Women's Status in Korea

By Chung Se-yun

Since the Confucianism was introduced into Korea, Korean women were educated that when they were young, they should obey their fathers, when they got married they should obey their husbands, when their husbands were dead, they should be under the guidance of their sons. That fact meant that Korean women should stay only home doing house chore under men's direction. These days, however, women are entering various fields of society, especially, the number of women who are entering traditional male-dominated fields is increasing gradually, and they are winning public recognition.

Traditionally, the army was regarded as men's domain. Now many female pioneers, however, are going to the army. Since the Korean army was established in 1948, female soldiers have existed in minor fields. Their tasks were confined to typewriting or nursing. They were not able to move to other departments freely and did not have the chance to be promoted equally as men. Since 1997, however, the air-force academy, the military academy, and the naval academy opened to female students respectively, the chance which female soldiers are treated equally took the first step. Besides, last year, since the beginning of Korean army history, Col. Yang Seung Sook became a first female general. Her first step gives many female soldiers a hope that they can get a chance to be promoted to a general.

The police was also a male-dominated field. However, females rights are extending in the police, since the National Police University opened its doors to 5 female students in 1989. As they are being educated in the National Police University, policewomen are more likely to be promoted to a higher police officer. Moreover, female students ability is being recognized, as they are winning the top, second, and third academic position among the graduates. Policewomen are achieving good results in their jobs as well as in the academic life. For example, last year Kim Kang Ja, a head of Jong-Am police station, did a great thing that never was done by a male senior superintendent. She got rid of illegal prostitution in the Miari area and helped prostitutes extend their rights.

Womens power has been growing in the area of law as well as the army and the police force. There is not any official discrimination when government gives a chance to apply to the examination for becoming a judge, a lawyer, and a prosecutor. But since the first female lawyer, Yi Tae Young in 1952, females number in the area of law has not increased that much. Recently, however, the number is increasing up to almost 20%. According to 1999 statistics, the number of female judges is 105, the number of female prosecutors is 22, the number of female lawyers is 100, and the number of female successful candidates for the bar is 141. In addition to these figures, the more encouraging thing is that the number of female successful candidates for bar examination is increasing gradually. The Ministry of Justices report says that the females rate was 8.1% in 1997, 13.3% in 1998, 17.3% in 1999, and 18.9% in 2000. In addition to this upward trend of successful female candidates number, females ability is also remarkably recognized. Last year, females took the top position in the state law examination, and were also the top graduates of the Judicial Research and Training Institute.

In 2001, Korea, which, ranked 27 in the United Nations Development Index, ranked 61 on the Gender Empowerment Measure sub-index, behind the developing countries of the Philippines (46th) and Mexico (37th). However, Korean women are trying to enter various fields, and it is encouraging that the number of women who are entering traditional male-dominated fields is increasing gradually. Women's participation in Korean society is beneficial to women themselves as well as that society.