'Childcare allowance must be offered for migrant children'

By Kim Rahn

The National Human Rights Commission of Korea has recommended the government change the law to provide childcare allowance to migrant children. / Gettyimagesbank

A law on childcare should be revised so migrant parents here can receive childcare allowance from the Korean government, the human rights watchdog said, Sunday.

The National Human Rights Commission of Korea said it recently recommended the law and relevant system changes to the Ministry of Health and Welfare to guarantee the right to care and education for children with foreign parents.

Under the current law, the government provides an allowance for all children before school age regardless of the parents' income level. The amount is between 100,000 won ($84.90) and 200,000 won per child who does not attend a daycare center or a kindergarten, and between 220,000 won and 406,000 won for a child attending such a facility.

However, the beneficiary is limited to “a child who has Korean nationality and a resident registration number” ― meaning migrant children who live here but are not Korean are excluded from the benefit.

“Parents of migrant children, who can't afford childcare facility fees, leave their children alone at home while they are working or take them to the workplace which is usually dangerous and inappropriate for children,” the commission said in its recommendation. “Those children's safety and development are being threatened.”

The commission's 2012 survey showed 42.5 percent of migrant workers said they did not send their young children to daycare centers or kindergartens because of the financial cost.

“When such children are not properly educated during their stay here, they could face an unsafe environment and their proper growth and development, including language and social skills, could be hindered,” it said. “Development retardation of migrant children could also cause social costs and hamper their social integration.”

The commission cited a clause of the childcare law that states “children should be cared for without being discriminated against based on their or their parents' sex, age, religion, social status, wealth, disability, race or birthplace.”

“The childcare law and relevant systems should be amended, so all children, including migrant children, can enjoy their rights to care and education according to the ideals of the law,” it said.