference titled “Achievements of CEDAW in Korea and Future Tasks”. In addition, the Ministry of Gender Equality continuously distributes data and information related to the Convention to the legislature, judiciary branch and other related organizations in order to emphasize the importance of the Convention.

31. The National Human Rights Commission is in charge of providing recommendations to rectify discriminatory practices and human rights violations, and has made efforts to eliminate sexual stereotypes deeply rooted in society by reviewing and resolving sexual harassment and gender discrimination cases. Of 3,363 petition cases filed with the Commission between 2006 and 2008, 419 cases (12.5%) were related to sexual harassment and 180 cases (5.4%) involved gender discrimination (see annex II, table 1). In recent years, the number of cases involving sexual harassment and discrimination by age, sex, and social status are decreasing, whereas cases related to discrimination by country of origin and marital status are increasing. In 2008, out of 1,143 complaints finalized, 90 cases were discriminatory acts, on which the Commission recommended remedies such as policy changes, human rights education and/or monetary compensation. There were 34 sexual harassment cases, being the most frequent type of violation.

32. The National Human Rights Commission holds symposiums, seminars, and workshops inviting expert opinions on major cases petitioned and searches for new directions on anti-discrimination policies. Those held in 2008 include the “workshop on remedies for discrimination against women in employment” and the “seminar commemorating the 3rd anniversary of dealing with sexual harassment issues”.

33. In 2007, the government adopted the Third Basic Plan for Women’s Policies (2008–2012). With the vision of ‘a society with sustainable gender equality’, the plan set up the goals of ‘women’s empowerment’, ‘balance between work and family life’ and ‘respect for diversity and differences’. The five policy objectives include ‘women’s active participation in the management of the nation’, ‘strengthening women’s welfare and human rights’, ‘improvement of women’s economic capacity’, ‘socially shared responsibilities for caregiving’, and ‘social integration and the culture of equality’. The functions of the women’s policy units and gender equality policy officers that were instituted in various ministries of the government have now been somewhat reduced compared to the previous reporting period. However, the Office of the President, the Office of the Prime Minister and 15 other ministries maintain the units and positions specializing in women’s policies.

34. In 2004, the Ministry of Gender Equality took over the administration of childcare services, which had been transferred from the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare. To meet the need for stronger family policies, the ministry expanded and was renamed the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family. However, as the new administration took office in 2008, two bureaus within the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family — the Family Policy Bureau and the Childcare Policy Bureau — were transferred back to the Ministry of Health and Social Welfare, and the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family reverted back to the Ministry of Gender Equality. The Ministry of Gender Equality now focuses on gender-impact assessment, development of female human power, and the advancement of women’s rights and interests. As of Dec. 31, 2009, an amendment to the Government Organization Act had passed so that the Ministry of Gender Equality is expected to become once again the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family and expand its function and organizational size with the number of staff increasing from 100 to 250.

35. The principle of gender responsive budgeting was legally introduced in 2006 when it was incorporated in the National Finance Act (see para. 15 above). The Ministry of Gender Equality initiated the effort to institutionalize gender responsive budgeting in 2003, and since then has helped develop the methodology and execution procedures. As gender responsive budgeting will be put into practice beginning in 2010, the Ministry of Strategy and Finance is expected to compile the gender responsive budgets proposed by the central government administrative offices and submit the compiled budgets to the National Assembly. So far, the Ministry has analyzed, using the gender-disaggregated statistics, the budgets for 195 projects which amounts to a total of 7,314 billion Korean Won (see annex II, table 2).

36. Gender-impact assessment is the main policy of the government for gender mainstreaming and has been implemented since 2005 (see the sixth periodic report (CEDAW/C/KOR/6, section 3.2). To improve the quality of the analyses that the central and local governments conduct on their policies, the Ministry of Gender Equality may designate any national or public research institutions, research institutions funded by local governments, or private research institutions as the supporting institutions to help in the analysis and assessment. Accordingly, as of 2009, in addition to the Korean Women’s Development Institute in Seoul, five research institutions across various regions of the country have been designated as supporting institutions (see annex II, table 3).

37. There have been several cases where the results from the gender-impact assessment were reflected in the amendment of laws or policies and in the generation of gender-specific statistics. For example, the Ministry of Agriculture, as a result of the gender-impact assessment of their program for developing agricultural manpower, revised the program to provide separate funds for each spouse when the two spouses engaged in different projects. In addition, when selecting trainees for a government-sponsored educational program called “the class of leaders in information-assisted agricultural management”, the ministry allocated a quota of 30% to women. Meanwhile, the Gyeonggi Provincial Government conducted a gender-impact assessment of a program subsidizing housing for low-income families and decided to provide additional support for female heads of household.

38. As more central and local government offices and organizations as well as offices of education participate in the gender-impact assessment, the awareness of gender-sensitive statistics has increased. As the system of gender-sensitive budgeting becomes mandatory among government bodies, the demand for gender-sensitive statistics rises. Article 13 of the Women’s Development Act and article 18 of the Statistical Data Act (see para. 29 above) require gender-specific statistics. As of June 2009, among all the government-approved statistics, 59.7% of the data is disaggregated by gender, while 5.7% is not and 34.7% is gender-neutral. 91.3% of all gender-relevant statistics are separated by gender either partially or completely. Data used internally in administrative offices has not yet been separated by gender. Currently, efforts are being made to change the law so that the government offices are required to generate sex-disaggregated data even for internal use.

6. Cooperative systems between the central and local governments promoting policies on women

39. Various measures are being taken to strengthen the cooperation between the national and local governments promoting policies on women. One important example of such cooperation is the gender-impact assessment. The Ministry of Gender Equality establishes and revises the analysis schemes, sets up annual analysis plans, and conducts a systematic analysis based on the results from the gender-impact assessment performed by the administrative units and the offices of education at the central and local governments. To encourage gender-impact assessment, the Ministry grants awards to outstanding cases.

40. Cooperation between the National Human Rights Commission and local governments is also being achieved. After the 2008 Gyeongnam World Conference on Women’s Human Rights, the Gyeongnam provincial government created a ‘Women’s Human Rights Unit’ and, as a result of an ordinance, set up a ‘Special Committee for Women’s Human Rights’, with the aim of improving the participation rate of women and other indicators by 10% in 10 years. They also held regional seminars. All this demonstrates their active and sincere efforts in improving women’s human rights.

41. The central and local government offices have also been closely cooperating in their efforts to build ‘women-friendly cities’, which is a part of the gender mainstreaming policies of local communities. The central government’s Multi-Functional Administrative City Construction Agency as well as the local governments of the Seoul Metropolitan City, Iksan City and Kimpo City initiated and have carried out urban planning projects with the goal of creating cities where women can enjoy happiness. The Ministry of Gender Equality named such efforts as ‘forming women-friendly cities’ and has systematically campaigned such ideas nationwide in cooperation with local governments. In March 2009, the Ministry designated the city of Iksan as a women-friendly city and signed with the city an ‘agreement to build a women-friendly city’. To achieve the goal, the city set up 44 tasks to accomplish, including developing ‘a zone of no violence against women’ and ‘a zone of no hurdle for women’s walking’. Since then, the city has pushed forward the project and recently added 5 new tasks, including ‘improvement of rural women’s rights’ and ‘facilitation of breastfeeding’. In December 2009, the Ministry designated the city of Yeosu as the second women-friendly city and signed the same agreement to push forward the project. With the vision of a ‘city of equality, city of safety, and city of happiness’, the city of Yeosu set up 40 policy tasks to achieve, including the ‘expansion of female composition of managerial public officials’ and the ‘adoption of the standard blue prints for women-friendly architecture’. Several other local governments are preparing to launch women-friendly city projects, and the Ministry of Gender Equality is assisting in the process by providing training to local government officials and undergoing consultations with regard to the projects.

42. The government has made consistent efforts to expand women’s social participation in various sectors and to raise women’s representation in the policy making process. For this, it set a goal that women comprise 10% of all public officials at rank 4 (director level) or higher by 2010 and has implemented a five-year plan since 2007. Data on the gender composition within the central government shows that the percentage of men is still very high for high-ranking positions, and women are concentrated in the middle or lower ranking positions. Only 2.1% of rank 2 (director-general level) or higher positions are occupied by women, and 4.4%, 7.1% and 13.5% of public officials within ranks 3 (director-general level), 4 (director level), and 5 (deputy director level), respectively, are women. For public officials in the local governments, the 2nd five-year Plan for Employment of Female Manager Level Public Officers (2007–2011) is currently in progress with the goal of filling 9.6% of rank 5 or higher positions with women by 2011. The percentage reached 7.6% in 2008 (see annex II, table 4).

43. Four-year national or public universities are required to establish a plan for gender equality in employment opportunities every three years, according to the Public Educational Personnel and Staffs Act. The Ministry of Education, Science and Technology receives reports from national and public universities on the execution of those plans and selects the top 4 to 6 universities based on the review results to reward. This system was applied only to general four-year national and public universities (25 universities total) until 2007, but has now been expanded to include educational colleges (10 institutions), industrial colleges (5 institutions), and Korea National Open University in 2008. The female composition of professors in national and public universities was 11.6% in 2008, which is slightly higher than the 11.0% figure for 2006 (see annex II, table 5). During the same period, the percentage of female professors in private universities also increased from 18.8% to 19.7%.

44. The government promulgated the Act on Supporting Women in Science and Technology in 2002 to encourage women’s participation and increase women’s representation in the field. Accordingly, it has carried out the 1st Basic Plan for Supporting and Fostering Women in Science and Technology (2004–2008) as well as the 2nd plan (2009–2013). The 2nd Basic Plan set the following goals: to increase the percentage of female students of engineering majors in colleges up to 25%; to produce more than 1,000 female doctoral degree holders in natural sciences and engineering every year; and to recruit 30% of women among new hires in government-funded research institutions in science and technology. The system of female employment quotas was adopted in 2001, and female promotion quotas were added in 2007.

45. For the research institutes to which the Recruitment Target for Women Scientists apply, female composition increased from 12.0% in 2006 to 12.8% in 2008. During that same period, the female composition in new hires increased from 21.4% to 22.1% (see annex II, table 6). In 2008, women comprised 13.8% of the researchers qualified for promotion and 13.6% of the researchers actually promoted.

46. As the demand for high-quality female human power increases, new legislation is needed to activate the female labor force. Thus, on December 30, 2005, the government amended the Equal Employment Act and introduced a new system to facilitate the employment of women (see para. 92 below). The new rule has been applied to the government-invested or government-affiliated public corporations as well as to the private enterprises with more than 1,000 employees since March 1, 2006, and from March 2008, expanded to private enterprises with 500 or more employees. In 2009, across those businesses, the average female composition was 34.01% for all employees and 14.13% for managers. The female composition among managers has increased by .80, 1.51, and 1.62 percentage points in 2007, 2008, and 2009 respectively, compared to the previous year (annex II, table 8). By rank, female composition was 6.6% at the executive level, 13.3% at the managerial level or higher, and 38.4% at levels below the managerial level, confirming a high concentration of women in lower ranks (annex II, table 9).

47. Recognizing the imperative need for public officials to possess a gender equality consciousness in order to achieve a gender equality society, the Korean Institute for Gender Equality Promotion and Education, established in 2003 under the Ministry of Gender Equality, provides education to public officials. Students of the Institute include public officials, legislators, school teachers, military persons, police officers, and employees of government-affiliated organizations and government-invested public corporations. The number of public officials who have received education has increased steadily from 3,652 in 2006, to 4,328 in 2007, and to 4,698 in 2008. These increases reflect an increasing demand following the legislation of gender responsive budgets and gender-impact assessment. The program provides diverse courses, including gender sensitivity development, gender equality policy making, resolving gender conflicts, gender-impact assessment, gender responsive budgets, gender sensitive statistics, and gender leadership. These courses are designed to develop gender sensitivity so that policies and businesses can be viewed from gender perspectives.

48. As the number of participants in the education program increases, a more objective indicator of the effects of education becomes necessary. Accordingly, a gender sensitivity scale was developed as a measure of the impact of education. The scale is used before and after the education to place the trainees into appropriate courses and to measure the progress after education.

49. The number of sexual violence crimes reported increased from 13,446 in 2005 to 17,178 in 2008, while the number of sexual harassment cases filed increased from 62 to 152 during the same period (see annex II, tables 10 and 11). This trend implies the heightened awareness of sexual violence and sexual harassment issues. To boost sexual violence prevention education, expert educators were identified and pooled into a list of resource persons, which city and provincial offices of education are encouraged to utilize.

50. The legislation dealing with sexual violence is the Act on Punishment for Sexual Violence Crimes and Protection of Victims and the legislations regarding sexual harassment include the Women’s Development Act, the Equal Employment Act and the National Human Rights Commission Act. The Women’s Development Act imposes on the head of an organization the obligation to take steps to prevent sexual harassment and requires them to provide sexual harassment prevention education at least once a year. The Anti-Discrimination against and Remedies for Persons with Disabilities Act enacted in April 2007, prescribes that education for the prevention of sexual violence against the disabled be included in the job-training curriculum for employees in educational institutions, business enterprises, and welfare facilities. In an effort to reinforce the effects of prevention education, the Ministry of Gender Equality produces and distributes educational materials using the data it gathers, including successful cases of sexual harassment prevention and strategies to prevent and deal with sexual harassment.

51. The 3rd Basic Plan for Women’s Policies (2008–2012) emphasizes the utilization of the media to achieve gender equality. Given the changing environment of the media, emphasis has been placed on the reconfirmation of gender equality in media laws, the elimination of gender gaps in digital media access for women in training, and the financial support and aid to construct production centers for visual arts, games, performing arts, publications and media education of gender equality. The government has also monitored the media for gender discriminatory contents, awarded producers of gender equality programs in broadcasting, set the guidelines for producers, and developed on-line education programs. In 2006, intensive monitoring was conducted on gender discriminatory expressions in mass media such as newspapers, broadcasting and internet media, and discussion sessions were held with media workers to seek remedies. Workshops for writers in broadcasting stations were also held. The government supported selected programs of the two public broadcasting stations, KBS and EBS, to disseminate the culture of gender equality. In 2008, new review guidelines were set for monitoring agents of the Korea Communications Standards Commission to regulate the contents of broadcasting and telecommunication.

52. Gender balance among media workers is an important factor in achieving gender equality in media content. However, there are limits to correcting the composition with policy measures due to the specialty of the industry. Nonetheless, an increasing number of women are entering the industry. Data shows that the number of women as well as female composition has increased since 2005 (see annex II, table 12).

53. To prevent violence against women, the 3rd Basic Plan for Women’s Policies (2008–2012) includes policies of ‘raising social awareness about violence against women and children’, the ‘improved prevention of sexual and domestic violence’, and the ‘effective protection of and support for victims of sexual and domestic violence’. For a more effective system of protective services, existing service programs are expanded and coordinated at “one-stop” supporting centers, where diverse services such as counseling, medical, legal, and investigation assistance are provided to victims of violence against women (see annex II, tables 13 and 14).

54. To encourage victims of violence against women to develop social and economic independence, the government runs a program providing housing support where the women and their family members can reside together. Its main objective is to provide temporary community housing. In 2008, 21 homes were utilized in two cities, and 50 homes in five cities became available for use in 2009. Counselors help tenants with job training, job search, children’s education and other matters. In November 2009, new legislation was enacted to provide public rental housing firsthand to victims of domestic violence who meet certain qualifications.

55. The government announced a ‘Comprehensive Strategy to Protect Women and Children’ that includes measures on the protection of children from kidnapping and sexual violence. Specifically, the measures include the coordination of community watch groups for women and children, installation of CCTVs in the playgrounds, parks and schools, operation of child-protection-designated establishments, participation of the elderly and retired persons in child protection, placing monitors in schools, and effective utilization of volunteer organizations on child-safety. Progress has also been achieved in several other fronts. A new strategy of protection for children and women was developed after some well-publicized cases of sexual violence; a committee was established under the Prime Minister’s office examining the most effective protection measures; and 234 local governments run community networks for the protection of children and women. To provide victims with trauma counseling, psychological assessment, medical support and legal assistance, centers on sexual violence against children were established. Three such centers were in operation in 2006 and 2007, four in 2008 and ten in 2009 (see annex II, table 15).

56. Statistics and data are compiled annually based on reports from counseling centers and shelters, and surveys on domestic and sexual violence are conducted every three years separately. In 2007, each survey was based on a nationally representative sample of ten thousand households, as well as victims and all facilities for victims. The findings are utilized for policy making. For the upcoming 2010 surveys, the strengths and weaknesses of the previous surveys were assessed, and indicators for a more objective and relevant evaluation for protection facilities are being developed.

57. Most sexual violence incidences go to trial only if the victim chooses to press charges, which is often not the case. Excluding such cases, the actual rates of arrest and indictment would be higher than other types of violent crimes. In 2007, of all the rape cases, 37% of the victims did not press charges; hence, no indictments. For the remainder of the cases, the rate of indictment was 67%, much higher than that of other violent crimes which was 44.3%.

58. The Special Procedure Act on Punishment of Domestic Violence defines a ‘crime of domestic violence’ as any act against other family members of assault, bodily harm, abandonment, abuse, arrest, confinement, or threat that causes physical, psychological, or financial harm. Given the nature of domestic violence crimes, this act prescribes a special procedure, in addition to the standard criminal procedure, which allows the court to make various family protective decisions such as a restraining order, probation, treatment with counseling and imprisonment. In 2008, regarding domestic violence crimes, prosecutors indicted 1,841 persons and requested protective measures for 4,833 persons. The total number of persons subjected to judicial procedures was 6,674, which represented 50.0% of the total cases filed. This is a slightly higher rate of indictment or use of the protective procedure for all the criminals accused (see annex II, table 16).

59. A rapid increase in international marriages since 2000 is largely due to the active role played by marriage brokerage agencies. It has been reported that brokers engage in many problematic business practices that violate human rights, in particular women’s rights. Often, brokers exaggerate the personal characteristics of the future spouses, which may bring about marital conflict following marriage. To solve these problems, the Marriage Brokerage Control Act was legislated (December 14, 2007).

60. As the number of international marriages increases, more incidences of domestic violence occur, due to language and cultural differences between spouses. According to a 2006 survey on families of international marriages, as many as 10.1% of married immigrant women have experienced physical abuse. According to the Act on Prevention of Domestic Violence and Protection of Victims, married immigrant women who are victims of domestic violence are eligible for protection at the “facility for foreign women” for up to 2 years. Eighteen such shelters are currently in operation nationwide, providing protection with medical and legal support, and, if relevant, assistance in returning to the home country. Since 2006, emergency support centers with a hotline number (1577-1366) have been available to immigrant women requiring assistance, and counseling can be offered in 8 different languages being accessible anywhere in the country. When violence occurs, the center helps by going to the scene, providing translation assistance, counseling, and provides information on and/or accompanies the victim to, as necessary, other relevant institutions such as the police, hospital, court or shelter. Four such centers are also operating in different regions.

61. With the legislation of the Act on the Punishment of Procuring Prostitution and Associated Acts and the Act on the Prevention of Prostitution and Protection of Victims in 2004, the government prepared a Comprehensive Action Plan to Prevent Prostitution which enables the 15 ministries of the government including the Ministry of Gender Equality to carry out the policies cooperatively. Since the implementation of the “comprehensive strategies”, fruitful outcomes have been produced with regard to the crackdown of clients and intermediaries and support for the independence of women victims of prostitution and trafficking. Society’s perception on prostitution has also changed. In December 2007, given the social context of underground prostitution, the Action Plan was supplemented with 49 enforcement policies for 17 tasks in the three areas of prevention, protection, and investigation.

62. The main feature of the Act on the Punishment of Procuring Prostitution and Associated Acts enacted in 2004 is to penalize the clients of prostitution. Since 2005, the program of “education of clients for prevention of recidivism in exchange of suspension of indictment (John School)” has been implemented with the purpose of transforming men’s attitudes and behaviors regarding prostitution to prevent repeated violations. The indictment rates for the violation of the Act increased from 19.1% in 2006 to 25.8% in 2007. In 2006, among the cases not indicted, the rate of suspension had increased (76.4%) because of the John School program (see annex II, table 13). The police have continued the crackdown against human rights violations against women in prostitution such as forced prostitution or confinement, and as a result, the number of incidents has decreased. In January 2006, the court adopted a policy of investigation without physical detention for all crimes, and the arrest rate of the clients of prostitution has also decreased since then (see annex II, table 18).

63. To raise consciousness on the eradication of prostitution, the Ministry of Gender Equality has campaigned on the illegality of prostitution. Prevention education has been given to students in primary and secondary schools and to officers of the central and local governments and public organizations. The content of prevention education was developed and professional instructors were trained. The percentage of people who acknowledged the illegality of prostitution increased from 53.8% in September 2005 to 79.6% in September 2008, and the percentage of those who agreed that the new legislations brought about positive outcomes increased from 61.8% to 67.2% during the same period.

64. To prevent prostitution abroad, the Passport Law was revised in March 2008 so that passports may not be issued to criminals who have been involved in prostitution abroad. With the cooperation from the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, Korean consulates, and police forces dispatched abroad, the government has campaigned on the prevention of prostitution towards the Korean nationals and emigrants living in foreign countries. Also, prevention education is conducted for travel agents in charge of outbound travel. The travel industry is being guided and monitored for the prevention of prostitution.

65. In closing down the red-light districts, a nationwide survey was conducted, with safety checks, and continued crackdowns of the establishments also included penalization of the building owners. As a result, the number of prostitution establishments in concentrated areas decreased from 1,696 in September 2004 to 935 in June 2008, a decrease of 45%, and the number of women in prostitution decreased from 5,717 to 2,282, a decrease of 60%. The decreased number of red-light districts, which were openly in business, was among the most fruitful outcomes.

66. Regarding procurement, efforts have been made to investigate crimes and to identify owners of the establishments, using such scientific techniques as tracking bank accounts and checking phone records. Profits from prostitution are estimated, and assets are traced to confiscate the illegal profits and impose a penalty. In addition, to suspend underground connections between business owners and the police or related public officials, several active control measures are being used.

67. The Act on the Prevention of Prostitution and Protection of Victims mandates prevention education, the establishment of counseling facilities, and various ways to provide protective assistance including medical and legal services and rehabilitation for victims of prostitution. Attempts are made to establish infrastructure of material and mental support, and efforts have been made to provide group homes and to help achieve economic independence. Counselors are also trained for this purpose. In addition, a scale of progress assessment was made based on the input of the women themselves, and counseling services on debt and restoration of credit are provided to women who have left a life of prostitution and who have entered rehabilitation facilities. The Self-Reliance Support Centers provide job training through group workplace and internship programs (see annex II, table 19).

68. Businesses dispatching or using foreign entertainers are subject to labor supervision, and the business owners are reminded regularly of the Labor Standards Act and encouraged to maintain appropriate work conditions. Law enforcement forces cooperate with various domestic and international supervising organizations of the entertainment businesses which hire foreign women. Also, for migrant women who may potentially be forced into prostitution, various services are provided, including emergency protection, translation services, counseling, medical and legal assistance, referral to related services, assistance in returning to home country, and training for self-reliance.

69. Foreign women who are employed in entertainment establishments are sometimes coerced into prostitution. To protect those victims, the Act on Punishment of Procuring Prostitution and Associated Acts specifies that relevant foreign women will not be deported even if their visas expire as long as the investigation is ongoing.

70. Youth prostitution is usually carried out through the internet. The number of arrests made related to youth prostitution was 1,946 in 2006 and 2,582 in 2007. Of the 2,582 arrests made in 2007, 1,835 were clients of youth prostitution, 242 were procurers, and 505 were the youths involved (see annex II, table 20).

71. Under the provisions of the Act on Protection of Youth Sexuality, purchasing sexual services from youths under the age of 19 or making arrangements for it constitutes a crime. A personal information register, which is available to the public, lists all child abuse convicts, clients who have purchased sexual services twice or more, and the procurers. Youths involved in prostitution are not punished, and instead, are given protective measures such as education and counseling. According to the legal provision requiring youths to receive education or counseling classes upon the order of the prosecutor, the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Family Affairs has operated since 2006 individually tailored programs for the protection and rehabilitation of youths, including a 40-hour rehabilitation program. This is administered by 7 educational centers for youths in crisis.

72. Prohibition of human trafficking is legislated in the Criminal Code, the Act on Heavy Penalty for Certain Crimes, and the Act on Punishment of Procuring Prostitution and Associated Acts. The Criminal Code contains provisions for the punishment of crimes such as ‘kidnapping or alluring of youths’, ‘kidnapping, alluring, or trafficking of persons for profits’, ‘kidnapping, luring, or trafficking for the purpose of transporting abroad’, ‘kidnapping or luring for marriage’, and ‘kidnapping, luring, or accepting or hiding of trafficked persons’. If the purpose of human trafficking is for prostitution, laws such as the Act on Punishment of Procuring Prostitution and Associated Acts, and the Act on Protection of Youth Sexuality are applied, as well as the Child Welfare Act, if the victim is a child. At the same time, the Labor Standards Act also penalizes employers who use forced labor, against the employee’s free will, by violence, threat, confinement, or by any other means restricting mental or physical freedom.

73. As the number of women migrant workers increased, the protection of their human rights became an issue. Since the adoption of the Employment Permit System (EPS), which recognizes the status of migrants as ‘workers’, their gender and age composition has been changing. The number of foreign workers admitted to the country with an employment permit in 2008 was 165,557, of whom 15,837 (9.6%) were women (see annex II, table 21). The women migrant workers, who are mostly in the manufacturing industry, are mainly from Thailand, Vietnam, or the Philippines. On the other hand, the special employment opportunities extended to ethnic Koreans in China and the former Soviet Union are utilized mostly by ethnic Korean women from China, mostly working at restaurants, in hospitals providing patient care or as domestic workers (see annex II, table 22).

74. Women migrant workers are also eligible for maternal health care benefits. In the case of undocumented women migrant workers, their maternity can also be protected, when they work for businesses where the Labor Standards Act applies, by Article 68 (prohibition of night or holiday shifts), Article 69 (work after regular working hours), and Article 71 (menstrual leave). To protect their human rights, the Act on Punishment for Sexual Violence Crimes and Protection of Victims is applied.

75. Legislations for the expansion of women’s political participation include amendments of the Political Fund Act and the Political Parties Act, both in March 2004. The former prescribes that at least 10% of the government subsidy to each political party should be used for the development of women in politics, and the latter mandates that in each political party, 50% of the candidates for proportionally elected seats should be women. Owing to these Acts, the female members of the National Assembly increased substantially to 13.0% in the 17th National Assembly, and it remained stable at 13.7% in the 18th National Assembly. A positive trend between the 17th and 18th National Assembly is that the female composition increased from 4.1% to 5.7% among those seats directly elected by people at local constituencies, to which women have difficulty obtaining (annex II, table 23).

76. In the fourth local elections held in 2006, women comprised 13.6% of all council members elected, combining 15.0% at the county level and 4.7 % at the provincial level (annex II, table 24).

77. The female composition of civil servants has gradually increased due to the rising preference by women for public sector occupations and to the policy measures eliminating obstacles preventing women from entering the sector. To eliminate gender discrimination in civil servant employment, the government adopted policies such as the abolishment of separate recruitment by sex, setting targets for female employment, the elimination of extra credit given to ex-soldiers in civil service examinations and gender equality employment initiatives. As a result, women’s representation in the public sector increased, and the female proportion reached 40.8% in 2008 (annex II, table 25). Among workers in the local government offices, the female composition was 29.3% in 2008, an increase of 4.1 percentage points (total of 15,983 women) from the figure in 2004 (annex II, table 26).

78. Among the successful candidates in the national exams selecting government officials in managerial positions, the average female composition was 41.6% in 2008 in the Civil Service Exam and the Foreign Service Exam combined. The female composition was considerably higher in the Foreign Service Exam where 65.7% of the successful candidates were women. In the Civil Service Exam, women comprised 51.2% of the successful candidates, more than one half, for positions in administration or public safety, while the proportion of women passing the national bar exam was 38.1%. The female share in the exam for technical managers was 21.5% (annex II, table 27), lower than in other exams. Meanwhile, among the people who passed the bar exam and completed their training at the Judicial Research and Training Institute, an increasing number of women have been appointed as judges or prosecutors. In 2006, women comprised 26.6% of the newly appointed judges, but the figure increased to 39.3% in 2009. Among the newly appointed prosecutors, the female composition also increased from 32.5% in 2007 to 43.6% in 2009.

79. In 2005, the Ministry of Education and Human Resources (currently, the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology) distributed, to 16 metropolitan and provincial offices of education, “personnel guidelines on manager-level public school teachers”, and requested that the offices of education submit an annual report beginning in 2006 on the appointment of female teachers to principal and deputy principal positions. According to the data compiled by the Ministry, women comprised 66.9% of all teachers in primary and secondary schools, but very low percentages of principals and deputy principals, only 10.3% and 17.8% respectively (see annex II, table 7). The female compositions were higher among newly promoted principals and deputy principals, and the percentage was particularly higher for new deputy principals at 20.1%.

80. The government committees serve as a system for civilian participation in governance by reviewing and providing advice on major policies. Women comprised approximately 27.0% of the central government committees in 2007 and with nominal change in 2008. Regarding advisory committees of the local governments in metropolitan cities and provinces, the female composition was 37.0% in 2007, but decreased to 33.1% in 2008, mainly due to a revision in data collection methods (annex II, table 29).

81. For an organization to adjust to rapidly changing environments and yield the best outcomes, leadership is believed to be the key factor. So far, leadership training has been mostly targeted at men in high ranking positions. As the number of female public officials increase, leadership training for women can be useful in setting organizational goals and motivating team members to maximize their productivity. Until 2006, the Central Officials Training Institute under the Ministry of Public Administration and Security has provided leadership training programs separately for women, but as of 2007, the program was incorporated into co-ed training programs. Since 2007, the Ministry of Gender Equality has been providing leadership training programs for women (annex II, table 30).

82. Some local governments conduct training programs for women only. For example, the Busan Metropolitan City and Busan Women’s Center (currently the Busan Center for Women and Family Development) have continued the Busan Women Leaders 10-40 project since 2007, a leadership development program for women in their teens and 20s as well as their 30s and 40s, to serve as the driving force behind community development. The project aims at enhancing women’s capacity for self-development, self-management and leadership development, as well as helping women’s social participation as individuals and as leaders, and consequently building a network of women for community development and ultimately their own development.

83. Among the total of 326 Korean citizens working at international organizations including the United Nations, about one third are women. In the JPO (Junior Professional Officer) program which trains young people to advance to international organizations, approximately 80% of the selected participants are women. In addition, the Ministry of Gender Equality selects 30 interns on global issues every year (15 per year during 1998–2008) and supports their participation in international meetings and internship programs.

84. As of August 2008, out of the total of 1,570 diplomatic officials within the Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade, women constitute 20.7%, an increase by 11.7 percentage points as compared to 9.0% in 2004. The proportion of women who passed the national Foreign Service Exam remains stable at above 50% since 2007 (Table 27).

85. No changes have incurred under article 9 since the fifth periodic report (CEDAW/C/KOR/5).

86. The rate of advancement to colleges is very similar for female and male high school graduates, lower for female students only by one percentage point. In 2008, among the graduates from general high schools, the college advancement rate was higher for females than for males, but among the vocational high school graduates, the rate was lower for female students than their male counterparts (annex II, table 31).

87. The enrollment rate at higher educational institutions is 91% in Korea, and more than 85% of the first-time recruits in the labor market are college graduates. The employment rate among graduates of junior colleges is as high as 86.6%, and there is practically no difference between men and women. However, the employment rate among graduates of universities is only 68.9%, and it is lower for women than for men by about 5 percentage points (annex II, table 32). The Ministry of Gender Equality provides grants to the Career Development Centers for Female Students in universities to help their transition from school to work. Between 2003 and 2008, a total of 17 universities received the grants, and in 2009, 20 universities received the grants. The Ministry of Education and Human Resources Development (currently the Ministry of Education, Science and Technology) also provided grants to 40 colleges and universities for specially designed classes for female students to support their career development. The two aforementioned programs not only help female students to explore their future career and seek employment, but also provide them with opportunities to observe and experience diverse occupations.

88. The 2006 statistics show that the academic achievement score of female students is higher than that of male students at the primary school level. At the secondary schools, female students excel in both Korean and English languages and literature, but male students are somewhat better in math and science. The proportion of students who do not reach the minimum required level of academic achievement is lower among females than males in all subjects within all grade levels except for math in the 9th and 10th grades, demonstrating that female students’ achievement is generally higher than that of male students.

89. At the primary and middle school levels, the proportion of female teachers (60 to 70%) is much higher than that of male teachers. At the high school level, the proportion of female teachers was 42% in 2008 and is increasing every year (annex II, table 28).

1. Basic Plan on Gender Equality in Employment and Work-Family Reconciliation

90. In 2007, the total number of economically active persons was 24,216,000. Of these, the number of women was 10,092,000, which is an increase by 91,000 (0.9%) from the previous year. The economic participation rate of the entire population was 61.8%, with 50.2% for women and 74.0% for men, which is a decrease by 0.1 percentage point for each. The total number of persons currently employed is 23,433,000 and, of this, women comprise 9,826,000, an increase by 120,000 (1.2%) from the previous year. By industry, the largest number, 7,688,000 persons, are employed in the social overhead-capital and other services sector, followed by 3,782,000 persons in the business, personal, and public services sectors, and 3,093,000 persons in the wholesale or retail business, food and lodging sectors. The age distribution of the female labor force shows that the age 40–49 group comprises the largest percentage, at 27%. The total number of paid employees is 15,970,000 and, of this, 6,756,000 are women, which is an increase by 183,000 (2.8%) from the previous year. The number of unemployed persons is 783,000 (3.2% unemployment rate), and the figures for women and men are 266,000 (2.6%) and 517,000 (3.7%), respectively. In comparison to the preceding year, the numbers for the unemployed declined for both sexes and the rate of decrease was greater for women at 9.5% than for men. The average hourly wage among women was 68.8% of the wages of men (annex II, table 33).

91. In Korea, the duration of maternity leave for childbirth is 90 days (45 days after birth) at a maximum. In 2007, 58,368 women received 132,412 million Korean Won for maternity leave compensation. There are 30,856 childcare facilities nationwide and, of this, 1,748 are national or public facilities. To provide harassment-free work environments, the government mandates sexual harassment prevention education at all workplaces and verifies the implementation status annually by firm size. In 2007, all 8,041 manufacturing enterprises with 10–19 employees were required to self-examine the status of education, and the 1,788 enterprises that did not conduct any prevention education or that had insufficient programs were instructed to correct the problem. The employers and employees were expected to cooperate in making corrections. A total of 877 enterprises were re-examined with their correction status, and 143 that violated the law received correction notices. Five enterprises that still did not follow the correction notices were fined.

92. As the Equal Employment Act had been transformed to the Act on Gender Equality in Employment and Support for Work-Family Reconciliation, the Basic Plan on Gender Equality in Employment that had been carried out since 2003 was transformed to the Basic Plan on Gender Equality in Employment and Work-Family Reconciliation in 2008 (see para. 27). During the four-year period between 2008 and 2012 when the 4th Basic Plan is to be carried out, it is expected that the share of the service industry will increase while accelerating low fertility rates and the aging population. Thus, the plan focuses on activating women’s human power through the institutionalization of gender equality in employment and strives for a comprehensive strategy of facilitating work-family reconciliation.

93. The major tasks of the Fourth Basic Plan for Gender Equality in Employment are: (1) capacity-building for women through the cultivation of potential abilities and assistance in finding employment, (2) childcare support for working women, including reduction of the burden of childcare and the expanded socialization of childbirth costs, (3) establishment of a system of work compatible with the family, such as a reduction in actual working hours and voluntary expansion of part-time employment, (4) institutionalization of discrimination-free work places by securing effectiveness of the affirmative employment policy, and (5) expansion of the infra-structure for women’s employment based on social consensus.

2. Introduction and implementation of Affirmative Action for Women’s Employment

94. Since 2006, the government has adopted the Affirmative Action for Women’s Employment to eradicate explicit as well as implicit discriminations in promotion, often called a “glass ceiling”. Affirmative Action compares enterprises of the same industry and of similar size, and those enterprises with considerably fewer female workers or managers are required to submit a plan, which includes goals for female employment and concrete steps on ways to increase the number of female employees.

95. The Affirmative Action for Women’s Employment was applicable to all government-invested enterprises, government-affiliated enterprises, and private companies with more than 1,000 employees, but since 2008, it expanded to also include private companies with more than 500 employees. All applicable companies are required to submit a report by the end of May each year with information on current personnel by occupation, rank and gender. Those enterprises failing to reach certain standards must submit an ‘enforcement plan on affirmative action for women’s employment’ and also a report on implementation afterwards. In 2009, the number of relevant enterprises was 1,607, and all of them submitted the reports. The government evaluates the validity of the plan and the results of implementation, and selects a few with high evaluation scores to publicly acknowledge their excellence. Those companies with an intention to change its system or improve facilities in order to hire more women are provided with consulting fees or loans needed to change the work environment.

96. As the number of non-regular workers increased, the government legislated in 2006 the Act on Protection for Short-Term and Part-Time Workers to prevent discrimination and to enforce labor standards. The act allows workers who are being discriminated against on the ground of being short-term or part-time to file a petition to the labor council for correction. Also, if an employer continuously employs a worker under a short-term contract for more than 2 years, the worker is considered to have an indefinite employment contract.

97. As non-regular workers are not qualified for maternity leave, the government adopted a subsidy system for continued employment of non-regular workers after pregnancy or childbirth. When a woman’s short-term employment contract ends during the period of her maternity leave, if the employer continues to employ her after the period, then the employer is eligible for the subsidy. In 2007, 174 million Korean Won was paid to 271 employers for 291 employees.

98. In the 2007 amended Act on Gender Equality in Employment and Work-Family Reconciliation, the emphasis was to provide support for work-family reconciliation by additional provisions on maternity protection and measures for work-family reconciliation. Specifically, the new provisions include the following: (1) new maternity leave for spouse (2) shortened working hours for mothers with young children (15–30 hours per week instead of full-day childcare leave) and (3) divided use of childcare leave.

99. Support for childcare is a core policy that has been maintained with extensive budget expenditures since the enactment of the Infant Care Act in 2001 (annex II, table 38). The increased budgets have been used to support the expansion of childcare facilities and to subsidize parents with childcare costs. Since 2002, the government subsidy for childcare costs was graded by parental income levels, where the eligibility and amount of childcare aid was determined by the levels of parental income. The government has gradually expanded the number of recipients and amount of subsidies. In 2009, of all the households with children aged 0 to 5, the bottom 50% of the households in terms of income rank were eligible for the entire cost of standard childcare, households with incomes between the 50th to 60th percentiles were eligible for 60% of the standard cost, and households with incomes between the 60th and 70th percentiles were eligible for 30% of the standard cost. At the end of 2008, of the 2,744,000 children aged 0–5 within the country, 1,135,000 children, 41.4%, used childcare services, and among those users, 730,000 children, 64%, were beneficiaries of childcare support.

100. Further, the government adopted a program in July 2009 providing a childrearing allowance of 100,000 Korean Won per month for each child under the age of 1 to households with incomes less than 120% of the poverty level. The related budget for the 2009 year was 32.4 billion Korean Won for 110 thousand children. The program plans to gradually expand its coverage and total allowance.

101. The Ministry of Gender Equality is providing diverse programs of vocational training and employment assistance to women, including programs for the reemployment of housewives, employment in the social service sectors, young women’s suitable employment to the needs of the community, employment in professional occupations, and employment in traditionally male occupations. These programs target women who have not participated in the labor force and hence, are ineligible for employment insurance, and provide vocational training followed by employment assistance. The number of women who participated in these programs was 4,852 in 2007 and 4,422 in 2008, and those who successfully completed totaled 4,608 in 2007 and 4,245 in 2008 (annex II, tables 34 and 35).

102. The Ministry of Labor operates several vocational training programs: the co-ed programs include one for the currently employed and another for the currently unemployed, and the women-only programs include one for short-term adaptation training for housewives and another for unemployed female heads of household. The female composition in the vocational training program for the currently-employed increased from 24.0% in 2006 to 28.4% in 2007, and the proportion of women among participants in the program for the unemployed also increased from 62.6% to 63.2% during the same period. The number of participants in the short-term adaptation training program for housewives was 5,076 and 4,896 in 2006 and 2007 respectively, and the number of participants in the female head of household program was 2,225 and 2,319 in 2006 and 2007 respectively (annex II, tables 36 and 37).

103. To facilitate the employment of women with disabilities, the government provides various support, such as vocational training programs tailored to them, development of new occupations appropriate for disabled women and their dissemination, and vocational capacity building. Recent programs include training for such occupations as barista and visual editing. Further, the employers who hire more disabled workers than the obligatory quotas are rewarded with monetary incentives.

104. In terms of the self-rated health indicator, 36.1% of men and 29.3% of women consider their own health status to be either very good or good (the 4th National Health and Nutrition Survey, first year, 2007). The morbidity rate was 20.7% among women and 12.2% among men, suggesting women have poorer health than men (see annex II, table 39). Cancer, cerebrovascular disease, and heart disease are among the 10 most significant causes of death for both women and men. Other significant causes for death among women include in the following order: diabetes, suicide, diseases associated with high blood pressure, lower respiratory diseases, pneumonia, auto accidents, and liver disease (annex II, table 40).

105. The Health Insurance System of Korea covers the entire population and enrollment is mandatory, except for the poor who are protected by government-sponsored Medical Aid. Insured persons under the National Health Insurance Program are classified into two categories – the employee insured (Type-1) and the self-employed insured (Type-2). In 2007, 35.8% of women and 34.0% of men were insured as self-employed, while 57.7% of women and 60.4% of men were insured as employees. Beneficiaries of Medical Aid for low-income households were: 2.4% of women and 1.6% of men covered by Type-1, and 2.3% of women and 2.4% of men covered by Type-2 (the 4th National Health and Nutrition Survey, first year, 2007).

106. The number of women newly infected with HIV was 43 in 2007, a substantial decrease from the previous year, but it increased to 54 in 2008 (annex II, table 41). At the end of 2008, among all the people living with HIV, the female composition was as low as 8.4%. The government has engaged in public relations and educational campaigns to prevent the spread of the disease, and mandates HIV tests on workers dealing with the public. The government has also made efforts to eliminate discrimination and prejudices by lifting travel restrictions against people living with HIV in December 2009 and implemented rehabilitation and support programs for their social integration.

107. According to the National Health and Nutrition Surveys conducted in 2005 and 2007, the proportion of women smokers aged 19–29 is on the rise. Their rate of smoking was 6.0% in 2005, but increased to 7.6% in 2007, an increase by 1.6 percentage points. On the other hand, the rate of smoking among women aged 40 or older has been decreasing. Since April 2006, the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Family Affairs has been operating a call center (1544-9030), which provides information and counseling on quitting smoking, conducts a 30-day program with 8 phone counseling sessions, and coordinates with companies and schools campaigning against smoking. For a more aggressive anti-smoking campaign, preparations are currently underway to develop visual warning signs that portray the negative consequences of smoking and to legislate a ban against fancy packaging of cigarettes that attract youths and women.

108. According to the findings from the 2007 National Health and Nutrition Survey, more women than men are using health-care services, as indicated by the outpatient rate for two weeks, hospitalization rate per year, and two-week pharmacy use. Compared to 2005, the rate of pharmacy use increased in 2007 for both women and men, and the rate of two-week outpatient and the rate of annual hospitalization remained stable over the period. The annual rate of unmet needs, i.e., the proportion of people who wanted to visit a doctor but could not afford to during the past year, was 25.9% for women, higher than 18.5% for men. The annual rate of unmet needs was higher in 2007 than in 2005 for both women and men.

109. The rate of contraceptive use among married women was 79.6% in 2006, a decrease by 4.9 percentage points from 2003. The rate of contraceptive use was the highest among married women aged 40–44 at 90.3% and the lowest among ages 15–24 at 43.3%, showing that the rate increases with age (annex II, table 42).

110. The rate of induced abortions among married women is the highest at ages 20–24 with a frequency of 59 per 1,000 women, and the next highest in the order of age cohorts 30–34, 25–29, 35–39 and 40–44 with the rate of 19, 15, 7, and 5 per 1,000 respectively. Reasons for the highest rate of abortion among ages 20–24 included a low rate of contraceptive use, not using stable methods of contraception, and using induced abortions as a tool to delay the first birth. In 2005, the rate of induced abortions decreased for all age groups compared to that in 2002 (annex II, table 43).

111. The rate of Caesarean births was 35.0% in 2006, a decrease by 4.2 percentage points from 2003 (annex II, table 44). The government has made consistent efforts to reduce the rate of Caesarean births by establishing and operating the Caesarean Section Reduction Committee and by conducting an exploratory program, such as offering financial incentives to medical institutions with high rates of natural delivery.

112. The total fertility rate in 2008 was 1.19, an increase by 0.11 from 1.08 in 2005 (annex II, table 50). The government enacted the Framework Act on the Low Fertility Rate and Aging Society in 2005 and stressed the social responsibility for marriage, childbirth, and childrearing. Diverse policies have been adopted to produce a family-friendly social atmosphere where work and family can be compatible. In 2006, several ministries of the government participated in establishing the 1st Basic Plan on the Low Fertility and Aging Society, which is being carried out and evaluated every year based on the enforcement plans.

113. To strengthen maternity protection, the government exempted the patient’s share of medical payment in the case of natural delivery in 2005, and launched in December 2008 the Prenatal Care Cost program which subsidizes 200 thousand won for prenatal care such as ultrasound checkups.

114. The 2008 health plan of the Ministry for Health, Welfare and Family Affairs presents a comprehensive health promotion strategy, which applies to all stages of the life cycle from conception to birth and during periods of growth. Specifically, the strategy includes free support for essential health care services from conception to birth, improved information assistance during the period before and after the birth, launch of a maternity pocketbook program in which all medical treatments are recorded, expansion of facilities so that mother and baby may stay in the same room, and facilitation of breastfeeding.

115. According to the pattern of chronic diseases over the life course, women’s health conditions deteriorate after menopause. In cases of high blood pressure, hyperlipidemia, arthritis, and thyroid problems, the occurrence rates of women’s diseases become higher than those of men in old age following menopause. During the 20s, occurrence rates of anemia and atopy skin disease are higher among women than men: 28.1% of women and 6.7% of men experience anemia.

116. According to the 2007 National Health and Nutrition Survey, the morbidity rate was higher among women with lower incomes than women with higher incomes. Among the four groups of women categorized from lowest to highest in household income levels, the two-week morbidity rates were 21.8%, 26.2%, 15.6%, and 17.8% respectively. Among men, differences in the rates by income were greater than women; however, the rate of women’s diseases in the two lowest income level brackets was higher than those of men (annex II, table 39). Self-rated health statuses were also poorer among respondents with lower income levels. The proportion of respondents who reported that they had very good or good health was lower among respondents with lower incomes. The proportion of respondents in the lower half of income levels who reported very good or good health was lower among women than men. For elderly persons living alone and recipients of Basic Livelihood Security Benefits, the government provides visiting health care services tailored to individual needs. Patients who have suffered from cardiac arrest or a stroke and belong to the disadvantaged class are the primary beneficiaries of free home-visiting nursing services.

117. The rate of suicide among women has been increasing in recent years, and Korea ranks the highest among the OECD countries. In 2007, the suicide rate for women was 18.1 per 100,000, which was almost three times the average (5.1) of OECD countries (OECD 2009). The proportion of those who had ever considered suicide in the past year was 20.4% for women aged 19 or older and 9.4% for men in the same age category. The percentage who had attempted suicide was 6.1% for women and 3.5% for men. Women are also more likely to experience depression than men. The rate of feeling depressed (i.e., feeling sadness or despair for two weeks on a continued basis) is 17.1% for women and 8.1% for men (annex II, table 45). Suicide prevention policies (2009–2013) suggest that the government is making efforts to establish and implement comprehensive and consistent policies. In particular, for people at high risk for suicide, stronger group-based psychological health services are provided. The effort has also been made to increase the treatment rate for depression.

118. The amendment of the “National Pension Act” in July 2007 incurred a few changes that expand women’s right to national pension and eliminate gender discrimination. First, additional coverage is granted for childbirth. This policy extends the national pension insured period, for existing or newly insured women, by 12 months for the second child and by 18 months for the third child. Second, the conditions of divided pensions changed. In the past, the divorced spouse of the insured was no longer eligible for divided pensions upon remarriage, but after the amendment, remarriage does not affect eligibility. Third, when recipients of a survivor pension become eligible for another pension, they are still eligible for a part of the survivor pension in addition to the new pension.

119. The number of women insured by the National Pension Scheme had increased every year, reaching 6.9 million by March 2009. The female composition also had increased to 38.1% among all insured persons by March 2009 (annex II, table 46). As the number of recipients for all types of pension benefits increased, women comprised 39.6% of all recipients in March 2009. Women comprised 31.1% of the old age pension recipients and 93.4% of the survivor pension recipients. For divided pensions of the old age pension benefits, women comprised 87.3% of the recipients (annex II, table 47).

120. The number of women beneficiaries of national basic livelihood security benefits was 830,000, 57.3% of all beneficiaries in 2008. The rate of receiving is highest at age 60 or older. Specifically, the number of beneficiaries are 199,152 for age 19 or younger, 40,347 for ages 20–29, 62,872 for ages 30–39, 125,722 for ages 40–49, 78,107 for ages 50–59, 107,430 for ages 60–69, 138,778 for ages 70–79, and 74,587 for age 80 or older. Thus, the numbers were high for both ages 40–49 and 60–79 (annex II, table 48).

121. The Business Startup Subsidy Programs for Women Engineers amounted to 7,386 million Korean Won at 169 businesses in 2006, with the effect of 3.1 employments on average per business. The Business Startup Subsidy Programs for Women Household Heads are funded by the Women’s Development Fund and given to low-income female heads of household. The total amount provided in 2006 was 3,000 million Korean Won to 82 women, with the effect of 2.3 employments on average per business.

122. In October 2007, the Mother, Father Children Welfare Act had been renamed as the Single-Parent Family Welfare Act, and support coverage had been extended, from families with children under age 18 who were in school, to families with children under age 22. The Act also includes families consisting of grandparents aged 65 or older and their grandchildren, and thus provides support for mother-only families, father-only families as well as grandparent-grandchild families.

123. Since 2007, the government provides single-parent families with free legal assistance for lawsuits concerning child support payments, including legal counseling, pretrial investigation, reconciliation recommendation, and legal representation, with the help of the Korea Legal Aid Corporation and Korea Legal Aid Center for Family Relations. The welfare facilities for single-parent families had expanded to 42 facilities for the protection of single-parent families, 3 facilities for the independence of single-mothers, 14 temporary shelters, 21 group homes for unmarried mother-child families, and 27 shelters for unmarried mothers and their children in 2008. The government also provides a childrearing subsidy (50,000 Korean Won per child) and high school tuition support (including entrance fees and tuition for each semester) to low-income single-parent families.

5. Support for women’s cultural production and improvement of the values of women’s cultural heritage

124. The Ministry of Gender Equality included in the 3rd (2008–2012) Basic Plan for Women plans to expand female human power in the cultural industry sector, to support women’s cultural activities, and to raise the values of women’s cultural heritages. The number of female college graduates with majors related to arts and culture is almost twice the number of male graduates, but among workers in the cultural industry, women comprised only 39.7% in 2006. The male composition was even greater as the position ranks and level of seniority increased, and men are highly over represented among experienced workers.

125. To improve the situation, the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism plans to increase female composition in various training programs, including the culture academy that trains design planners for cultural events, classes for professional visual broadcasting workers, classes for professional digital broadcasting workers, visual cyber broadcasting training classes, and a program for cultural-content global leaders. Further, to improve the profitable values of feminine cultural heritages, the Ministry is creating policies to develop feminine cultural heritage content in local communities, is establishing feminine cultural heritage policy networks to support the discovery of a female cultural heritage, and is providing women with opportunities related to cultural activities by activating the networks.

126. Of all the persons not in the labor force, the poverty rate is higher among women than men at 61.4% and 38.6% respectively. Also, the poverty rate among female heads of household is three times the rate among male heads of household. Similarly, the poverty rate among members of the female-headed households is 2.6 times the rate among members of male-headed households. Based on those statistics, the government adopted policies to improve the economic status of women, including programs fostering women’s human capital and creating jobs for women. Nonetheless, the poverty among female heads of household has deepened since the economic crisis in 2008. Thus, the government is currently re-evaluating existing social safety nets and is preparing for more effective safety nets with a particular emphasis on gender sensitivity. One noticeable fact to be addressed is that among the female heads of household aged 65 years old or older, the poverty rate is particularly high at 67.2%, i.e., two thirds. Through the national long-term care insurance program, accordingly, the government ensures long-term care payments to elderly persons who have experienced difficulties in everyday living for more than 6 months due to either disease or old age.

127. Since 2006, the government has carried out educational programs to empower women with disabilities and to increase their opportunities for social participation. Taking into account the need of disabled women and the characteristics of the community where they live, the programs attempt to integrate the women into society utilizing community resources. In 2006, 54 exploratory programs were conducted in two of the 16 provinces and metropolitan cities of the country, with 2,635 participants. In 2007, 8 provinces conducted 95 programs with 23,223 participants, and in 2008, analogous numbers were 10 provinces, 118 programs, and 40,600 participants. In 2009, all 16 provinces and mega cities conducted the programs.

128. The Ministry of Gender Equality actively supports the central and several local governments for their interest in building women-friendly cities. They adopted the position that it would incorporate female perspectives in urban planning. Gender-sensitive perspectives are applied to city planning and transportation network projects, resolving several inconveniences which had not previously been so visible and thus, hindering the daily lives of women. For example, hand straps in the subways had been initially designed based on men’s physical features, but have now been adjusted to fit women and children. The speed bumps intended to prevent automobiles from speeding have now been redesigned in order for baby strollers to conveniently pass. To change the stereotypical thinking that childcare is only a women’s duty, baby counters were installed in public men’s restrooms.

129. In 2008, the total population of farm households was 3,187 thousand, of which women comprised 51.6% at 1,644,000. The number of agricultural workers aged 15 or older was 1,908,000, of which women comprised 53.3% at 1,017,000. Thus, women comprise the majority of the agricultural labor force. The Second 5-year Plan Fostering Women Farmers recognizes women farmers as equal partners to male farmers in agricultural production and management and as active sovereign agents entitled to certain rights. With the goal of improving the quality of life of women farmers, the plan helped to achieve several policy tasks, including recognizing women farmers’ occupational status and rights, increasing women’s participation in producers’ organizations, providing support for business startups by women, expanding women’s rights to pensions and insurances, improving the cultural environment for women, adopting a gender-impact assessment, and engaging in routine compilations and utilization of gender-sensitive statistics such as surveys on the circumstances of women farmers. With such efforts by the central government, the local governments (of metropolitan cities and provinces) also established basic policies for the support of women farmers based on the Act on Fostering Women farmers amended in August 2005. Presently, 9 provinces and 25 cities and towns enacted ordinances on women farmers.

130. The budget allocations may reflect the strength of policy interests in women’s issues. In 2008, the budget for businesses related to women farmers was 125.7 billion Korean Won, comprising 1.1% of the total budget for agriculture, and analogous numbers in 2009 were 114.6 billion Won and 0.8%. Between 2008 and 2009, the budget decreased by 11.1 billion Won. Given the fact that the expenditure for childcare had reduced by 175 billion Won due to more efficient management, expenditures for projects other than childcare have actually increased. Of the budget related to women farmers, 71.0% was used for assistance with childcare, which suggests that only a limited amount of the budget was actually used to improve the quality of the female labor force. Nonetheless, 13.4 billion Won, allocated to assist families with childbirth and to assist women in sickness or accidents, was an increase from the previous year. More labor assistance may allow women farmers to become more autonomous and less dependent on other family members or other circumstances. Also, expenditures for the improvement of the women farmers’ status and for their professionalization — such as development of human capital and management capacity and leadership improvement — increased in their shares, which should be a positive trend in terms of the budget structure.

131. The enforcement decrees in June 2008 of the “Basic Act on Agricultural Rural Areas and Food Industry” amended in December 2007 recognize the legal status of women farmers, who have not been regarded as independent agents carrying out economic and social activities despite being the core labor force in agriculture. Even when women do not own production means (land) or profits from products (agricultural sales income), women farmers and young farmers (i.e. agricultural successors) who actually engage in agricultural production are recognized as agents of agriculture. This means that a majority of women farmers who have been alienated from the production means and production outcomes (profits) are now being recognized as agents of economic production.

3. Efforts to increase women’s participation in agricultural management and decrease their burden of labor

132. According to a survey on women farmers, the owners of family farms consist mostly of men (70.3%) and only 26.3% of the respondents, most of whom are elderly widows, report they are owners. For farm households where the husband of the respondent is present, only 6% of the respondents were farm owners. To improve the environment in which women are hardly agents of agricultural production, the government began an experiment and encouraged farming couples to adopt a ‘Farm Management Agreement’ under which the two spouses hold management conferences and recognize the wife’s contribution to farming. Based on the results from the experiment that the Rural Development Administration conducted with 22 couples in 2004, it extended the program to 138 households in 2008.

133. To secure a women’s share among ‘Young Farmers’, the government adopted a policy of giving preference to women to comprise up to 20% of the participants for the ‘Young Farmers Initiative’ program. Also, in selecting the participants for the ‘Agricultural Internship’ and ‘Guardians for Startup Farmers’ programs, policy makers set a target quota of 20% for women and took necessary measures, either by relaxing certain criteria or by granting extra points. As a result, the number of women in ‘Young Farmers’ was 335 (16.8%), and the female composition among rice farmers increased to 2.8% (2,217) in 2008. To expand women’s membership in agricultural cooperatives, the government encouraged them to adopt a female quota system in selecting members and staff. Consequently, in the National Agricultural Corporative Federation, women comprise 29% of the members, 14% of the representatives, and 4% of the managers, and Women’s Committees were set up in 520 branches in 2007 and expanded to 565 branches in 2008. The number is steadily increasing and the target for 2009 was 600 branches.

134. According to the survey on time use among farming couples, wives work longer than their husbands in all households regardless of the type of crop. While women work mostly in dry patches, the work there is less mechanized and requires more physically demanding labor. Also, more profitable crops such as vegetables and fruits recently preferred by farm households to increase income rely mostly on women’s labor, placing a heavier burden on women. In order to meet the demands of women farmers in new farming machines suitable for their labor in harvesting, seeding and transplanting, 89 different machines were developed between 2000 and 2008. For households that have difficulty purchasing agricultural machines, the government opened rental shops, a total of 92 shops by 2008 and 40 additional shops in 2009.

135. The government adopted the “work assistant program for women farmers” system initially in 2000 and then diffused it nationwide in 2003. When a women farmer stops working due to childbirth, an assistant is dispatched and takes care of the farming for her. A similar helper system for farm households inflicted with accidents or disease had been piloted in 2006 and then adopted nationwide in 2007. For farm households with elderly persons, housework helpers are available. In 2008, the total expenditure for farming helpers was 4.7 billion Korean Won supporting 13 thousand households, and the expenditure for housework helpers was 1.5 billion Won assisting 16 thousand households.

136. In rural areas, when domestic violence occurs, it is not easy for the victims to escape to a safe place due to limited transportation means. For women farmers, who are alienated from social services and safety nets, the Women Farmer’s Centers have been established since 2002. In 2009, there were 38 Women Farmer’s Centers, which are easily accessible and provide the multiple welfare services particularly required by women farmers. By offering such support so that farming women may bear fruitful outcomes, the government is trying to secure a separate budget for the centers, which will allow them to operate on a consistent basis.

5. Protection and support for social integration of married immigrant women in rural areas

137. The proportion of marriages involving a foreign spouse increased substantially from 3.7% in 2000 to 11.0% in 2008 in Korea (annex II, table 49). The proportion of marriages involving a foreign wife was 7.6% in urban areas and 13.8% in rural areas in 2008. The countries of origin for foreign wives are in the order of China, including ethnic Koreans and non-Koreans, Vietnam and the Philippines. The government is striving to develop various policies helping multi-cultural families incorporate into their local communities and facilitating immigrant wives to function as newly available human resources. In 2008, lessons on basic farming skills had been given to 324 foreign wives in 24 localities, and preparations are currently underway to provide lessons on special farming skills tailored to local farming styles to 700 persons in 140 localities (5 per locality). Furthermore, 1,800 families received services from visiting educational counselors, and many others attended multi-cultural women’s schools or received multi-cultural family education in 2007. The programs operating in 2009 included “experience the culture of Seoul”, “support for home country visiting (families of 156 foreign wives who have lived in Korea for more than 3 years)”, and “linking multi-cultural families with the families of the members of women farmers’ associations”. The government is also preparing for mid- and long-term plans fostering the development of the next generation of multi-cultural families.

138. Earlier precedents ruled that rape constitutes a crime because it destroys one’s “chastity” and hence, rape cannot constitute a crime between married spouses (Supreme Court, March 10, 1970, Sentence 70 Ruling 29). Recent precedents and scholars in law express a different opinion. Rape constitutes a crime because it violates the victim’s right to sexual self-determination and hence, the rape of a spouse constitutes a crime without any additional criminal deeds and may be penalized. In the context of legal interpretation to protect the right to sexual self-determination, on August 20, 2004, the central court in Seoul convicted a husband who had forcefully raped his wife, who had been separated from him at the time while filing a lawsuit for divorce, with the crime of ‘forceful rape resulting in injury’. In January 2009, the Busan local court convicted a husband of ‘special rape’ for forcefully raping his immigrant wife while threatening her with a weapon.

139. The government seriously considers lifting the reservation on Article 16.1(g) of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women, the “right to choose a family name”, as the traditional family headship system organized under the patriarch was abolished in 2005, and the relevant provision of the Civil Code was amended, stating that “children will, in principle, inherit the surname of the father but, if spouses agree at the time of marriage registration, may inherit wife’s surname”.

140. With the amendment of the Civil Code in 1990, a spouse acquired the right to claim family assets legally owned by the other spouse. However, if the other spouse disposes of the assets before a court decision is made with the intention to deter the exercise of the right, then there was no means to reverse the disposal. An amendment was made on December 21, 2007, to adopt the spousal right to revoke the disposal to protect her/his right to the assets (Civil Law Article 839. 3). If one of the spouses takes legal action knowing that such an action may hurt the other party’s right to claim the asset, then the other party may file a petition to the court to revoke the action or restore the asset within one year after learning of the action and within 5 years after the occurrence of the legal action.

141. Considering the fact that the average age of a first marriage is rising in Korea and that the marriage of women at a young age may deprive them of the opportunity to receive education, an amendment was made to set the marriageable age equally at 18 for both women and men, a change from 18 for men and 16 for women (Civil Laws Article 807).

142. When a non-custodial parent does not pay child support, the custodial parent had to file a lawsuit in order to receive it. To avoid such hassle in securing child support payments, in the new procedure, the family court confirms the agreement on child support that the two parents make at the time of divorce and places it in a child support protocol which has legal effect as a debt document based on Article 41 of the Family Litigation Act.

143. The amendment of the Family Litigation Act on May 2009 adopts a few new rules to remedy the limitation that existing law does not properly reflect the nature of child support being regular payments of a small amount. The amendment includes a new provision on order for direct payment, which orders the employers of the non-custodial parent to pay child support directly from the payroll (Family Litigation Act, Article 63.2). If the debtors are not paid employees, ordering for direct payment would be ineffective. For such a case, the amendment also includes a provision on order for collaterals and order for lump sum payments (Family Litigation Act, Article 63.3).

144. This Act does not approve the traditional concept that the representative of a family must come from the male line of the family. According to the Act, when a woman marries or divorces, her family registration does not have to follow the male line, father or husband, but may maintain its own family relations registration (see para. 8 above). Likewise, when a child is born, she/he is not added to her/his father’s family registration but rather, an independent registration is created. Thus, the family relations registration system maintains the record of each individual’s status changes separately, such as birth, marriage, and death, and removes diverse discriminations including discrimination against women inherent in the previous family registration system, in which individuals belonged to a family headed by a patriarch, ‘hoju’. Corresponding to the spirit of the ‘right to dignity and value as a human being’ (Article 10) and to the spirit of ‘individual dignity and gender equality in family life’ (Article 36) prescribed in the Constitution, this new Act achieves the goal of eliminating the ‘hoju’ system and creates a democratic family system, in which no family member is discriminated against and each member is an autonomous owner of oneself.

145. While it protects the privacy of other family members, the new registration system is criticized for exposing too much information on the individual, often more than what is needed to be certified, and several amendments are currently under review in the National Assembly.

146. Since 2006, several ministries of the government have pushed for policies providing legal and social support to married immigrants. In 2008, the Marriage Brokerage Control Act was adopted to prevent illegal international marriages and to protect the human rights of marriage partners (see para. 12 above). During that same year, the Act on Support for Multi-Cultural Families was enacted to systematically coordinate various policies (see para. 11 above). Based on the Act on Support for Multi-Cultural Families, the Centers for Support for Multi-Cultural Families provide married immigrants with the basic information needed for everyday life in Korea and arrange education for social adjustment and vocational training. In 2009, 100 such centers were operating nationwide.

147. The Centers for Support for Multi-Cultural Families also provide visiting services to help married immigrants with childbirth and to advise them on ways to become involved in their children’s education. Visiting counselors discuss with the immigrant parents how to best facilitate their children’s social and bilingual development. At the same time, the Ministry of Health, Welfare and Family Affairs registers the multi-cultural families living in remote areas far from health care institutions to public clinics and dispatches visiting health care workers, among other services, to inform the families of health risk factors and provide guidelines on how to self manage them.

Implementation of the previous concluding observations of the Committee (CEDAW/C/KOR/CO/6)

Articles	Recommendations	Implementation state

Article 1 Discrimination	Paragraph 16: To embody in the Constitution or in other appropriate legislation a prohibition of discrimination against women, encompassing both direct and indirect discrimination, in line with article 1 of the Convention and covering all areas of the Convention, and make it applicable to the private sector	See section on Article 1 in the main body of the report, paragraphs 5, 6: legislation on remedies for direct and indirect discrimination against women in the public and private sectors
Article 2 Policy Measures	Paragraph 14: To strengthen and speed up the implementation of existing laws and policies by setting defined and time-bound targets, immediate as well as long-term; to monitor and assess impact, trends over time and progress towards realizing goals and objectives and results achieved	See section on article 3 in the main body of the report, paragraph 33: the Third Basic Plan for Women's Policies
	Paragraph 14: To ensure the enforcement of existing laws, including by enhancing available remedies and their use	See section on article 2 in the main body of the report, paragraph 9: Act on Prohibition of Discrimination against the Disabled and Restoration of Rights Article 2, paragraphs 31, 32: remedies for sex-discrimination Article 6, paragraphs 68, 69: prevention of foreign women’s prostitution and protection of victims
	Paragraphs 14 and 16: To provide training to lawyers, judges and prosecutors on the Convention and the procedures under its Optional Protocol	See section on article 2 in the main body of the report, paragraph 30: advocacy of and training in CEDAW
Article 4 Special Measures	Paragraph 24: To intensify the State’s efforts and to take sustained measures, including further temporary special measures in accordance with article 4, paragraph 1, of the Convention and the Committee’s general recommendation 25	See section on article 4 in the main body of the report, paragraph 42: recruitment target for managerial public officials Article 4, paragraphs 44, 45: expansion of female workers in the field of science and technology Article 4, paragraph 46: women managers in businesses
Article 5 Sex Role Stereotyping and Prejudice	Paragraph 26: awareness-raising and a public educational campaigns, aimed in particular at men and boys, including women and girls, with a view to eliminating stereotypes associated with articles 2 (f) and 5 (a) of the Convention	See section on article 5 in the main body of the report, paragraph 47: gender-equality consciousness education for public officials Article 5, paragraph 51: efforts to encourage gender equality in the media
	Paragraph 26: To target rural areas in the implementation of such measures and to monitor and evaluate their impact	See section on article 14 in the main body of the report, paragraphs 129, 130: the second 5-year plan fostering women farmers and related budgets
	Paragraph 26: To address stereotypes, the unequal power relations between women and men and women’s position of inferiority, which perpetuate discrimination against women, including violence against women	See section on article 14 in the main body of the report, paragraph 131: recognition of the legal status of women farmers Article 5, paragraphs 53, 54: protection of women victims of violence
	Paragraph 26: To encourage the media to project a positive image of women and of the equal status and responsibilities of women and men in the private and public spheres	See section on article 5 in the main body of the report, paragraph 51: efforts to encourage gender equality in the media
	Paragraph 18: To ensure that all women, including rural women, who are victims of domestic violence have access to immediate means of redress and protection, including protection orders, and access to a sufficient number of safe shelters, as well as legal aid	See section on article 5 in the main body of the report, paragraphs 53, 54: protection of women victims of violence See section on article 14 in the main body of the report, paragraph 136: on domestic violence in rural areas
	Paragraph 18 : To eliminate the requirement of a victim’s complaint in order to prosecute crimes of sexual violence	Partly eliminated. According to the Act on Protection of Children and Youths from Sexual Violence, when children between the ages of 13 and 19 are raped, the victim’s complaint is not required to prosecute the offender.
	Paragraph 18: To ensure that public officials, especially law enforcement personnel, the judiciary, health-care providers and social workers, are fully familiar with relevant legal provisions and capable of providing adequate support to victims	See section on article 5 in the main body of the report, paragraph 49: education for preventing sexual violence and harassment
	Paragraph 18: To collect data and conduct research on the prevalence, causes and consequences of all forms of violence against women, including domestic violence and to use such data as the basis for further comprehensive measures and targeted intervention	See section on article 5 in the main body of the report, paragraph 56: prevention and punishment of sexual or domestic violence Article 5, paragraph 55: prevention of sexual violence against children and protection of victims Article 5, paragraphs 59, 60: prevention of violence against immigrant women
	Paragraph 18: To include statistical data and the results of measures	Tables 13, 14, 15, 16 in annex II
	Paragraph 18: To criminalize marital rape	See section on article 15 in the main body of the report, paragraph 138: precedents of punishment for spousal rape
	Paragraph 22: To provide women with viable avenues of redress against abuse by their husbands and permit them to stay in the country while seeking redress Paragraph 22: To make foreign women aware of their rights and avenues of redress, including measures available for protection and prevention against domestic violence	See section on article 5 in the main body of the report, paragraph 59: prevention of domestic violence against immigrant women
	Paragraph 22: To enact the draft law to regulate the activities of marriage brokers and to develop additional policies and measures to protect foreign women from exploitation and abuse by marriage brokers and traffickers, and by their spouses	See section on article 2 in the main body of the report, paragraph 12: Marriage Brokerage Control Act
Article 6 Prostitution	Paragraph 20: To review the State’s law on prostitution in order to ensure that women in prostitution are not criminalized	Forced prostitution is not punished (Act on the Punishment of Procuring Prostitution and Associated Acts)
	Paragraph 20: To provide adolescent girls with educational programs to stop Wonjokyuje	See section on article 6 in the main body of the report, paragraphs 70, 71: prevention of youth prostitution
	Paragraph 20: To implement article 6 of the Convention, collecting and analysing data from the police and international sources and prosecute and punish traffickers and those who exploit prostitution	See section on article 6 in the main body of the report, paragraph 72: prohibition of human trafficking
	Paragraph 20: To ratify the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and punish Trafficking in Persons, especially Women and Children, supplementary to the United Nations Convention against Transnational Organized Crime	Currently in reorganization of domestic laws to ratify the Convention
	Paragraph 20: To take measures to facilitate the reintegration of prostitutes into society and provide rehabilitation and economic empowerment programs for women and girls exploited in prostitution	See section on article 6 in the main body of the report, paragraph 67: protection of women, victims of coerced prostitution and escaped prostitutes
Article 7 Political and Public Life	Paragraph 24: To expand the State’s current training programs on leadership and negotiation skills for current and future women leaders Paragraph 14: To enhance women’s knowledge of their rights and capacity to claim them	See section on article 7 in the main body of the report, paragraphs 81, 82: leadership training for women
	Paragraph 24: To continue the State’s efforts to raise awareness of the importance of women’s full and equal participation in decision-making at all levels for society as a whole Paragraph 24: To monitor the effectiveness of measures taken and results achieved	See section on article 7 in the main body of the report, paragraphs 73, 74: gender ratio of elected officials Article 7, paragraphs 77, 78: gender ratio of civil servants Article 7, paragraph 79: expansion of women school teachers occupying managerial positions Article 7, paragraph 80: women’s participation on various government advisory committees
Article 10 Education	Paragraph 28: To take measures to eliminate occupational segregation, in particular through education and training	See section on article 10 in the main body of the report, paragraph 87: support for career development of female college students
	Paragraph 26: To encourage diversification of the educational choices of boys and girls, bearing in mind their subsequent opportunities in the labor market	See section on article 10 in the main body of the report, paragraph 86: college matriculation rates
Article 11 Employment	Paragraph 28: To accelerate and ensure equal opportunities for women and men in the labour market	See section on article 2 in the main body of the report, paragraph 26: Labor Standards Act Article 2, paragraph 27: Act on Gender Equality in Employment and Support for Work-Family Reconciliation Article 11, paragraph 90: Basic Plan on gender equality in employment and support for work-family reconciliation (2008–2012)
	Paragraph 28: To take measures to eliminate occupational segregation, in particular through education and training	See section on article 10 in the main body of the report, paragraph 87: support for career development of female college students
	Paragraph 28: To ensure that effective monitoring mechanisms are in place to achieve compliance with existing legislation, and that there are procedures in place for women to file complaints of violations of their labour rights	See section on article 11 in the main body of the report, paragraphs 94, 95: strategies to adopt and implement fair employment practices
	Article 28: To monitor the situation of women in the labour market and increase the number of women in regular work by ensuring that enterprises provide more opportunities for women to gain access to full-time and regular employment and by extending benefits to non-regular workers	See section on article 11 in the main body of the report, paragraphs 96, 97: female nonstandard workers and part-time workers
	Paragraph 28: To enforce the provisions of the Equal Employment Act in regard to equal pay for work of equal value	The National Human Rights Commission sets up the criteria to determine wage discrimination, uses them to find remedies for gender wage discrimination, and makes recommendations on remedial actions to various administrative units including the Ministry of Labor
Article 12 Health	Paragraph 30: To monitor the access of all women to health services and to take appropriate action	See section on article 12 in the main body of the report, paragraphs 104, 105, 106: status of women’s health
	Paragraph 30: To strengthen measures aimed at the prevention of unwanted pregnancies including enhanced programs of sexual and reproductive health education, and targeting women between the ages of 20 to 24	See section on article 12 in the main body of the report, paragraph 109: reproductive health
	Paragraph 30: To amend without delay the Act on Bioethics and Biosafety to include a requirement of informed, free and written consent in cases of donation or harvest of eggs for reproductive or research purposes	See section on article 2 in the main body of the report, paragraph 22: Life Ethics and Safety Act
	Paragraph 30: To make full use of the Committee’s general recommendation 24 on women and health as a framework in the development of gender- and age-sensitive health policies and programmes	See section on article 12 in the main body of the report, paragraphs 114, 115: health policies by life-course stages
Article 13 Economic and Social Benefits	Paragraph 32: To analyse the situation and to take concrete measures to address the problem of the feminization of poverty comprehensively in its national development plans and policies	See section on article 14 in the main body of the report, paragraphs 126, 127: protection of the disadvantaged
Article 14 Rural Women	Paragraph 26: To target rural areas in the implementation of such measures and to regularly monitor and evaluate their impact	See section on article 14 in the main body of the report, paragraph 131: recognition of the legal status of women farmers Article 14, paragraph 132: efforts to increase managerial participation and decrease the labor burden of women farmers Article 14, paragraphs 135, 136: maternity protection and improvement of social services in rural areas
Article 16 Marriage and Family Life	Paragraph 12: To expedite the State’s efforts towards the withdrawal, within a concrete time frame, of its reservations to article 16, paragraph 1 (g), of the Convention	See section on article 16 in the main body of the report, paragraph 139: right to choose children’s surname
	Paragraph 28: To take effective measures to support the reconciliation of family and work responsibilities and to promote the sharing of domestic and family responsibilities between women and men	See section on article 11 in the main body of the report, paragraph 88: Basic Plan on Gender Equality in Employment and Support for Work-Family Reconciliation (2008–2012) Article 11, paragraph 98: support for work-family reconciliation
	Paragraph 34: To review the Civil Act and make necessary amendments, in light of article 16 of the Convention and the Committee’s general recommendation 21 on equality in marriage and family relations	See section on article 16 in the main body of the report, paragraph 140: property rights of women at divorce
	Paragraph 36: To work towards the speedy enactment of the amendment of the Civil Act to raise the minimum legal age of marriage for girls to 18 in order to bring it into line with article 16, paragraph 2, of the Convention, the Committee’s general recommendation 21 and the Convention on the Rights of the Child	See section on article 16 in the main body of the report, paragraph 141: gender difference in marriageable age
General Review	Paragraph 37: To utilize fully the Beijing Declaration and Platform for Action	The Ministry of Gender Equality included the Beijing Declaration in the Third Basic Plan for Women’s Policies
	Paragraph 38: To implement the Convention for the achievement of the Millennium Development Goals	See section on article 13 in the main body of the report, paragraphs 126, 127: protection of women in the disadvantaged class The Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Korean Women’s Development Institute are conducting research projects in order to incorporate gender-sensitive perspectives to the achievement of MDGs
	Paragraph 39: To consider ratifying the International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of Their Families	In preparation
	Paragraph 40: Wide dissemination in the Republic of Korea of the concluding comments	See section on article 2 in the main body of the report, paragraph 30: advocacy of and training in CEDAW

Table 1

Table 2

	Number of works	Budget	Main works

Ministry (Administration, Service, Agency)	195	7 314.4 (billion won)
Ministry of Strategy and Finance	1	0.5	Training of professional international finance workers
Ministry of Education, Science and Technology	19	6 561	Scholarship, support for internships
Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Trade	1	376	Korea International Cooperation Agency(training in Korea)
Ministry of Unification	2	623	Education of North Korean defectors
Ministry of Justice	5	346	Prisoners’ vocational training, legal training
Ministry of National Defense	3	14	Accommodations for female soldiers, maintenance of child-care centers in the Ministry of National Defense building
Ministry of Public Administration and Security	10	328	Internships for public organizations, volunteer works
Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism	14	722	Enhancement of art and culture education, training of workers for creating contents
Ministry of Food, Agriculture, Forestry and Fisheries	22	2 153	Training of farmers, training of next-generation farmers
Ministry of Knowledge Economy	4	638	Training of the labor force in trades, energy, industrial sectors
Ministry for Health, Welfare and Family Affairs	27	50 843	Subsidy on child-care fees, basic senior pensions
Ministry of Environment	5	310	Natural environment guides, national park rangers
Ministry of Labor	11	4 570	Vocational training for the unemployed, support for workers abroad
Ministry of Gender Equality	28	677	Center for returning to work, support for victims of domestic violence
Ministry of Land, Transport and Maritime Affairs	7	189	Training of distribution and space aircraft workers
Ministry of Government Legislation	1	8	Legal information services for customers
Anti-corruption & Civil Rights Commission	2	1	Correction of discrimination against women, enhancement of the human rights of athletes
Financial Services Commission	1	25	Training of professional finance workers
National Tax Service	2	36	Tax payment guides, support on tax education
Public Procurement Service	1	2	Maintenance of child-care centers at work
National Statistical Office	1	14	Support for the training of statistics specialists
Cultural Heritage Administration of Korea	1	35	Support for the maintenance of traditional culture training centers
Rural Development Administration	11	239	Training of the professional agricultural labor force
Korea Forest Service	2	381	Enhancement of forest services
Small and Medium Businesses Administration	8	3 994	Support for technology development and commercialization of ideas
Korea Intellectual Property Office	3	42	Promotion of women’s invention, invention education
Korea Meteorological Administration	1	4	Training of professional forecasters
Korea Coast Guard	1	4	Construction of child-care facilities at work
Multifunctional Administrative City Construction Agency	1	8	Vocational training for future residents

Source: National Assembly Budget Office (2009), Guideline of Budget Bill Analysis 2010.

Table 3

Number of organizations conducting gender impact assessment and number of projects assessed by year

Table 4

Gender ratio of civil servants by rank in central and local governments¹ (2008)

			*Total*	Women	Percentage of women
Central government²	Subtotal		106 869	27 646	25.9
	High rank group	High rank	1 310	28	2.1
	Manager level	Rank 3	611	27	4.4
		Rank 4	5 939	421	7.1
		Rank 5	13 594	1 841	13.5
Local government	Subtotal		275 231	80 666	29.3
	High rank group	High rank	36	-	-
	Manager level	Rank 1	24	1	4.2
		Rank 2	57	1	1.8
		Rank 3	307	17	5.5
		Rank 4	2 480	124	5.0
		Rank 5	16 172	1 314	8.1

¹ The statistics include only the types of employment classifiable by rank, including general (research and teaching), special, short-term contracts, and foreign service employment.

² Based on 40 Administrative organizations included for government performance evaluation.

³ Rank 5 (Deputy Director level), Rank 4 (Director level), Rank 3,2 (Director-General level), Rank 1 (Assistant Minister level).

Table 5

	2005	2006	2007	2008
National/public	10.7	11.0	11.4	11.6
Private	18.2	18.8	19.2	19.7
Total	16.2	16.8	17.2	17.7

Table 6

Data: Statistical Service of National Support Center for Female Scientists and Technicians.

Table 7

Gender ratio of teachers, deputy principals, and principals in primary and secondary schools

	Primary school	Middle school	High school	*Total*
Teachers	72.8	69.2	48.7	66.9
Principal	10.2	13.8	4.4	10.3
Deputy principal	17.9	24.3	6.5	17.8
New principal	11.7	12.6	1.5	10.9
New deputy principal	23.2	23.3	4.2	20.1

Table 8

	Year	*Total*	Public enterprises
Government invested	Government affiliated	Private enterprises
Percentage of females for all employees	2006	30.7	16.4	24.6	32.5
	2007	32.3	16.3	25.5	34.1
Percentage of females for managers	2006	10.2	1.6	6.7	11.2
	2007	11.0	1.4	6.8	12.1

Table 9

Year	All women employed	Percentage of legislators, professionals, managerial workers
2006	9 706	18.8
2007	9 826	19.3
2008	9 874	20.2

Data: Korean Women’s Development Institute (2008), Gender Sensitive Statistics in Korea.

Table 10

	2005	2006	2007	2008
Total	13 446	15 326	15 325	17 178
Violation of criminal law	7 321	8 755	8 732	9 889
Violation of special law on sexual violence	4 282	4 955	4 858	5 143
Violation of law on protection of youth from sexual violence	1 843	1 616	1 735	2 146

Table 11

2005	2006	2007	2008
62	104	163	152

Table 12

	2005	2006	2007	2008
Men	Women	Men	Women	Men	Women	Men	Women
Newspaper	11 012 (82.7)	2 301 (17.3)	10 420 (82.2)	2 259 (17.8)	12 265 (82.3)	2 632 (17.7)	14 664 (79.6)	3 757 (20.4)
Telecommunications	586 (81.4)	134 (18.6)	610 (81.1)	143 (19.0)	680 (79.9)	171 (20.1)	776 (80.2)	191 (19.8)
Broadcasting	22 845 (74.8)	7 685 (25.2)	22 330 (75.4)	7 304 (24.6)	21 891 (74.7)	7 417 (25.3)	21 845 (75.6)	7 068 (24.4)
Internet	276 (72.1)	107 (27.9)	306 (73.9)	108 (26.1)	1 408 (68.8)	638 (31.2)	4 609 (72.1)	1 787 (27.9)
Total	34 719 (77.2)	10 227 (22.8)	33 666 (77.4)	9 814 (22.6)	36 244 (76.9)	10 858 (23.1)	41 894 (76.6)	12 803 (23.4)

Data: Korea Press Foundation, Korean Media Yearbook (2005–2008), Korea Broadcasting Commission, Report on the Survey of the Broadcasting Industry (2005–2007), Korea Communication Commission, Report on the Survey of the Broadcasting Industry (2008).

Table 13

	Counseling center	Protection facility	1366
						¹
Sexual violence	Domestic violence	Both types of violence	*Subtotal*	Sexual violence	Domestic violence	*Subtotal*
		¹
2004	124	182	29	335	15	48	63	16
2005	143	268	29	440	16	57	73	16
2006	173	343	29	545	17	59	76	17
2007	171	302	28	501	20	70	90	17
2008	173	277	23	473	18	65	83	16

Data: Ministry of Gender Equality (2004–2009), Management Strategy for Improving Women’s Right.

Note ¹ The Korea Media Yearbook published by the Korea Press Foundation did not provide census data on workers in the Program Provider sector starting from 2008, and time series statistics on Broadcasting workers were restructured based on data from the Survey of the Broadcasting Industry conducted by the Korea Communication Commission (previously the Korea Broadcasting Commission).

Table 14

Data: Ministry of Gender Equality (2006–2007), Annual Report on Women Policies; Ministry of Gender Equality (2008), internal data.

Table 15

	Number of facilities	Number of victims	Number of supporting actions by type
*Subtotal*	Medical support	Psychological support	Legal support
2005	3	611	5 216	1 507	2 735	974
2006	3	1 039	7 568	2 312	3 944	1 312
2007	3	1 004	7 729	2 237	4 131	1 361
2008	4	1 060	9 042	2 449	5 196	1 398

Data: Ministry of Gender Equality (2006–2007), Annual Report on Women Policies; Ministry of Gender Equality (2008), internal data.

Table 16

Year	Filed	*Total number of actions*	Action
Indicted	Not indicted
Trial (old)	Informal trial (old)	No charge	Indictment probation	No arraignment power	Dismissed, no crime	Transferred as family protection	Other
2006	13 507	13 531	315	1 657	279	3 449	3 457	45	4 197	132
2007	12 782	12 807	265	1 492	200	2 847	3 091	35	4 735	142
2008	13 334	13 341	354	1 487	227	2 593	3 707	22	4 833	118

Table 17

	*Total*	Indicted	Transferred as child protection	Transferred as family protection	Transferred as sex trade protection	Not indicted
*Subtotal*	Trial	(Old) Informal trial	*Subtotal*	Indictment probation	No charge	No crime	No arraignment power	Stay of prosecution	Stay of reference witness
Detention	No detention
2005	325 (100)	187 (57.5)	15	15	157	-	-	6	124 (38.2)	97	26	-	1	7	1
2006	25 331 (100)	4 839 (19.1)	224	338	4 277	28	15	324	19 361 (76.4)	17 172	2 027	4	158	688	76
2007	19 854 (100)	5 123 (25.8)	148	649	4 326	58	48	328	13 800 (69.5)	10 487	3 124	1	188	357	140

Table 18

Data: Data submitted to Congress by National Police Agency Department of Women and Youths.

Table 19

	Number of facilities	Function	Protection duration	Other

Counseling center on damage from sex trade	29	Rescue victims, counseling Link to shelter, rehabilitation facility Medical, legal support including resolving prepayment issues		Use facility
Supporting facility for adult & youth victims of sex trade	43	Boarding, protection, counseling Medical, legal support, vocational training for economic independence	1 year (+6 months) Youths until age 19	Living facility
Group home	10	Temporary housing support for those economically independent	Same as general protective facilities Renew every 6 months, up to 3 years	Living facility
Supporting center for foreign women	3	Boarding, counseling for foreign female sex workers Support for medical & legal needs, translation, return trip to home country	3 months Extended during investigation or trial	Living facility
Supporting center for economic independence	6	Aptitude test, employment counseling & guidance Professional & systematic support for career changes of former sex workers, such as vocational training, support for business startups, or employment		Use facility

Data: 2009 Management Strategy for Improving Women’s Rights, Ministry of Gender Equality.

Table 20

Data: Data submitted to Congress by the National Police Agency Department of Women and Youths.

Table 21

Resident foreigners by country of origin (unskilled workers-legalized, work permit, trainee employment, visitor employment, 2008)

Data: Ministry of Justice (2009), [2008 Statistical Yearbook of Entry/Exit and Policies on Foreigners, etc.], ‘Statistics on Resident Foreigners’, rearranged.

Table 22

Data: Ministry of Justice (2009), [2008 Statistical Yearbook of Entry/Exit and Policies on Foreigners], ‘Statistics on Resident Foreigners’, rearranged.

Table 23

Congressional election	*Total seats*	Women	Directly elected seats	Proportionally elected seats
Number	Percentage	Number	Percentage	Number	Percentage
16th (2000–2004)	273	16	5.9	5	2.2	11	23.9
17th (2004–2008)	299	39	13.0	10	4.1	29	51.8
18th (2008–2012)	299	41	13.7	14	5.7	27	50.0

Data: National Election Commission, Complete Report on 12th–15th Congressional Elections; Korean Women’s Development Institute (2008), 2008 Gender Sensitive Statistics in Korea.

Table 24

Level	3rd nationwide local elections (2002)	4th nationwide local elections (2006)
*Total*	Women	Percentage	*Total*	Women	Percentage
Total	4 415	147	3.3	3 867	525	13.6
Metropolitan city mayor Governor	16	0	0.0	16	0	0.0
District city town mayor	232	2	0.9	230	3	1.3
National assembly	Subtotal	682	66	9.6	733	88	12.0
Direct election	609	11	1.8	655	31	4.7
Proportional	73	55	75.3	78	57	73.1
Provincial assembly	3 485	79	2.2	2 888	434	15.0

Data: National Election Commission (1998, 2002), Complete Report on 2nd and 3rd Nationwide Local Elections, Korean Women’s Development Institute (2006), 5, 31 Local Elections and Women, 31st Women’s Policy Forum.

Table 25

	*Total number*	Women	Percentage
2004	915 689	324 576	35.4
2008	968 836	395 464	40.8

Data: Ministry of Public Administration and Security Personnel Data, Workers from all public branches including Government(National, Local), Legislature, Judicial Branch, Constitutional Court, and National Election Commission.

Table 26

	*Total number*	Women	Percentage
2004	256 424	64 683	25.2
2008	275 231	80 666	29.3

Table 27

Female composition of successful candidates in national exams for high-ranking public officials

Data: Central Administration Office (CAO), Yearbook of CAO; Ministry of Public Administration and Governing (MPAG), Statistical Yearbook of MPAG, Data from Cyber National Exam Center; Ministry of Public Administration and Security internal data.

Table 28

Year	Male	%	Female	%	*Total*	%
Primary school
2006	45 865	28.03	117 780	71.97	163 645	100.00
2007	45 219	27.05	121 963	72.95	167 182	100.00
2008	44 711	25.97	127 479	74.03	172 190	100.00
Middle school
2006	39 575	37.01	67 344	62.99	106 919	100.00
2007	39 313	36.41	68 673	63.59	107 986	100.00
2008	38 559	35.47	70 141	64.53	108 700	100.00
High school
2006	71 836	60.91	46 097	39.09	117 933	100.00
2007	71 677	59.63	48 534	40.37	120 211	100.00
2008	71 178	57.91	51 728	42.09	122 906	100.00

Table 29

Data: Ministry of Gender Equality, Statistical Yearbook of Women and Family, Volume 3; Korean Women’s Development Institute (2008), Gender Sensitive Statistics in Korea.

Table 30

Year	Program	Subjects of education	Organization in change

2004	4th Women’s Leadership Development Program (Elective professional course)	Various administrative organization mid-level female officials (Ranks 4-5)	COTI
2030 Women’s Leadership Camp: Advanced Workshop	Those who have completed one of 16 regional camps, “Women Politics Start for a New Reap”	MGE/EWHA Leadership Development Center
Women Policy Leadership Training for Strengthening Middle-level Officials’ Innovative Forces	Minister, Vice minister, heads of departments & sections of MGE	COTI
2005	Leadership Training for Female International Public Officials	Female public officials from 13 countries	KOICA/COTI
2006	6th Female Leadership Force Program (Professional education)	Female civil servants various administrative organizations (Rank 7 or higher)	COTI
2008	2008 APEC Female IT Education and Training	Female public officials & IT educators from 12 APEC countries	MGE sponsored-Sookmyung Women’s University Asia Pacific IT center
Employment Strategy for Female College Students	Female college students	MGE/Human Development Center for Small & Medium Size Enterprises
2009	Leadership Training for Women Managers in Small & Medium Size Enterprises	Female workers in small & medium size enterprises	MGE

Data: Ministry of Gender Equality (MGE) (www.moge.go.kr), Central Officials Training Institute (COTI) (www.coti.go.kr).

Table 31

Data: Korean Women’s Development Institute, Gender-Sensitive Statistical Information System.

Table 32

Employment rate of four-year university graduates (within one month of graduation)

Gender	2005	2006	2007	2008
Male students	67.7	69.8	70.5	71.2
Female students	62.3	64.4	65.3	66.5
Total	65.0	67.1	68.0	68.9

Data: Statistical Yearbook of Education (2001–2006), Employment Statistics Yearbook of Tertiary School Graduates (2007–2008).

Table 33

	2006	2007	Change from previous year
*Total*	Women	Men	*Total*	Women	Men	*Total*	Women	Men
Population aged 15+	38 762	19 899	18 863	39 170	20 086	19 084	1.1	0.9	1.2
Population economically active	23 978	10 001	13 978	24 216	10 092	14 124	1.0	0.9	1.0
Labor force participation rate	61.9	50.3	74.1	61.8	50.2	74.0	-0.1	-0.1	-0.1
Number employed	23 151	9 706	13 444	23 433	9 826	13 607	1.2	1.2	1.2
Number of paid employees	15 551	6 573	8 978	15 970	6 756	9 214	2.7	2.8	2.6
Number unemployed	827	294	533	783	266	517	-5.3	-9.5	-3.0
Unemployment rate	3.5	2.9	3.8	3.2	2.6	3.7	-0.3	-0.3	-0.1
Employment rate	59.7	48.8	71.3	59.8	48.9	71.3	0.1	0.1	0.0

Table 34

Vocational training and employment support for women by the Ministry of Gender Equality (2007–2008)

Program	Number of programs	Participating organizations	Number of participated (A)	Number who completed (B)	Completion rate (B/A)
2007	2008	2007	2008	2007	2008	2007	2008	2007	2008
Total	194	180	156	144	4 852	4 422	4 608	4 245	95.0	96.0
Re-employment of housewives (Fund)	50	55	45	48	1 046	1 203	992	1 131	94.8	94.0
Support for employment in social service sector	82	80	58	57	2 052	1 955	1 990	1 887	97.0	96.5
Support for community-specific employment	52	32	43	27	1 505	942	1 389	915	92.3	97.1
Support for employment in professional occupations	10	10	10	9	249	250	237	243	95.2	97.2
Support for employment in traditionally male occupations	-	3	-	3	-	72	-	69	-	95.8

Table 35

Vocational training and employment support for women by the Ministry of Gender Equality (2009)

Program	Number of programs	Number who participated (A)	Number who completed (B)	Completion rate (B/A)
Total	252	6 589	6 241	94.7
Employment support for women with interrupted careers	165	4 054	3 811	94.0
Support for community-specific employment of young women	87	2 535	2 430	95.9

Table 36

Women’s participation in vocational training programs by the Ministry of Labor

	*Total*	Women	Percentage of women
*2006*	*2007*	2006	2007	2006	2007
Training for the currently employed	2 913 613	3 576 375	698 756	910 332	24.0	28.4
Training for the unemployed	81 573	89 580	51 091	56 614	62.6	63.2
Short-term adjustment training for housewives	5 076	4 896	5 076	4 896	100.0	100.0
Training for unemployed female heads of household	2 225	2 319	2 225	2 319	100.0	100.0

Note: Statistics of female heads of household and priority occupations were excluded from the data on training for the unemployed.

Table 37

Data on training for the unemployed include the statistics of training for head of households.

	*Total*
Total	117 074
Men	58 963
Women	58 111 (49.6%)

Table 38

Year	Childcare budget¹	Percentage of GDP²(at the current price)
2004	875.4	0.11
2005	1 327.3	0.15
2006	2 045.4	0.22
2007	2 692.9	0.28
2008	3 409.3	0.33

¹ Ministry of Health Welfare and Family (Central and local governments combined including budgets for local governments’ childcare programs from 2006).

Table 39

Gender	Income level	Two-week sickness rate
N	Per cent (Standard deviation)
Female	1st quartile	413	21.8 (2.3)
2nd quartile	410	26.2 (3.5)
3rd quartile	424	15.6 (2.1)
4th quartile	401	17.8 (2.3)
Male	1st quartile	299	17.6 (2.5)
2nd quartile	286	14.1 (2.6)
3rd quartile	306	9.3 (1.6)
4th quartile	298	7.9 (1.8)

Data: Center for Disease Control [2007 National Health Statistics – National Nutrition Survey 4th Period 1st Year (2007)].

Two-week sickness rate: The percentage of the survey respondents who were sick in the past two weeks due to chronic or acute diseases accidents or poisoning.

Income level: Monthly homogenized household income ((Monthly household income)/(square root of household size)) is divided into quartile groups.

Table 40

Rank	Female	Rank	Male
Cause	Death rate	Number who died	Cause	Death rate	Number who died
1	Malignant neoplasm (Cancer)	101.1	24 783	1	Malignant neoplasm (Cancer)	173.7	42 778
2	Cerebrovascular	62.6	15 336	2	Cerebrovascular	56.6	13 941
3	Heart disease	43.2	10 597	3	Heart disease	44.3	10 897
4	Diabetes	22.8	5 581	4	Suicide	31.5	7 747
5	Suicide	18.1	4 427	5	Liver disease	23.8	5 868
6	Hypertension	14.7	3 592	6	Diabetes	23.1	5 691
7	Chronic lower respiratory disease	11.9	2 919	7	Auto accident	22.8	5 614
8	Pneumonia	9.1	2 227	8	Chronic lower respiratory disease	18.7	4 604
9	Auto accident	8.1	1 990	9	Pneumonia	9.5	2 329
10	Liver disease	5.9	1 446	10	Falling accident	7.8	1 925

Data: National Statistical Office (2008), 2007 Causes of Death Statistics (Yearbook).

Table 41

Year	Infected persons	AIDS patients	Deaths by AIDS
*Total*	Male	Female	*Total*	*Total*	Patient	Other
2007	744	701	43	103	150	105	45
2008	797	743	54	70	104	68	36

Table 42

	*Total*	Age 15–24	Age 25–29	Age 30–34	Age 35–39	Age 40–44
2003	84.5	56.8	64.8	80.8	90.8	91.5
2006	79.6	43.3	51.3	74.2	88.0	90.3

Table 43

	Age 20–24	Age 25–29	Age 30–34	Age 35–39	Age 40–44
2003	74	38	30	21	6
2005	59	15	19	7	5

Data: Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs (2006), National Survey on Fertility, Family Health and Welfare.

Note: ¹⁾ Induced abortion rate: The frequency of abortion a woman has in her lifetime is estimated based on data at a certain time period.

Table 44

Year	1982	1991	2000	2003	2006
Percentage of Cesarean	4.4	17.3	37.7	39.2	35.0

Data: Korea Institute for Health and Social Affairs (2006), National Survey on Fertility, Family Health and Welfare.

Table 45

Gender	Percentage experiencing depression
N	Percent (Standard deviation)
Female	1 739	17.1 (0.9)
Male	1 241	8.1 (0.8)

Data: Center for Disease Control 2007 National Health Statistics – National Nutrition Survey 4th Period First Year (2007).

Percentage experiencing depression: Percentage of the survey respondents who have felt sadness or despair for two weeks continuously in the past year to the extent that it affects daily life.

Table 46

Year	2005	2006	2007	2008	March 2009
Total	17 124 449	17 739 939	18 266 742	18 335 409	18 292 152
Women	6 062 710 (35.4)	6 446 535 (36.3)	6 804 559 (37.3)	6 966 377 (38.0)	6 967 614 (38.1)
Men	11 061 739 (64.6)	11 293 404 (63.7)	11 462 183 (62.7)	11 369 032 (62.0)	11 324 538 (61.9)

Data: National Pension Service Statistical Yearbook (2005–2007), Monthly Statistics (2008.12./2009.3.)

Table 47

Data: National Pension Service Statistical Yearbook (2005–2007), Monthly Statistics (2005.12/2006.12/2008.12/2009.3).

Table 48

Beneficiaries of the basic livelihood security program by age and gender (2008)

Table 49

Data: Ministry of Justice (2008) Statistical Yearbook of Entry/Exit and Policies on Foreigners (re-cited).

Table 50

[*] In accordance with the information transmitted to States parties regarding the processing of their reports, the present document was not formally edited before being sent to the United Nations translation services.

	2006	2007	2008
Human rights violation	3 334 (79.6)	5 067 (80.8)	4 892 (77.5)
Discrimination	824 (19.7)	1 159 (18.5)	1 380 (21.9)

Year	Number of facilities	Number of women by victimization type						Number of support incidences by type
Year	Number of facilities	*Total*	Sexual violence	Domestic violence	School violence	Sex trade	Other	*Total*	Counseling	Medical treatment	Collecting evidence	Recordings statement	Written statement
2006	14	4 764	2 868	1 284	226	48	338	14 699	7 386	3 592	1 123	542	2 056
2007	15	9 352	5 701	2 463	336	105	747	28 236	14 546	6 229	2 117	1 198	4 146
2008	16	10 074	6 818	2 312	209	70	665	35 643	18 258	7 335	2 571	1 977	5 502

	Action taken			Number of sex trade criminals (by type)
	Number arrested	Detention	No detention	*Total*	Sex shop owner & related	Client	Sex worker
2005	18 508	829	17 679	18 508	4 071	11 474	2 963
2006	34 795	569	34 226	34 795	3 653	27 488	3 654
2007	39 236	526	38 710	39 236	4 359	29 991	4 886
July 2008	21 872	255	21 617	21 872	2 637	16 354	2 881

	Number of arrest incidences	Number of persons arrested	Action		Arrestees by type
	Number of arrest incidences	Number of persons arrested	Detention	No detention	Client	Sex shop owner & related	Sex worker youth
2005	1 139	1 946	295	1 651	1 611	305	30
2006	744	1 745	149	1 596	1 502	183	60
2007	839	2 582	126	2 456	1 835	242	505
July 2008	503	1 246	45	1 201	860	111	275

Country of origin	Gender	*Subtotal*	Legalization (E-9-1)	Work permit							Trainee employment (E-8)	Visitor employment (H-2)
Country of origin	Gender	*Subtotal*	Legalization (E-9-1)	*Subtotal*	Manufacturing (E-9-2)	Construction (E-9-3)	Agriculture, husbandry (E-9-4)	Fishing (E-9-5)	Refrigerating, freezing (E-9-6)	Collecting data (E-9-7)	Trainee employment (E-8)	Visitor employment (H-2)
Total	All	506 073	24 358	165 557	147 391	9 009	6 778	2 253	108	18	16 826	299 332
Total	Women	163 71 (32.4)	7 787 (32.0)	15 837 (9.6)	14 029 (9.5)	1 (0.0)	1 796 (26.5)	10 (0.4)	1 (0.9)	0 (0.0)	2 098 (12.5)	137 993 (46.1)
Korean-Chinese	All	301 041	5 074	1 192	1 136	38	18	0	0	0	431	294 344
Korean-Chinese	Women	138 350 (46.0)	2 644 (52.1)	215 (18.0)	213 (18.8)	0 (0.0)	2 (11.1)	0 (-)	0 (-)	0 (-)	88 (20.4)	135 403 (46.0)
China	All	15 359	5 691	8 180	4 891	2 030	422	837	0	0	1 488	0
China	Women	2 548 (16.6)	1 512 (26.6)	842 (10.3)	831 (17.0)	0 (0.0)	1 (0.2)	10 (1.2)	0 (-)	0 (-)	194 (13.0)	0 (-)
Viet Nam	All	47 404	1 752	41 158	35 230	2 234	3 416	278	0	0	4 494	0
Viet Nam	Women	5 357 (11.3)	543 (31.0)	4 055 (9.9)	3 063 (8.7)	0 (0.0)	992 (29.0)	0 (0.0)	0 (-)	0 (-)	759 (16.9)	0 (-)
Philippines	All	26 521	2 923	21 882	20 867	924	90	1	0	0	1 716	0
Philippines	Women	4 506 (17.0)	1 078 (36.9)	3 092 (14.1)	3 089 (14.8)	1 (0.1)	2 (2.2)	0 (0.0)	0 (-)	0 (-)	336 (19.6)	0 (-)
Thailand	All	27 425	1 651	24 890	20 338	3 410	1 124	16	2	0	884	0
	Women	3 979 (14.5)	671 (40.6)	3 196 (12.8)	2 838 (14.0)	0 (0.0)	358 (31.9)	0 (0.0)	0 (0.0)	0 (-)	112 (12.7)	0 (-)
Others	All	88 323	7 267	68 255	64 929	373	1 708	1 121	106	18	7 813	4 988

	United Nations	CEDAW/C/KOR/7
	Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women		Distr.: General 9 November 2010 Original: English

	2004		2005		2006		2007		2008
	Organization	Project	Organization	Project	Organization	Project	Organization	Project	Organization	Project
Central government	6	7	37	51	38	60	37	78	30	72
Metropolitan city offices	3	3	16	34	16	75	16	137	16	268
City and town offices	-	-	-	-	133	179	210	490	232	1 168
Offices of education	-	-	-	-	-	-	15	15	16	16
Total	9	10	53	85	187	314	278	720	294	1 524

Year	Central government				Provincial-level governments
Year	Number, committees	Number, members	Female members	Percentage of women	Number, committees	Number, members	Female members	Percentage of women
2006	383	7 206	2 132	29.6	1 111	12 667	4 556	36.0
2007	458	9 205	2 487	27.0	1 193	14 160	5 242	37.0
2008	433	9 462	2 558	27.0	1 359	16 631	5 512	33.1

Year			2005	2006	2007	2008	March 2009
Total		Total	1 766 589	1 995 984	2 256 912	2 332 452	2 403 008
		Women	707 060 (40.0)	802 590 (40.2)	905 033 (40.1)	925 619 (39.7)	952 557 (39.6)
		Men	1 059 529 (60.0)	1 193 394 (59.8)	1 351 879 (59.9)	1 406 836 (60.3)	1 450 451 (60.4)
Old age pension	Total	Total	1 349 626	1 517 649	1 731 560	1 926 198	1 987 491
		Women	418 659 (31.0)	470 272 (31.0)	535 699 (30.9)	599 063 (31.1)	618 017 (31.1)
		Men	930 067 (68.9)	1 047 272 (69.0)	1 195 861 (69.1)	1 327 135 (68.9)	1 369 474 (68.9)
	Divided pension	Total	686	909	1 430	2 121	2 368
		Women	602 (87.8)	810 (89.1)	1 239 (86.6)	1 842 (86.9)	2 067 (87.3)
		Men	84 (12.2)	99 (10.9)	191 (13.4)	279 (13.2)	301 (12.7)
Survivor pension		Total	254 116	286 656	320 377	340 243	348 738
		Women	235 828 (92.8)	266 532 (93.0)	296 904 (92.7)	317 847 (93.4)	325 615 (93.4)
		Men	18 288 (7.2)	20 124 (7.0)	23 473 (7.3)	22 396 (6.6)	23 123 (6.6)

Age	*Total*	Men	Women
19 or less	405 333	206 181 (50.9)	199 152 (49.1)
20–29	74 192	33 845 (45.6)	40 347 (54.4)
30–39	102 270	39 398 (38.5)	62 872 (61.5)
40–49	239 523	113 801 (47.5)	125 722 (52.5)
50–59	173 421	95 314 (55.0)	78 107 (45.0)
60–69	169 288	61 858 (36.5)	107 430 (63.5)
70–79	189 283	50 505 (26.7)	138 778 (73.3)
80 or older	90 700	16 113 (17.8)	74 587 (82.2)
Total	1 444 010	617 015 (42.7)	826 995 (57.3)

		2005	2006	2007
Total number of marriages		316 375	332 752	345 592
Number of international marriages	Total	43 121	39 690	38 491
	Foreign wife	31 180	30 208	29 140
	Foreign husband	11 941	9 482	9 351
Per cent international (%)		13.6	11.9	11.1

Country of origin	Gender	*Subtotal*	Special employment
Country of origin	Gender	*Subtotal*	Restaurant (E-9-A)	Cleaning (E-9-B)	Caretaking, housework (E-9-C)	Construction (E-9-D)	Manufacturing (E-9-F)	Agriculture, husbandry (E-9-G)	Bathing (E-9-I)
Total	All	862	362	14	120	326	35	4	1
	Women	446 (51.7)	300 (82.9)	0 (0.0)	114 (95.0)	29 (8.9)	2 (5.7)	1 (25.0)	0 (0.0)
Korean-Chinese	All	862	362	14	120	326	35	4	1
Korean-Chinese	Women	446 (51.7)	300 (82.9)	0 (0.0)	114 (95.0)	29 (8.9)	2 (5.7)	1 (25.0)	0 (0.0)
Others	All	0	0	0	0	0	0	0	0
	Women	0 (-)	0 (-)	0 (-)	0 (-)	0 (-)	0 (-)	0 (-)	0 (-)

		2004	2005	2006	2007	2008
Overall percentage of women		31.2	39.8	39.5	42.2	41.6
Administrator	Administrator, Security officer	38.4	44.0	44.6	49.0	51.2
Administrator	Technical officer	20.3	19.7	25.4	16.4	21.5
Diplomat		35.0	52.6	36.0	67.7	65.7

United Nations Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination Against Women - State Party Reports