COMMITTEE ON RIGHTS OF CHILD EXAMINES REPORT OF REPUBLIC OF KOREA
Press Release
HR/4281
COMMITTEE ON RIGHTS OF CHILD EXAMINES REPORT OF REPUBLIC OF KOREA
19960119 GENEVA, 19 January (UN Information Service) -- The Committee on the Rights of the Child this morning continued its examination of the Republic of Korea's compliance with the provisions of the Convention on the Rights of the Child.The delegation of the Republic of Korea responded to questions posed by Committee members during the previous meeting regarding the minimum age limit for marriage, counselling services, disabled children, and adopted children.
On the minimum age for marriage, the delegation said that in the Korean social tradition, legal minimum age for girls was fixed at sixteen and for boys at eighteen. However, the consent of parents was necessary until the age of twenty, when people could marry freely. If a minor got married, he or she was deemed to have attained full legal age and was granted legal capacity.
Children might receive legal and medical counselling without parental consent. There were 79 Child Service Consultation Centres, which were financed by government and private institutions. The number of social workers performing counselling services in the boroughs had been increased currently to 3,000. One expert commented that the number was insignificant compared to the large number of children in the population.
The delegation told the Committee that there were 100,000 disabled children and young persons aged up to nineteen in the Republic. The State and municipalities were responsible for their economic security and welfare. The majority of them lived with their parents; in rare cases, disabled children were placed in homes. Their education and social integration was assured by the Government.
The delegation said the best interest of the child was the principal requirement in any process of domestic or intercountry adoption. A child under fifteen could be adopted with the consent of his or her parents, but if the child was above that age, consent of the child was necessary. Adopted and biological children received equal treatment. Some 2,000 Korean children were adopted by those residing outside the country each year.
A question was raised if national security law was affecting the rights of children. The delegation stated that the law existed because the Republic
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of Korea was "technically at war" with its northern neighbour. So far, there was no peaceful settlement between the two countries. The two had only signed a cease-fire agreement. However, no measure arising from the national security law involved children. To a question concerning involvement of children in military tribunals, the delegation reaffirmed that no child was tried by military courts. The number of civilians court martialled was insignificant.
Asked if children enjoyed access to to mass media, the delegation said three daily newspapers addressing the interests of children were published. Entertainment and educational programmes were also transmitted by various television stations.
Any child born of a Korean father was considered Korean. Also, children of Korean parents born on the country's territory were considered Koreans. Due to the emphasis on social custom of monogamy and legal marriage, children born out of wedlock had been treated with indifference. However, quite a number of children had been born with mixed blood during the Korean war.
As to disciplinary measures in the society or schools, the delegation recalled that according to the Minors Protection Act, children under the age of twenty were forbidden from smoking, drinking and frequenting "red-light" districts. Besides, each school had its own disciplinary guidelines for its students.
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