by Park Un-a, Park Yun-jin, Park So'jo'ng

"It is a sad house where the hen crows louder than the cock." " Woman's fate depends on man." These proverbs show that women were under men's control in korean traditional society. But now, the proverbs have become just old stories. Though discrimination still exists in korea, the status of korean women is improving and the rate of woman participation in society will increase as information-oriented society comes.

Discrimination against women still exists in lots of fields-especially at home, at work and in the law-of modern Korean society. Korean women who grew up seeing their mother's unbalanced sacrifices for family don't want to live like their mothers anymore. However, Korean society requires continuously women to play traditional roles at home. Married women are expected to be perfect house wife, even though they have a career. They have to take care of household affairs and have to do a job concurrently. Namely, women who have a career suffer from two aspects. If they are careless of family, husbands will insist to quit their job. If there are children in the family, the problem become more serious, because to seek a baby-sitter is tough and there aren't many reliable child-care centers in Korea yet. Since most of men in Korea don't understand how much wives desire to have a career. That makes many couples get into fights, finally women have to quit their jobs to take care of their children. Korean women also confront discrimination at work. As complete a college degree course, female students find that it is difficult to get a job, although they have more abilities and qualifications than male colleagues.

After getting a job, moreover, women experience more serious discrimination. According to the survey held by Hyundai Research Institute in 1999, over 80 percent of female employees felt their managers discriminated against them at the workplace. And women who enter a company on the same level as men don't receive the chances for promotion that men receive and remain in entry level jobs, said Lee In-sook, of the Women's Employment Equity Association. Especially during Korea's financial crisis(1997-1999), unfair layoffs showed sexual discrimination. According to the government statistics, the unemployment rate of female workers amounted to 5.8 percent in August 1997, with the number of jobless reaching 497,000. The number of unemployed female workers in August was three times that recorded during the same month a year earlier. Namely, during company restructuring, women workers was first targets of early retirement program.

Not only at home and at work but also in the law, discrimination can be found. These days lots of women organizations require abrogation of the unbalanced laws. The one of the representative laws is 'the head of family law'. It represents only man can succeed the head of family, so it restricts women's personal rights. And 'the census register family law' is also object of women protest against unbalanced laws. According to this one, women should move their name to husband's census register family after marriage, it means women belong to men's family.

In spite of these discriminations against women, the role and status of women is becoming enhanced by Korea,s development into an industrial society, establishing laws about prohibition of women's discrimination, and government's policy on supporting social activities of women. As society get advanced, our lifestyle get better. The emancipation from household affairs and child care brings women on achieving even more free activities in society. Especially, remarkable development of kitchen utensils such as a washing machine, a refrigerator, an dishwasher etc, emancipate women from the drudgery of the kitchen. According to the Second Political Affairs Research about household affairs of Korean women in 1997, housekeeping time of Korean women was 9.8 hours per a day in 1980's. But, in 1997, it is reduced to 5.16 hours per a day. Moreover, day-care centers for women who have a job has been set up and running in place after place of Korea since 1990's. Secondly, the law about prohibition of women's discrimination are newly established so women are able to be protected from the discrimination in job The revised law about prohibition of women's discrimination including sexual harassment has been enforcing strongly since 1999. By the revised law, in all aspects of society such as employment, education, public welfare etc, the discrimination of women is forbidden. If a woman suffers from the sexual harassment or unfair treatment at work only because of female, she is able to report to the Women's Special Committee (02-3477-4076) as well as make a complaint. Lastly, with the government's policy on supporting social activities of women, social advance of women is becoming active. According to the Korea Herald 12.31.1999, President Kim Dae-Jung said by 2002, 30 percent of all government panels would be made up of women and political parties would set aside 30 percent of the National Assembly seats gained by proportional representation to female lawmakers. The government made plans for not only it but expansion of female public servants. That system, which has enforced since the last year, has a plan to gradually expand female public servants by 2002. Females are going to make up 30 percent of public servant over the fifth class and 25 percent of public servant at the sixth and seventh class by 2000.

On other side, there has been some encouraging news lately. That is 'information revolution', which has brought further development in women's social participation. The information revolution broke down barriers around of production and consumption, society and home, and gender gaps trough cyber space. Women will not confront double troubles taking care of both office and home anymore because offices will disappear gradually as home business becomes possible through Internet. Practically, John Naisbitt, scholar of USA studying human's future, forecasts that 70 percent of whole workers will performed their business at home trough Internet in 21century. Also, he said that Women will be high grade employees than men because e-business is being demanded delicateness and intuitive power is suitable female character than male's and Korea will have to tap into the vast human resources and skills represented by women to remain competitive. The roles and responsibilities of women will expand out of necessity. Nowadays, in cyber space. we can often find housewife who gives counsel and makes money with information and know-how obtained by experience of housekeeping. Mrs. Song, who was just usual housewife, became boss of Internet shopping mall lately. At the beginning, she just made a knitting lesson in Chollian. But, beyond one's expectations, great many people participated in the lesson and finally she made shopping mall which sells various knitting articles in (www.banul.co.kr). And many Korean womene have become able to assert their opinions positively against political discrimination through Internet. So, lately a Cyber Women movement has sprung up in cyber space and women have made their cyber women's party 'Cyty'. The goal of 'Cyty' is to establish 'electronic democracy' and solve many political problems. Moreover, Korean Women Information Personnel has made a homepage 'FemiNet' for women's politic participation. So, Korean women can announce their political unfair dealing fast and easy just clicking the monitor of computer. In Internet space that transcends time and space, women will be able to achieve their dreams.

As information-oriented society comes rapidly, we can hear lots of woman success news and also hear new words like the 'Ye-Pung' and the '3F period' of Female, 'Feeling', 'Fiction'. The 'Ye-Pung' means the wind of woman power and the '3F period' reflects optimistic prospects that women activities will be remarkable in the information-oriented society. These are proofs of the women status improvement by their consistent efforts against discrimination. Now the rate of woman participation in society is increasing and lots of fields in Korea will need more capable woman participation.