Acquittal of 'Bad Fathers' Site for Non-Payment of Child Support
Some Men Protest "Misandry"
Bad Fathers Respond "80% of Victims Were Women"
A website that discloses the personal information of ex-spouses who do not pay child support after divorce, called 'Bad Fathers' (Bad Fathers·Nappeun Appadeul)/Photo by 'Bad Fathers' screen capture
[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Ga-yeon] "There are moms too, isn't this misandry?"
On the 15th, the court acquitted the operator of the website 'Bad Fathers' that publicly discloses the personal information of ex-spouses who do not pay child support after divorce.
Citizens who heard the news praised the ruling as appropriate and showed support for the operators. However, some men criticized the site's name, claiming it was problematic. The site is called 'Bad Fathers.' Although both women and men can be offenders for not paying child support, the site's name highlights only men as offenders.
The Suwon District Court Criminal Division 11 (Chief Judge Lee Chang-yeol) acquitted Mr. Gu (57), who was tried in a citizen's trial on charges of violating the Act on Promotion of Information and Communications Network Utilization and Information Protection (defamation). The court found that the act of disclosing the personal information of so-called 'bad parents' was not intended to defame but had significant public interest.
The court stated, "As the number of people in crisis due to unpaid child support increases, it has become a matter of public interest, and solutions are being sought. The defendant's activities aim to inform the public about the suffering of many caregivers who have not received child support and to urge payment, which can be seen as serving the public interest."
Some netizens expressed anger, saying the site name was misandric. They pointed out that there are also 'moms' who do not pay child support, but the site name 'Bad Fathers' refers only to 'dads.'
One netizen said, "I agree with the reason for the site's existence, but I don't understand why the name is 'Fathers' when 'Bad Mothers' are also listed. It's clear misandry," expressing frustration.
Other netizens criticized, saying, "Reveal the list of moms who don't educate their kids," and "If you're going to expose men who don't pay child support, then also expose the list of women involved in prostitution."
Some citizens responded that "there is no problem because the majority of those who do not pay child support are men."
A 23-year-old university student A said, "The legal process ensures a certain amount of child support is paid. Child-rearing is the responsibility of both parents, so I don't understand why all responsibility is shifted to the ex-spouse," adding, "Why empathize with someone who shirks responsibility for their child?"
He added, "It's about disclosing the personal information of some men who don't take responsibility for their children, so I don't understand why men who are not involved are angry," and criticized, "They don't want to admit their faults, so they bring in unrelated issues to confuse the point."
A 27-year-old office worker B said, "Many men deliberately do not pay child support even though they can, so most victims are women. I read an article saying the operators established the site for this reason," adding, "Now it seems like people are attaching 'hate' to everything. The site is named 'Fathers' because most offenders are men, and if that's unfair, they should just pay child support on time."
He continued, "Child support is directly related to the child's right to survival. Simply refusing to pay child support because you dislike your ex-wife is child abuse," and added, "I think stronger legal measures should be prepared based on this ruling."
According to the site, currently, 87 'child support non-paying dads' and 14 'child support non-paying Kopino dads' are publicly listed. In contrast, only 15 'child support non-paying moms' are listed.
The operators explained on the website, "Among those suffering from unpaid child support, the overwhelming majority are mothers. However, there are also many fathers who suffer. Although the site is called 'Bad Fathers,' the personal information of 'Bad Mothers' who do not pay child support is also disclosed equally."
Regarding this, Gu Bon-chang, an activist with Bad Fathers, said that the site was named 'Fathers' because most victims were women when it was established.
On the 15th, appearing on JTBC's 'Newsroom,' Gu responded to the question, "Shouldn't the website be called 'Bad Parents'?" by saying, "At the time of the site's creation, 80% of the victims were women, so we named it that way." He added, "Also, it is harder for women to resolve the damage caused by unpaid child support, so we named it accordingly."
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