(EDITORIAL from the Korea Times on Feb. 6)

Illegal Abortions
-Time to Build Consensus on Pro-Life Campaign -

A debate has just started over whether to strictly enforce the nation's
anti-abortion law as a group of young doctors filed a complaint with the
prosecution Wednesday against three obstetrics clinics for performing illegal
abortions.

The Pro-Life Doctors also urged the government to work out measures to
crack down on what they claim are unauthorized practices.
However, an alliance of local women's groups immediately criticized the doctors'
group for trying to infringe on the human rights of women. It demanded that the
authorities should protect women's right to choose. ``Women should not be forced
to maintain an unwanted pregnancy," it said in a statement. The alliance is
composed of 10 groups, including the Korean Women's Association United (KWAU) and
the Korea Sexual Violence Relief Center (KSVRC).
It is expected that pro-lifers and abortion advocates will be thrown into a
heated debate as the prosecution launches its investigation into the abortion
cases. The public may find it difficult to take sides as most people have little
knowledge about this sensitive issue. Therefore, it is important for citizens to
have a better understanding about this matter.
First, we have to realize that South Korea has been notorious for high rates of
abortions. According to statistics released by the Ministry for Health, Welfare
and Family Affairs, there were 340,000 abortion cases in 2005. This means that
nearly 1,000 abortions were performed every day. More shocking is that 95 percent
of the cases were illegal.
It is an inconvenient truth that the country is a haven for illegal abortions.
Thirty out of every 1,000 fertile women aged between 15 and 44 chose abortion.
This figure hit the highest level among the 30 countries belonging to the
Organization for Economic Development and Cooperation (OECD). Why have abortions
become so rampant in Korea?
First, the government had looked at abortions, legal or not, in the past decades
as part of its family planning efforts. That is, abortion was abused to reduce
childbirths. Second, a growing number of unwed couples preferred not to have
babies due mainly to financial difficulties. And third, many obstetrics clinics
have been engrossed in making money by performing abortions.
Now, it's time to take the problem seriously and find a solution to avoid illegal
abortions. The present law bans abortions of a fetus aged 23 weeks or older. It
allows exceptions only when giving birth would risk a mother's health or for
women who are victims of rape or carry a certain hereditary disease.
As women rights' advocates claim, the nation has yet to have social and living
conditions to strictly ban illegal abortions right now. So, the government needs
to take a step-by-step approach to phase out the illegal practice. Policymakers
should make efforts to harmonize conflicting views of pro-lifers and abortion
advocates.
(END)

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