By Bae Ji-sook
Staff Reporter

Many Korean women still rely on their sex partners for birth control, which often leads to unwanted pregnancies and damage to their health, a medical study group said Thursday, a day ahead of World Contraception Day.

According to a survey by Study Group for Contraception, 45 percent of 1,000 women nationwide aged between 19 to 34 believed that contraception should be the responsibility of men, while only 4.8 percent said it was women's.

Among those with sexual experience, 33 percent said they had hardly tried birth control, while others said they use a tester to see whether they are pregnant or use a morning-after pill after unprotected sex. Even for contraception, many turned to fertility awareness or coitus interruptus rather than condoms or pills.

These incomplete birth control methods often lead to unwanted pregnancies. Every year, there are 80 million cases of unwanted pregnancies taking place in the world, of which 58 percent end up being aborted. In Korea, the health ministry assumes 340,000 abortions took place in 2005, which is one out of every 32 fertile women undergoing such an operation a year.

Public awareness of contraception is very low. Though surgery could cause after effects or complications, such as stomachache, backache, edema and inflammation among others, many failed to take precautions.

``Pregnancy is one of the most important events in the life of a woman. If it is not planned carefully, it could damage her body as well as her spirit. We should look at contraception as a woman's right to be healthy and decisive in her life,'' Lee Im-soon, the group president, said.

World Contraception Day is being marked by 70 women's rights and health groups worldwide. Under the catchphrase of ``Your Body, Your Life and Your Choice,'' the groups hold seminars, campaigns and events to promote the right contraception for every woman.

bjs@koreatimes.co.kr