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Mon, September 25, 2023 | 06:12
Korea's sexual minorities and their struggle for equality
마이너리티 리포트 - 한국의 성소수자
Posted : 2013-06-20 16:09
Updated : 2014-06-16 14:47
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Gradually accepted, politically invisible


By Kim Young-jin, Kim Tong-hyung

Movie director Kim Jho Gwangsoo, left, kisses his partner
Dave Kim during a news conference announcing their marriage in Seoul last month.
/ Yonhap
For Lee, a 38-year-old Korean man, life in the closet had reached a dangerous boiling point.

Born to a religious family — his father was a Presbyterian pastor — Lee felt he couldn't reveal that he was gay, because people around him viewed homosexuality as a sin.

When he lived in Vancouver, a city with a large gay population, Lee refrained from dating, fearing repercussions in Korea — where sexual minority rights are ignored. He believed "coming out" would jeopardize his career as an English instructor and that people would discredit his work in the church.

"I often thought of committing suicide," he said. "There were so many things on my mind — my father, (pressure for) marriage, fear of living in isolation. There was no one to talk to and there were no answers coming."

Lee has since come out, but his predicament is common in Korea, where gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) people are harshly stigmatized. Their concerns are at the core of a small gay rights movement that has fought discrimination for decades despite a powerful Christian lobby that immobilizes politicians on the subject.

"Sexual minorities have problems in every field, from education to work to military," said Lee Jong-geol, director of gay support group Chingusai ("Between Friends"). "There is still a lot of homophobia."

The debate on LGBT rights comes at a time when the United States and other countries grapple with same-sex marriage. While Korea is not alone in its high level of homophobia, rights supporters believe the issue needs to be addressed if the nation wants to become an advanced country on human rights.

Activists hope the movement will gain traction in light of recent developments, including the announcement last month by a prominent film director that he would symbolically marry his longtime male partner.

People march down the streets near Hongik University, Seoul, during the annual Korea Queer Culture Festival (KQCF) earlier this month.
/ Korea Times file


Stigmatization

As with many social issues, Korea's attitude towards sexual minorities is moored in its tradition of Confucianism, which prioritizes continuation of the family line.

This was reinforced by authoritarianism prior to the country's democratization in 1987, scholars say. Military regimes disparaged homosexuality as a disruption to gender and family hierarchies as part of widespread efforts to squelch minority and pro-democracy voices.

The attitude was so pervasive that many people were unaware that gays existed. While economic development triggered a human rights discussions on gender equality and other issues, sexual minorities were excluded, a fact underscored by an utter lack of statistics on LGBT people.

Gays and lesbians say that the dearth of information, coupled with pressure to marry, make coming out at home difficult, while stigmatization at the workplace is stifling.

Yoo Han-seon, a 29-year-old office worker, came out to his closest friends but not at work. "When we're out drinking, coworkers often talk about how much they hate homosexuals, saying they are not men but animals," he said.

Lee Ye-in, a 26-year-old teacher, lamented the lack of resources available to young people with questions about sexual identity. "I knew I was different when I was in middle school," she said. "I had to Google ‘What is a lesbian?' to find out more."

Stories shared by human rights activists show how homophobia can spin out of control.

Sexual minorities and their advocates in a rally in Seoul.
/ Korea Times file


One situation, included in a 2005 survey by the Human Rights Commission, involved a father who walled up his daughter into a room to prevent her from meeting other lesbians, forcing her mother to feed her through a small hole.


In a case documented by the Korean Sexual-Minority Culture and Rights Center, a college student let a male student rape her for a year after he threatened to out her as a lesbian.

"This is still a society where sexual minorities have to shoulder enormous risk to express their sexual orientation and a lot of problems stem from it," said Han Ga-ram, a lawyer and member of the group Korean Lawyers for Public Interest and Human Rights.

"These people aren't confident that they will receive help from law enforcement officials or the court with their problems. The process of reporting those problems is difficult as they have expose themselves to stigmatization and discrimination that are often unmanageable."

An area of particular concern has been the military, which defines homosexuality as a "sexual identity disorder" and punishes sexual acts between people of the same sex. Activists say that gays who seek help in adjusting to military culture do so at a risk of being outed.

Jeong Yol, 35, an activist of Solidarity for LGBT Human Rights of Korea, says his sexual identity was revealed in the military when another soldier read one of his personal letters. When rumors began to circulate, Jeong admitted he was gay; his commander sent him to a psychiatric hospital run by the army. "They conducted HIV testing without my consent and insulted me using hateful words. They literally kicked me," he said.



One step forward...



Gay rights activism consolidated in the 1990s, waging community-building efforts and those to dispel myths about LGBT people in the media, which sensationalized stories about sexual promiscuity. Groups also fought laws that prohibited access to gay and lesbian websites.

The movement, though limited to handful of groups mostly in Seoul, saw some groundbreaking developments, including the "coming out" of Hong Suk-chon, the country's first openly gay actor, in 2000. Though this announcement triggered ugly backlash, it practically amounted to Korea's sexual minorities announcing their existence.

Much of the activism today works toward securing equal rights in the military and employment sectors, including a push for the country to introduce comprehensive anti-discrimination legislation.

This particular battle, however, has triggered a vehement response from the far-right, particularly the over-powered Protestant church, which recently killed the latest efforts to introduce an anti-discrimination law.



Christian opposition



At the start of the year, there were three draft anti-discrimination laws submitted to the National Assembly, penned by lawmakers Kim Han-gil and Choi Won-sik of the main opposition Democratic Party (DP) and Kim Jae-yeon of the leftist Unified Progressive Party (UPP).

All three sought to outlaw discrimination in employment and other social interactions on the grounds of age, gender, race, disability, faith and, most notably, sexual orientation.

Christian groups vowed not to support any anti-discrimination legislation unless the homosexuality aspect was dropped, a stance they have maintained for over a decade.

The Christian Council of Korea, the largest Protestant organization representing some 45,000 churches, threatened that any political efforts to push equality for gays and lesbians would have repercussions.

Kim and Choi's offices were flooded with hundreds of phone calls. The online message boards of DP's websites were filled with homophobic remarks.

The party, reeling from a lost presidential election and eroding public support, withdrew the bills.

"Under these conditions, it's impossible for the debates to be rational and productive. We can't afford to isolate ourselves from the Christian community," Kim said at the time.



Evolving landscape



While the political sphere grapples with what could become a wedge issue, public sentiment has clearly shifted over the past decade, a change predominantly inspired by popular culture.

Imported shows like "Will and Grace" and "Sex and the City," where the appearance of gay, lesbian and bisexual people were commonplace, contributed to the increasing comfort Koreans feel with the subject of homosexuality.

After a multi-year hiatus, actor Hong has pivoted back to mainstream entertainment. He is now a popular cast member of Saturday Night Live Korea, where he unapologetically exploits gay stereotypes and induces laughs from an audience still new to the idea of men so aggressively portrayed as a sex object.

According to a recent poll by Pew Research, the majority of Koreans (59 percent) say homosexuality should not be accepted by society. While this is higher than the rates in China (57 percent) and Japan (36 percent), it is also a considerable shift from 2007, when the rate was 77 percent. The changing landscape is driven by a younger, more permissive generation.

A milestone moment in Korea's gay rights movement came last month when movie director Kim Jho Gwangsoo and his partner Dave Kim held a news conference announcing they would symbolically tie the knot in a massive public event in September.



Better future?



Given the difficult political landscape, some supporters of gay rights wonder if LGBT groups, which showed a high level of solidarity in the 1990s, are splintering and diversifying too much.

Jarrod Chlapowski is an American gay rights activist based in Korea who worked on grassroots efforts to repeal "Don't Ask, Don't Tell," the policy that barred openly gay, lesbian, or bisexual people from service in the U.S military. He believes that the LGBT movement here has yet to have a watershed moment to spur greater acceptance among the population.

"I think groups here may have to be more aggressive," said Chlapowski, who served as a Korean linguist for the U.S. military. "There has to be a willingness to sacrifice your professional life to push the movement forward.

"Such a development would call attention to the movement and eventually bring in money so you can build a grassroots campaign."

Activist Lee Jong-geol agreed that the community needs to amplify its voice.

"There seems to be some positive signals. I think it is time for us to speak up more and say who were are and what we need."

Despite the challenges, Lee, the English instructor who contemplated suicide, was encouraged by developments in his personal life since coming out of the closet.

That moment came one night when his father, the pastor, came to his room for a "serious discussion" about marriage and his future.

Overwhelmed by stress, Lee broke down and revealed his sexual orientation — and was surprised by the response.

"He said he didn't quite agree with the lifestyle, but that he would always love me and accept that I was gay."

Lee, who now plans to move back to Vancouver, says he feels better since that night.

"There are still a lot of problems, such as hate crimes," he said. "But at least I can start living my own life."



Korea Times reporter Baek Byung-yeul contributed to this report. — ED.




마이너리티 리포트 - 한국의 성소수자

캐나다에 거주하는 38세 한국인 남성 이씨는 자신이 동성애자임을 드러내기까지 고통의 시간을 보냈다.

기독교 목사를 아버지로 둔 주위 사람들이 동성애를 죄로 생각하기에 자신의 성정체성을 영영 밝힐 수 없을 것이다라고 느꼈다고 한다.

그가 동성애자들이 많이 사는 밴쿠버에 살았던 이씨는 “자살시도를 자주 생각했었다”며, “아버지, 결혼(에 대한 압박), 등 온갖 생각들로 머리 속이 너무 복잡했다. 이 문제를 털어 놓고 이야기할 사람도 없었다”고 했다.

이씨는 그 후로 ‘커밍아웃’을 했다. 하지만 게이, 레즈비언, 양성애자 그리고 트랜스젠더들을 죄인 취급하거나 병에 걸린 환자로 인식하는 한국 사회에서 그가 처했던 상황은 흔한 것이다.

동성애자들을 위한 인권단체 모임 ‘친구사이’의 이종걸 사무총장은 “성소수자들은 학교부터 군대 직장까지 모든 곳에서 문제를 겪는다”고 했다. 그는 “우리 주위에는 동성애자들을 혐오하는 이들을 일컫는 호모포비아들이 너무나 많다”고 덧붙였다.

성소수자 인권 문제는 미국을 비롯한 여러 나라에서 동성애 결혼 문제가 수면위로 떠올랐을 때 비로서 한국에서 비중 있게 다뤄지기 시작했다. 한국에서만 유독 동성애 혐오증이 두드러지게 나타나는 것은 아니지만, 인권 보호자들은 한 국가가 인권 선진국이 되기 위해서는 이 이슈가 깊게 다뤄져야 한다고 주장한다.

인권운동가들은 지난 달 유명 영화제작자 김조광수씨가 그의 오랜 연인 데이브 김과 공개 결혼식을 할 것이라고 언론발표를 한 것이 최근의 이런 변화 일로에 큰 힘이 되기를 희망한다.

많은 사회 문제와 함께, 한국의 성소수자들에 대한 태도는 집안의 대를 잇는 것을 중요시여기는 유교 전통 속에서 계류되어 왔었다.

경제성장과 민주화 항쟁이 성차별에 관한 인권 의식을 고무시키는 것에 방아쇠를 당겼지만, 성소수자들의 인권문제는 철저히 배제되어 왔음을 이들에 대한 통계자료 하나 없는 현실이 잘 보여준다.

29세 직장인 유한선씨는 친구들에게만 커밍아웃했다. 그는 “술 마실 때 직장 동료들이 자주 그이 얼마나 동성애자들을 동물로까지 묘사하면서 싫어하는지를 자주 얘기한다”고 말했다.

26세 교사 이예인씨는 젊은 세대들이 자신의 성적 정체성에 대해 알아 볼 수 있는 자료가 없는 것에 한탄했다. 자신의 성 정체성이 남들과 다르다는 것을 중학교 때 알았다는 이씨는 “나는 레즈비언이 뭔지 인터넷을 통해 찾아봐야만 했다”고 말했다.

성소수자들에 대한 여러 자료들은 우리 사회가 얼마나 통제 불능인 동성애혐오자들로 가득 찬 곳인지 잘 보여준다.

국가인권위원회의 2005년 자료에 의하면, 한 아버지는 자신의 동성애자 딸이 다른 레즈비언들을 만나지 못 하게 하기 위해 방에 감금시키고 작은 구멍을 통해 음식물을 줬다는 조사도 있다.

한국성적소수자문화인권센터 (KSCRC)의 자료에는 한 여대생은 자신이 레즈비언이라고 밝혀지는 것이 무서워 그 비밀을 아는 남학생에게 일년 동안 강간당하는 것을 묵인한 경우도 발견된다.

공익변호사모임 ‘희망을 만드는 법’의 한가람 변호사는 “우리 사회는 여전히 성소수자들이 자신의 성 정체성을 드러내놓기에는 굉장히 많은 위험을 감수해야 하는 곳”이라고 말한다.

성소수자들에게 문제시 되는 또 다른 공간은 동성애를 ‘성 정체성문제자’로 보는 군대이다.

동성애자인권연대에서 인권운동가로 활동하고 있는 정욜씨는 자신의 십 수년 전 자신의 성 정체성이 어쩔 수 없이 드러나게 되면서 겪었던 문제를 코리아타임스에게 털어놓았다. 정씨는 “동성애자라는 것이 밝혀지자 그들은 나를 격리시키고 정신병원으로 보냈다. 그곳에서 나는 강제적으로 HIV 검사를 받았고, 폭언과 폭행을 당했다”라고 고백했다.

민주통합당 김한길, 최원식 의원 등 성별과 장애, 피부색, 종교, 사상을 이유로 모든 형태의 차별을 금지한다는 내용을 담고 있는 ‘차별금지법’을 추진 해오던 국회의원들은 지난 4월 법안을 철회했다.

보수 기독교 단체를 중심으로 항의 전화와 낙선 서명운동 등 거센 항의가 이어졌기 때문이다.

한국에서 활동 중인 미국인 동성애 인권 운동가 재럴드 클라포스키는 “한국의 성소수자들이 조금 더 공격적인 행보를 보여야 한다”고 주장한다. 그는 “성소수자 인권문제에 대한 인식을 앞당기겠다며 자신을 직업을 희생하는 경우를 보지 못 했다”고 말했다.

그는 “세간의 이목을 끌 수 있는 활동을 벌여야 이슈가 되고 모금활동도 활성화되어서 풀 뿌리 캠페인을 진행할 수 있을 것”이라고 덧붙였다.

 

 
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