Monday, November 9, 2009

Campaign Against Abortion (Korea Herald Article)

During my daily news scan, I cam across a Korea Herald article that grabbed my attention. The article was about a group of Korean obstetricians in their 30s and 40s resolving not to comply with any abortion request that is not based on medical reasons, but the article also brought to light the current trends and some of the debates regarding abortion in South Korea. One thing I didn't know until I read the article is that abortion is actually illegal in South Korea with certain medical and legal exceptions such as mother's health, cases of rape, etc. Really...you wouldn't know abortion is illegal in South Korea if you just live here and listen to all the stories about people who has had an abortion.


The article mentions that most of the abortions in South Korea are due to social and economic reasons. What it doesn't mention is that quite a bit of the abortions are due to the gender of the fetus (I suppose that could fall under social reason) - South Korean society, like numerous other Asian societies, has a high preference for male babies - thus the South Korean law that prohibits the physicians from telling the parents gender of their baby (apparently, starting next year the law will change to allow the doctors to tell the parents gender of their baby after 7th month of pregnancy). It is still a common place in Korea where mothers-in-law discriminate against their daughters-in-law for only having girls instead of boys.

For me, this is a difficult phenomenon to understand - not from the perspective of right or wrong, but more from the point of view that South Korea is an industrialized modern nation-state where it seems its society should have advanced pass issues such as this. I suppose centuries old social traditions die hard, but I certainly do hope that these archaic preferences will disappear soon (Yes, here's the idealist in me peeking through).

OK...so, here's the article from Korea Herald:

===============


Early this month a group of young doctors declared a war against abortion, which is illegal but rampant here.

Consisting of some 600 obstetricians in their 30s and 40s, the group tentatively named "Gynob" resolved not to comply with any abortion request that is not based on medical validity.

"Despite the huge gap between law and reality, our society has left the issue of illegal abortions long unsettled. Most abortions in Korea occur because of social and economic reasons. And all of them are illegal," they said in a statement issued on Nov. 1.

After ending their anti-abortion campaign within the year, the group plans to seek criminal proceedings from Jan. 1. Doctors here say an age-old Pandora's Box of abortion has just opened up.

Rampant abortions

The current Mother and Child Health Law permits abortions only in limited cases such as when one of the parents suffers from a hereditary disease, when the pregnancy arises from rape or incest, or when pregnancy would damage the mother's health severely.

According to the latest data from the Health Ministry, almost 330,000 abortions were induced in 2005 and only 4.4 percent of them met the legally required conditions. While nearly 450,000 babies are born every year in Korea, doctors say the actual number of abortions would be two to three times greater than the official figure.

However, the number of people who faced trial on charges of performing or receiving illegal abortions was one in 2005, five in 2006, four in 2007 and five in 2008, Rep. Jang Yoon-seok of the ruling Grand National Party noted last month during a parliamentary inspection of the Seoul High Court.

"We doctors, judicial authorities and the Health Ministry all have committed a grave error for a long time. That's why the uncomfortable truth has never been able to be revealed," said Choi Ahn-na, spokesperson for Gynob, who also runs a private clinic in Mapo, western Seoul.

Desperate doctors

Obstetrical and gynecological clinics in Korea have long struggled from old issues such as low medical fees, ceaseless legal conflicts and a shortage of specialists.

Under the system, most private clinics have given up risk-bearing delivery services. But practicing cheaper gynecological treatment does not make a profit. As a result, a growing number of specialists do abortions or turn to other more favorable departments such as dermatology and plastic surgery.

Currently an abortion's operation fee stands at 300,000 to 400,000 won (or $257-$343) and has become a major earning procedure for some obstetricians. A Gynob member doctor said in an interview that he performed 20 abortions in a month while delivering 14 babies.

Young doctors started sensing that they could be the nation's last generation of gynecologists, resulting in the establishment of Gynob, which comes from gynecology and obstetrics, in December last year. And the issue of illegal abortion has topped their agenda.

"We thought that it would be difficult for us to voice our opinion unless old practices such as illegal abortions are rooted out by our efforts," the Gynob spokesperson said.

"In Korea, the issues related to disabled people or unmarried mothers have been largely solved by abortions. No meaningful efforts have been made by the government. Babies should be born without discrimination. Their rights should be claimed, then the government's policy would follow with better social infrastructure."

Opening up a debate

Lee Na-young, sociology professor at Chung-Ang University, observed the move led by doctors have opened the first meaningful debate over abortion in Korea.

"Unlike in other countries, there have been almost no disputes on the issue here. Because society has secretly sympathized with abortion, even feminists here don't need to stage a pro-abortion movement," said Lee.

But she remained cautious about the actual effects of the declaration, adding that it should not be misinterpreted by religious groups and conservatives.

Historically, Korean women have never claimed rights over their bodies, Lee said. During the 1960-70s, the government's birth control policy forced them to get abortions. But now they are encouraged to bear more babies due to the nation's falling birthrate.

"In order to change people's thoughts more fundamentally, a fierce debate over women's bodies and their rights should be prompted," she said.

"In countries such as Germany, unmarried couples and single mothers are not labeled by society and they benefit from government support. If women, especially unmarried mothers, can raise their children without feeling any disgrace and are supported by a strong social safety net, why would they decide to get an abortion?"

The first and last chance

Over the resolution of doctors, the first of its kind in Korea, the Korean Catholic Church immediately issued a message welcoming the announcement while the Korean Association of Obstetricians and Gynecologists with a membership of 4,000 doctors underplayed it as a minority opinion of radical doctors.

"Regardless of culture and system, it is widely considered that illegal abortion should be eradicated. However, the issue cannot be solved by making some obstetricians criminals," said KAOG in a statement.

Choi said the group had tried but failed to reach an agreement with KAOG before announcing the declaration on its own. Within Gynob, the number of members also decreased from 680 to 650 in the process of discussions.

"We know doctors would feel humiliated as they have to confess their past wrong-doings. And abortion has already been an important source of profit," Choi said.

She admitted their efforts could be meaningless without the participation of all doctors.

"If some doctors quit performing abortions, others would do more. That's why we are considering criminal charges against illegal abortions," she said.

"Yes, some of us are criminals too. If necessary, we are ready to be investigated first. We think this might be the last chance to make a change."

Monday, October 12, 2009

16th Korea University Invitational Fencing Tournament

A small contingent of fencers from the Seoul Fencing Club (SFC) participated in the 16th annual Korea University invitational tournament on Saturday, 10 October. The tournament consisted of three individual events - men's foil, women's foil, and men's epee. The SFC fencers secured third place in all three events. Yonsei University club and Yonsei alumni club swept the first place honors while Korea University club came in second in men's foil and Seoul National University club took home the second place in men's epee.

Since the City of Seoul "indefinitely postponed" the Seoul Fencing Association Cup tournament (originally scheduled for 26 September) due to worries over the H1N1 virus, this tournament marks the last amateur fencing tournament for 2009 unless the city decides to have the tournament before the year's end (which I doubt it will happen...not because of H1N1, but because I know how city employees think...). So, the next amateur tournament is probably going to be held summer of 2010 - the Yonsei University Invitational. Who knows, though, the city employees may surprise me, yet, but I seriously doubt it.

At any rate, a job well done for all those who participated, placed, and administered.

Here are some photos of the SFC members from the tournament.

Left to Right: C.D. Lee - Men's Foil 3rd Place;
G. Nostrant - Men's Epee 3rd Place;
E.K. Paik - Women's Foil 3rd Place

SFC members after the tournament

Tuesday, September 29, 2009

CSI: NY Season 6 Opener

Out of all the CSI series, my favorite happens to be CSI:NY. This season opener was quite emotional and I think will probably end up being one of my favorite episodes. For sure, it will be one of the more memorable ones.

Monday, August 24, 2009

Funeral Dimplomacy - Cautiously optimistic

The State Funeral for the late Former South Korean President Kim Dae-jung was yesterday. Regardless of the different personal views the readers of this blog may have about the late President, I think everyone can agree that he was a true statesman and an internationally recognized leader.

I am certain quite a lot of people saw the memorial and funeral services via the television broadcast or the Internet. If not, most would have at least seen the photos of these events.

For me, I think this is a sign that I am a workaholic, the most memorable photo out of the memorial and funeral services is the photo that I've inserted to the left of this posting - a photo of Kim Ki-nam (Vice-chairman of the Committee for Peaceful Reunification of the Fatherland and aSecretary of the North Korean Workers Party) and Kim Yang-gon (Director of the Unification Front Department and Chairman of Korea Asia-Pacific Peace Committee) paying respect at Kim Dae-jung's alter, placing a wreath Kim Jong-il sent, which they brought from North Korea. The picture clearly shows Kim Jong-il's name (in Korean on the right) and the message of condolence (in Korean on the left).

Needless to say that this is the first time the North had sent a delegation to pay respect to a late South Korean President. But wait, that is not all. The delegation even had a meeting with the sitting South Korean President Lee Myung-bak, and the South Korean Unification Minister Hyun In Taek on 23 and 22 August respectively. Reportedly, the North Korean delegation delivered a verbal message from Kim Jong-il to President Lee.

According to Chosun Ilbo, the meeting "led to a consensus between the South and the North on the principle that both sides need high-level government-level dialogue. But it remains to be seen when and at what level such dialogue will be held." According to the same report, President Lee reportedly told the North Korean delegates that the South is willing to talk at any time at any level, including a summit - which has been rebuffed by Cheong Wa Dae (the South Korean Presidential Office). In response, Cheong Wa Dae released a statement saying:

President Lee Myung-bak is fully prepared and ready to hold an inter-Korean summit with North Korean leader Kim Jong-il if conditions are met, but no such summit has been proposed by either side.

Whether or not substantive discussions occurred during the North-South meetings on the 22 and 23 August, it was significant that those meetings were the first high level inter-Korean governmental meeting that occurred since President Lee took office 18 months or so ago.

I don't believe the inter-Korean relations will improve over night drastically because of the North Korean delegation's visit and these meetings, but one could be cautiously optimistic. After all, one can always hope.

Wednesday, August 12, 2009

Interesting blog of a young North Korean defector living in Japan

Found an interesting blog today. The title of the blog is A North Korean Living in Japan: Steps of Hana Lee. The blog is carried on the Asia Press website and has apparently been gaining popularity and has been the object of numerous inquiries from newspapers and television stations in Japan.

According to the blog, the author, Hana Lee (리하나), is a 25 year-old young woman who fled North Korean and arrived in Japan in 2005 (She currently resides in Osaka, Japan). She was certified by a university as possessing the academic qualifications of a high school graduate and has been attending college since this spring.

From a quick peruse of the blog…she writes frankly, discussing about her life in Japan. Her postings are replete with bewilderment, occasional frustration, and agonizing recollections of life in North Korea.

The only downside of this blog is that it is in Japanese. Time to breakout the translator…

Tuesday, August 11, 2009

Uhh...Madam Secretary...please....

Secretary Clinton has had a few diplomatic stumbles in her tenure as the Secretary of the State. This latest one takes the cake, though. Based on CBS, however, apparently the translator made a mistake.
According to a pool report, the person who asked the question later explained to the secretary of state that he wanted to know what President Obama thought about the deal, not what Mr. Clinton thought.
Although I can understand where the Secretary might be coming from, her reaction seems to be a bit over the top to say the least.

Monday, August 3, 2009

Haeundae (해운대) ... a diaster movie, it is NOT ... a love story and human drama, it IS ...

Wife and I went and saw the movie Haeundae (해운대) this weekend. I thoroughly enjoyed the movie...even got misty-eyed for parts of the movie.

Before I go any further, I need to make a few points clear: 1) I do not like disaster films because the story lines are all too predictable; and 2) I do not have a good impression on the Korean movie industry's ability to pull off a decent sci-fi or action movies (to include disaster movies). When I first heard about the movie, I didn't want to see it, let alone go on a date with my wife just to see it. My wife, however, told me that a friend of hers, who had seen the movie, told her that the movie was actually a combination of melodrama and comedy that just happens to have the natural disaster element as a punctuation point.

Korean movie industry may not do large blockbuster action and sci-fi movies, but it does genres such as melodrama, comedy, and romantic comedy very well. I have found Korean melodrama movies to be quite thoughtful and very often reflects on the social conditions and issues of the day or the days past. So, I thought it may be worth it to go see it with the wife.

Well, I am glad I did. The movie, as expected, was not much of a disaster movie. It was, however, a pretty good melodrama sprinkled with adequate dose of comedy and a lot of sentiment and numerous sub-plots woven into the overall storyline. It was a really nice story of everyday people, family, and sacrifice. It made me laugh, and dare I say it, misty-eyed. Of course, the computer generated tsunami, which accounted for 60% of the movie's production cost, was not too bad.

So, if you go expecting you will see a Hollywood-like tsunami movie like The Day After Tomorrow, you will be surely be disappointed; but if you are in for a nice human story about common people and family, I would say it's worth it to take some time out and go see it.

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