"Increase in Male Deaths Due to Yeocho, Korean City Councilor's Remark... Foreign Media Also Surprised"

Seoul City Councilor Kim Ki-deok Analyzes Causes of Han River Jumping
"Men Twice as Many as Women... Increase in Women's Social Participation"
BBC Also Mentions Women's Kegel Exercises... 'Bizarre Proposal'

"Unscientific and bizarre proposals are emerging to solve pressing social issues in Korea." Recently, Kim Ki-deok, a Seoul city council member (Democratic Party), sparked controversy by linking the increase in male suicides to the expansion of women's social roles. On the 10th (local time), the British BBC highlighted Kim's claims and the reactions to them.

Hopeful phrases written on the "Bridge of Life" at Mapo Bridge, Seoul.

Earlier, on the 28th of last month, Kim issued a press release attributing the high proportion of men among those who jumped from bridges over the Han River to "women's social participation," causing public uproar. Based on data from Seoul over the past six years (2018?2023) regarding the number of jumpers by Han River bridges and their gender, he stated that men (2,487) were more than twice as many as women (1,079) among all jumpers.

Regarding the reasons for these figures, he analyzed, "Unlike the past when Korea was dominated by patriarchal and male superiority ideologies, as of 2023, society has begun to shift to a 'female-majority society' where women outnumber men by about 5%. Various factors such as a shortage of male labor, an increase in men struggling to find marriage partners leading to changes in the marriage market, and changes in gender roles due to women's social participation could be partial causes of the increase in male suicides." The BBC reported that "he has been criticized by many Koreans, and experts point out that his claims are 'dangerous and lack evidence.'"

The BBC also noted, "In recent years in Korea, there has been a surge in anti-feminist movements led by young men who claim to be disadvantaged by attempts to improve women's lives," and analyzed that "Kim's press release appears to reflect such views." In response, Kim told the BBC, "It was merely my personal opinion."

Additionally, the BBC pointed out that there are "unscientific and sometimes bizarre" political proposals aimed at solving Korea's most urgent social problems, such as mental illness, sexual violence, and the world's lowest birthrate.

Seoul City Council member Kim Yong-ho of the People Power Party demonstrating Danjo (Dance + Gymnastics) exercise.
[Image source: Captured from Seoul City Council website]

One such example was when Kim Yong-ho, a Seoul city council member (People Power Party), held an event advocating for a ‘National Danjo Movement’ combining Kegel exercises and gymnastics movements to tighten the sphincter muscles of young women to increase the birthrate.

Also mentioned was a claim by a national research institute that enrolling girls in elementary school one year earlier could raise the birthrate. In a report titled "Suggestions on Fiscal Policy Directions to Respond to the Decline in Production Share" published by the Korea Institute of Public Finance in May, it stated, "Considering that males develop more slowly than females, allowing girls to enter school one year earlier could contribute to increasing mutual attraction between men and women of marriageable age in the future."

Kim Yuri, the organizing director of the Korean Women Workers' Union, told the BBC, "This compressively shows how pervasive misogyny is in Korea."