Korea Urged to Write New Chapter for Adoption

Two adopted babies play during a gathering organized by a welfare body to celebrate Adoption Day on May 11 in Seoul. / Korea Times File Photo

By Kim Tae-jong
Staff Reporter

Dozens of Korean adoptees joined forces last Thursday to ask the South Korean government to address the problems of overseas adoption.

They formed an organization as a first step to call for a transparent inquiry and a full understanding of the adoption issue, both past and present in Korea, which has been dubbed as a ``country exporting babies.'' Since the 1950s, the country has sent more than 150,000 children to live with Western families.

``It is an attempt to help adoptees and Korean society understand each other,'' said Han Boon-young, chief executive general of Truth and Reconciliation for the Adoption Community of Korea (TRACK). ``It is also for healing relations between adoptees and Korean society.''

TRACK aims to comprehensively address the issue of international adoption at a national level and reveal the problems in the adoption program so that the rights of Korean children and families will be better preserved in the future, she said.

``Such efforts will also rectify and reconcile the past to create a bright collective future for adoptees overseas,'' she said.

Exporting babies

As of 2006, 227,983 Korean babies have been adopted. Among them, 159,044, or 69.8 percent, had new families in foreign countries, while Korean families here have adopted 68,939 children.

TRACK claims adoptees overseas might be as high as 200,000, considering those who have been adopted privately and have not been recorded in government statistics.

Consequently, the massive number has often drawn criticism that the country has ``exported'' babies to Western countries. Adoption agencies can earn up to 20 million won arrangement fees when they find a child a new home overseas while domestic adoption earns them less than 2 million won.

Many civic groups also claim that a large number of babies were sent overseas for adoption without their mothers' consent and some child placement agencies in the past used fraudulent documents in order to get children adopted there.

Adoptee Solidarity Korea (ASK) is an organization campaigning for an end to adoption overseas.

``We're not trying to stop inter-country adoption right now,'' Jenny Na, a member of ASK said. ``At the moment, there are no programs for single mothers or underprivileged families. But we want to offer them an option for them to keep their kids.''

Given the economic status of Korea, it should make an effort to create a proper social welfare system to take care of its children, not to simply send them to overseas families, she said. ``People should also know adoption is an issue of human rights.''

Reacting to the mounting criticism, the government has already promised to end international adoptions from Korea in the next three to four years.

The government has also offered various incentives to encourage domestic adoption.

From last year, single people were able to adopt children as the number of single person households has steadily increased, accounting for 16 percent of the total as of 2007.

The age of adoptive parents has been also raised to 60 from 50 in the past.

Dilemmas in international adoption

The Ministry for Health, Welfare and Family Affairs last year proudly announced that more adopted children were placed in Korea than overseas.

The ministry reported families living in Korea adopted 724 children in the first half of last year, 59 percent of the total 1,223. During the previous five years, the domestic adoption rate was less than 40 percent.

But adoption agencies say the policies have ignored reality in focusing on increasing the rate of domestic adoptions.

``Our priority is to find babies new homes at very early ages,'' said an official from one of the four major inter-country adoption agencies. ``We try hard, but it is almost impossible to find them new homes domestically.''

The official said that most Korean families are reluctant to embrace male babies and babies with disabilities, and so overseas adoptions are the last option for them before they are sent to an orphanage.

She criticized that the increase in domestic adoption was only possible because of a new law that gave Korean parents priority for the first five months after children were put up for adoption. No international adoption was allowed in that period.

``We agree with the necessity of domestic adoption and various incentive programs. But who should be first considered in the adoption? Isn't it the baby? All the policies only aim at deregulating procedures in adoption but what if disqualified parents adopt a baby?'' she said.

Journey to find their roots

The issue of adoption has recently drawn people's attention but little of that has been given to Korea adoptees sent to other countries. Some have made a lonely journey by themselves to discover the ``missing part'' of their life.

``It's like a mystery,'' said Sara Schultzer, 28, who was adopted by a family from the United States. ``You don't really know anything about Korea and its culture and your parents also don't know much.''

She joined a Korean culture camp for adoptees in America but it was only a taste of Korean culture and didn't satisfy her. But it was not easy for her to come to Korea alone and experience what the country is like.

But she was finally able to visit Korea and experience Korean culture, thanks to a ``Welcome Home'' program by the Korean adoption agency Social Welfare Society (SWS).

``I had a wonderful time here. It was more tangible experience, allowing me to understand Korea better,'' she recalled. ``I know the selection and funding is difficult but I wish more adoptees could have more chances like this.''

Not only to find a home for babies but to offer adoptees chances to learn about Korea are important, she said.

e3dward@koreatimes.co.kr