"Wedding Ceremony Starts with Groom, Ancestral Rites at Eldest Grandson's Home"... 'Family Rituals Act' Repeal Bill Pending for 2 Years

70% of Participants in Ministry of Gender Equality Survey Say "Family Rituals Code Unnecessary"

Family Ceremony Guidelines Poster. [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Intern Reporter Kim Nayeon] Despite criticism from younger generations that the "Act on the Establishment and Support of Sound Family Ceremonies" (Family Ceremonies Act), which regulates procedures for weddings and ancestral rites, is "outdated and unnecessary," the repeal bill has been dormant in the National Assembly for two years.

The Family Ceremonies Act originated from the "Act on Family Ceremony Standards" enacted in 1969 with the aim of eliminating excessive formalities. Its purpose was to promote the "Sound Family Ceremony Standards," which define and regulate the procedures for weddings, funerals, coming-of-age ceremonies, and ancestral rites.

However, provisions such as regulating weddings in the order of groom's entrance, bride's entrance, officiant's speech, and greetings to both parents, or requiring ancestral rites to be held at the eldest grandson's home on the morning of holidays, have been criticized as outdated and patriarchal.

In fact, in an online survey conducted last year by the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family with the cooperation of the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission to decide on the continuation of the Family Ceremonies Act, among 4,532 respondents, 53.6% answered "strongly disagree" and 16.7% answered "disagree" to the question of whether it is necessary to regulate the definitions and procedures of weddings, funerals, coming-of-age ceremonies, and ancestral rites under the Family Ceremonies Act, totaling 70.3% who considered it unnecessary.

Among the reasons given for considering the law unnecessary, 86.2% cited "outdated and patriarchal content." 9.2% answered "excessive regulation of personal life," and 4.4% said "the law has little practical effect." Notably, among those who answered it was unnecessary, 81.2% were women in their 20s and 30s.

However, the repeal bill for the Family Ceremonies Act was proposed in the National Assembly in September 2020 but has remained pending in the Women and Family Committee, the relevant committee, for nearly two years.