National audit of Gender Equality and Family Ministry held Wednesday

Lawmakers press minister on protection gaps for relationship crime victims

Questions also raised on abortion medication and juveniles under criminal age

Gender Equality and Family Minister Won Min-kyung delivers a briefing at the National Assembly's Gender Equality and Family Committee national audit on Wednesday. [Yonhap]
Gender Equality and Family Minister Won Min-kyung delivers a briefing at the National Assembly's Gender Equality and Family Committee national audit on Wednesday. [Yonhap]

Gender Equality and Family Minister Won Min-kyung voiced support Wednesday for enacting comprehensive legislation to cover intimate partner violence and for abolishing provisions that allow perpetrators to escape punishment when victims withdraw their complaints.

Speaking at the National Assembly's Gender Equality and Family Committee national audit, Won expressed agreement "with overall legislation" when asked about the need to codify protections against intimate partner violence.

Won noted that the current Stalking Punishment Act and the Domestic Violence Punishment Act provide different levels of protection, and said the gap needed to be addressed. "The Stalking Punishment Act includes provisions for electronic monitoring devices, but the Domestic Violence Punishment Act does not — among other issues, I believe the laws need to be revised or new legislation enacted," Won said.

Won also said that even in stalking cases not subject to the non-prosecution-against-victim's-wishes provision, a victim's expressed wish not to pursue punishment can weaken police protection measures. Won "strongly supports" abolishing such provisions.

On the severity of intimate partner violence, Won said "there are growing numbers of women who are being killed or are at risk of being killed by intimate partners," adding that the government "takes the situation very seriously and relevant ministries continue to meet to develop countermeasures." Won added that the ministry would "keep paying closer attention to this issue."

Lawmakers at the audit said existing systems fail to adequately protect victims even when repeated warning signs are detected.

Won said the ministry would "work harder" to expand victim support infrastructure. On compiling statistics on intimate partner violence fatalities, Won said relevant ministries had agreed at an interagency meeting on the need for timely data and that consultations were ongoing.

Lawmakers also said legal protections should extend beyond direct victims to include family members and acquaintances. Democratic Party lawmaker Lee Yeon-hee said a stalking victim's mother, siblings and new romantic partner can all become targets of retaliatory crimes.

Lee cited examples from Japan and Germany and urged the government to amend relevant laws to cover people in close relationships with victims, and to strengthen interagency cooperation. Won said the ministry would review related legislative amendments and improvements.

Legal blind spots in intimate partner violence protection also drew fire. Democratic Party lawmaker Baek Hye-ryeon said cohabiting couples who are not recognized as common-law spouses have difficulty accessing emergency measures, urgent temporary orders and victim protection orders under the Domestic Violence Punishment Act. Baek said a gap between the checklist police use to assess common-law status and the standards applied by courts means victim protection measures can be rejected at the judicial stage. Won said the ministry would "check with the courts and discuss improvements together."

Staffing at juvenile facilities and abortion medication policy draw fire

Lawmakers also said the government should expand infrastructure to support the rehabilitation and reintegration of juvenile offenders before moving to lower the age threshold for juveniles under criminal age. Rebuilding Korea Party lawmaker Jeong Chun-saeng said, "I oppose lowering the age for juveniles under criminal age without providing sufficient support for the juvenile justice and juvenile protection systems."

Jeong said youth recovery support facilities — where juveniles under protective disposition live for six months and receive counseling, residential, academic and self-sufficiency support — operate under poor conditions. Despite being facilities that must care for young people around the clock, only three staff positions receive wage subsidies and holiday pay is not provided, Jeong said. Won acknowledged the difficult conditions at such facilities but said next year's staffing increase was limited to one additional nighttime counselor, and that holiday pay had not been reflected in the budget.

On the introduction of abortion medication, lawmakers criticized inadequate protections for minors and insufficient coordination among relevant ministries. They said minors may recognize a pregnancy late, and called for advance preparation of procedures to verify legal guardians and referral systems for minors suspected of being victims of sex crimes.

Won said abortion medication was "something I have continuously paid attention to and consulted with other ministries on since taking office as minister," adding that the ministry had "received sufficient input from relevant organizations."

Won said there had been "many requests for the government to quickly make officially approved medication available, given the serious health risks to young people from illegally distributed drugs," and that interagency consultations had been ongoing since last year. Won added that the ministry was preparing guidelines by compiling information submitted through youth counseling hotlines and existing counseling centers.


newday@heraldcorp.com