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ED Embracing family diversity

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Minimize social confusion by reflecting different voices

The legal definition of family will be expanded to embrace diverse forms such as unmarried cohabiting couples through a revision of relevant laws. And parents will be allowed to give either of their surnames to children at the time of birth as the current system of prioritizing paternal roots is abolished.

“As households diversify rapidly in accordance with declining marriages and childbirths and the rising phenomenon of late marriage, it's necessary to create an environment in which all forms of the family are respected without suffering social discrimination and exclusion from government policies,” Minister of Gender Equality and Family Chung Young-ai said Tuesday, unveiling her ministry's five-year plan for “healthy homes.”

The plan, which was approved at a Cabinet meeting Tuesday, reflects the reality that types of family units are rapidly diversifying. To begin with, the percentage of typical nuclear families ― consisting of a married couple and their children ― to total households fell from 37 percent in 2010 to 30 percent in 2019, whereas the ratio of one-person households jumped from 23 percent to 30 percent during the period. Also, there have been diverse forms of households like elderly out-of-wedlock couples living together, and single parenthood using artificial insemination, which became widely known after Sayuri, a Japanese TV personality based here, gave birth to a boy in Japan last November despite being unmarried. Currently, Korea only recognizes families related to marriage, blood and adoption.

The plan means a lot in that it suggests the overall direction of the nation's family-related policies. It will also help cope with problems associated with the low birthrate and gender equality. But controversy is inevitable, given that the plan contains lots of sensitive issues concerning family, marriage and childbirth. So the gender ministry is right to conduct a survey on some ethical questions featured in it through June to form a social consensus. It's imperative to minimize social confusion by reflecting different voices in the plan.