Lee says women should be able to safely take abortion pills
Mifepristone tablet / AP-Yonhap
President Lee Jae Myung instructed the government Tuesday to look into ways to allow women to safely take the abortion pill mifepristone even before the necessary legal framework is in place.
Lee said during a Cabinet meeting that Korean women have been directly purchasing the pill from overseas to get around domestic restrictions at the expense of risking their own health.
"Even if it causes some difficulties to the government, we have to allow them to take it appropriately," he said at the meeting at Cheong Wa Dae.
While abortion is not illegal in Korea, the legal framework governing gestational limits and procedures has yet to be established.
Lee called for approaching the issue from a pragmatic point of view, saying leaving it unaddressed would be "irresponsible" on the government's part.
He also suggested giving doctors the discretion to decide whether to prescribe the pill as an alternative to letting women purchase it indiscriminately from overseas.