Ministry of Gender Equality and Family

This article is about a Korean Ministry. For Mauritius Ministry, see Ministry of Gender Equality, Child Development and Family Welfare.
Ministry of Gender Equality and Family
Republic of Korea
여성가족부
Yeoseonggajokbu

The official logo of the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family
Ministry overview
Formed January 29, 2001 (2001-01-29)
Preceding agencies
  • Ministry for Health, Welfare and Family Affairs
  • Ministry of Gender Equality
  • Ministry of Political Affairs
  • The Presidential Commission of Women's Affairs
Jurisdiction Government of South Korea
Headquarters Government Complex Seoul, Jongno-gu, Seoul, South Korea
Motto A society where all family members are happy / An equal society sharing together.[1]
Annual budget 302,570,000,000 Won (284,718,067 US Dollars)[2]
Ministers responsible
  • Kang Eun-hee, Minister of Gender Equality and Family
  • Kwon Yonghyun, Vice Minister
Parent department Cabinet of South Korea
Website Official Ministry of Gender Equality and Family website in English

The Ministry of Gender Equality and Family (Hangul: 여성가족부; Hanja: 女性家族部, abbreviated to MOGEF) or the Ministry of Gender Equality (여성부, 女性部) is a cabinet-level division of the government of South Korea. It was created on February 28, 1998 as the Presidential Commission on Women's Affairs. The current Ministry was formed on January 29, 2001.

History

Origins

Since the establishment of the Government of South Korea on August 1948, the Ministry of Social Issues (사회부 ;社會部) handled discrimination against women until the department's merge in 1955.[3] Afterwards, the Ministry of Social Issues merged with the Ministry of Health (보건부) to become the Ministry of Social Issues and Health (보건사회부). In 1994, the Ministry of Social Issues and Health became the Ministry of Health and Welfare (보건복지부); consequently, it began to take address discrimination against women. However, the ministries were criticized for the lack of advancement for women's social position and the lack of enforcement of its policies.[4]

Specific policies addressing sexism began to be addressed with the establishment of the Department heading state affairs (정무장관실) on February 25, 1998. On February 28, 1998, the Presidential Commission on Women's Affairs (여성특별위원회) was formed under President Kim Dae-jung. On July 23, 1999, the Law forbidding and regulating sexual discrimination (남녀차별 금지 및 구제에 관한 법률) was created.[5] However, the criticism concerning the lack of advancement in women's social position continued, and the Ministry of Gender Equality (여성부) was formed as a response[4] on January 29, 2001. It was transferred following responsibilities: protecting the victims of domestic violence and sexual violence; prevention of prostitution; overseeing women's occupations from the Ministry of Health and Welfare (South Korea)|Ministry of Health and Welfare.[5]

Developments

On June 12, 2004, the ministry received the responsibilities of overseeing developments of infants from the Ministry of Health and Welfare. On June 23, 2005, the ministry reorganized to become the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family (여성가족부) in order for a more cohesive creation and enforcement of policies. On February 29, 2008, the ministry was changed back to the Ministry of Gender Equality while transferring the responsibilities of overseeing families and child care to the Ministry of Health and Welfare (South Korea)|Ministry of Health and Welfare,[5] which had become the Ministry for Health, Welfare and Family Affairs.[6] On March 19, 2010, the Ministry was re-reorganized to become the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family while assuming back the responsibilities of overseeing teenagers, and families.[5]

Organization

Objectives

According to the Official Ministry of Gender Equality and Family English website, the objectives of the ministry are:

Functions

According to the Official Ministry of Gender Equality and Family English website, the functions of the ministry are:

Sub-Organization

The Ministry is head by the minister, who is Cho Yoon-sun, as of January 2014. The Minister is organized in a cabinet within the ministry consisting of: Vice Minister; a policy adviser to the minister; Spokesperson. The Vice Minister controls the following divisions: the Management Supporting Division; Planning & Coordination Office; Women's Policy Bureau; Youth & Family Policy Office; Women & Youth Rights Promotion Bureau. The Spokesperson is in charge of the Public Relations Division.[8]

Controversy

MOGEF has been historically criticized for the involvement of the word Women (여성) in its name, which had led to charges of taking a side in the issue of gender inequality and reverse discrimination.[9][note 1] The ministry has been involved in several controversies, which has led to a movement calling for its abolishment in 2006, 2008, and 2013.[10]

On 2006, the MOGEF established a policy to pay men not to hire prostitutes on men's New Year's Day parties. Men were told to sign up on the website with their national identification number, and the total budget was 3,600,000 Won (3,175 US Dollars).[11] This led to a signing movement to abolish the ministry.[10]

On November 2011, the ministry enforced a System of forced shutdown of teenage gaming (청소년 게임 강제 셧다운제도), which has been involved in heavy controversy.[12] The law has been criticized as being ineffective,[12][13] encouraging teenagers to commit the crime of using their parents' resident registration number,[12][14] and restricting the production of domestic games.[13]

References

  1. ↑ "Vision & Emblem". The Ministry of Gender Equality & Family. Retrieved January 9, 2014.
  2. ↑ "About MOGEF > Budget". The Ministry of Gender Equality & Family. Retrieved January 9, 2014.
  3. ↑ "여성가족부[Ministry of Gender Equality & Family,女性家族部]". Doopedia. Doosan Corporation. Retrieved January 9, 2014.
  4. 1 2 여성가족부 [Ministry of Gender Equality and Family]. Encyclopedia of Korean Culture (in Korean). the Academy of Korean Studies. Retrieved January 9, 2014.
  5. 1 2 3 4 여성가족부 [Ministry of Gender Equality and Family]. 지식백과 (in Korean). Naver Corporation. Retrieved January 9, 2014.
  6. ↑ "History". MW. Retrieved January 9, 2014.
  7. 1 2 "Organization & Functions". The Ministry of Gender Equality and Family. Retrieved January 9, 2014.
  8. ↑ "Organization & Function". the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family. Retrieved January 9, 2014.
  9. ↑ Choi (최), Jung-Sook (정숙) (July 30, 2013). 여성부 약자보호? 편가르기? 끊이지 않는 논쟁 [MOGEF protecting the weak? taking a side? a never-ending controversy] (in Korean). CNBNEWS. Retrieved January 10, 2014.
  10. 1 2 Jung (정), Sun(선) (July 30, 2013). 성재기 사망 "여성부 필요없다?" 폐지론 다시 공방 [The death of Sung Jae-Gi "Don't need MOGEF?" abolishment proposals fight"] (in Korean). MONEYTODAY. Retrieved January 10, 2014.
  11. ↑ Jang (장), Eun-Gyo (은교) (December 25, 2006). 성매매 안하면 회식비 준다고?…여성부 이벤트 논란 [Not buying sex leads to money?.. Controversy over MOGEF's event] (in Korean). The Kyunghyang Shinmun. Retrieved November 10, 2014.
  12. 1 2 3 Jo (조), Jin-Ho (진호) (October 29, 2012). "게임 셧다운제 실효성 0.3% 불과" 여성부 보고서 [System of forced shutdown of teenage gaming only effective to 0.3%]. 스포츠경향 (in Korean). The Kyunghyang Shinmun. Retrieved January 9, 2014.
  13. 1 2 Lee (이), Jong-Hyun (종현) (October 31, 2012). 여성부 셧다운제 평가항목 확정…여전히 논란 투성이 [MOGEF shutdown system confirmed to be assessed... still full of controversy] (in Korean). ChosunBiz.com. Retrieved January 10, 2014.
  14. ↑ Kim (김), Myung-Hye(명희) (November 13, 2012). [셧다운제 1년] "여성부 셧다운제, 손바닥으로 하늘을 가릴 순 없다" [[Shutdown System 1 year] "MOGEF Shutdown System, can't cover the sky with a palm']. etnews.com (in Korean). Electronic Times Internet. Retrieved January 10, 2014.

Notes

  1. ↑ In Korean, the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family is translated as 여성가족부 or 여성부, and the controversy here is that the word '여성,' which could be used to mean women, are included

External links

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