Anna Jiwon Park has been covering the politics at The Korea Times since the summer of 2024, when she joined the press pool for the Office of the President in Korea. Prior to that, she spent about five years reporting extensively on financial markets, regulatory authorities and the financial industry. She joined The Korea Times in 2019 after spending eight years as a broadcast journalist at Arirang TV, Korea’s leading global broadcaster, covering politics, defense and culture.
Mother faces child abuse charges over feeding rice cake soup to 2-month-old
gettyimagesbank
By Anna J. Park
A Korean woman in her 30s has been referred to prosecutors on child abuse charges after allegedly feeding her two-month-old infant tteokguk (rice cake soup), with the case coming to light through photos she posted online.
The dish, commonly eaten to mark the new year in Korea, is considered inappropriate for infants, whose digestive systems are not yet developed enough to process semisolid foods.
According to the Incheon Metropolitan Police Agency on Friday, the unidentified woman is being investigated for violating the Child Welfare Act. She is accused of feeding her infant son foods such as tteokguk, yogurt and strawberries between January and February at her home in Incheon.
Police said they determined such foods were unsuitable for a baby of that age and could pose health risks.
The case was revealed to the public after the mother uploaded a photo to social media in February. The image showed a small bowl of tteokguk placed alongside a baby spoon. In a separate post, she shared a photo of the infant with visible scratches on his face, accompanied by a caption containing profanity.
Concerned users began questioning whether the food shown was intended for the baby. In response to one comment, the mother reportedly wrote that she had fed the child “five spoonfuls of broth.”
The posts quickly drew hundreds of comments, with some users expressing alarm and reporting the situation to the police as suspected abuse.
During questioning, she admitted to feeding the foods to her son but claimed she did so with good intentions, stating that she believed it would help him become healthier.
The Incheon Family Court has since issued a temporary restraining order, prohibiting her from going within 100 meters of her child until April 20. Authorities stated that while no evidence of physical violence or neglect was found, the act of feeding inappropriate food to an infant constituted abuse. Officials are currently reviewing whether to extend the protective measures in cooperation with local government agencies.