In February of 2018, the National Assembly’s Gender Equality and Family Committee passed a bill for partial revisions of the Act on the Protection of Children and Youth Against Sex Offenses (hereinafter Revised Bill), which allows children and youth in prostitution to receive support as victims of prostitution rather than protective disposition under the Juvenile Act. This Revised Bill is currently pending at the Legislation and Judiciary Committee of the National Assembly. The Ministry of Justice agree to the intent of the revision, but are opposed saying that “measures are needed for children and youth prostituting voluntarily and habitually as they cannot all be considered victims.” The National Human Rights Commission of Korea demands speedy processing of the Revised Bill, announcing a statement in the name of the chairperson (Choi Young-ae). The main points of the statement are as below:

▲ Adults can use cyberspace such as chat apps which guarantee anonymity to easily approach children and youth for prostitution. But sexual exploitation of children and youth still in the stages of physical and mental growth are left with scars hard to heal, hindered in character building and healthy development, struggling in interpersonal relationships and experiencing mental anxiety.

▲ According to a ‘fact-finding study on children and youth in prostitution’ presented by the National Human Rights Commission in 2016, approximately 61% of children and youth responding to the survey were runaways who were desperate in terms of a place to stay, finding a job, and overall financial troubles which then led them into prostitution.

▲ Children and youth in prostitution may appear to be voluntary on the surface, but many become involved being forced to make a living after running away from home or through a sex buyer or pimp, and are in fact involuntary.

▲ The current law in many cases considers the concept of “targeted youth” as “punishment”, which makes it difficult for children and youth victims to tell anyone and ask for help. Sex buyers or pimps take advantage of this law and continue to force prostitution, and use this against children and youth and continue to force prostitution on them, thereby aggravating the victimization of children and youth.

▲ Children and youth falling into prostitution must be considered in a different context. Children and youth, the socially and economically weaker constituents, must be protected as victims regardless of whether prostitution was voluntary or agreed upon. The National Human Rights Commission of Korea is thereby urging the National Assembly to revise the current phrase ‘targeted children and youth’ to ‘children and youth victims.’

Sources

Kim, Su-wan. National Assembly’s GEFC pass bill to ‘protect as victims’ prostituted children and youth. News1 (Feb 21, 2018)

National Human Rights Commission of Korea press release: Chairperson’s statement urging for revision of the pending “Youth Against Sex Protection Act” (Sept 9, 2019)

  * Translated by Yonjoo Hong

** The article which is written in Korean is attached in this post as PDF file