Jin Jinsook: "The State Must Guarantee Children's Right to Life and Existence"

Pointing Out Neglect of Child Deaths and Discriminatory Birth Practices at the National Assembly Audit
"Inequality from Birth... Urgent Need for Institutional Reform"

Jin Jin-sook, member of the Democratic Party of Korea.

Jin Jin-sook, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea representing Buk-gu Eul in Gwangju, called for institutional reforms during the National Assembly audit of the Ministry of Health and Welfare on October 15, highlighting the lack of national-level investigations into child deaths and welfare discrimination against children born outside of hospitals.

Assemblywoman Jin pointed out, "The deaths of children are being treated as mere incidents," adding, "The government has never properly examined why such tragedies keep recurring." In reality, statistics on child victims of 'filicide-suicide' cases vary widely: 23 according to the Ministry of Health and Welfare, 17 according to the National Police Agency, and 27 reported by the media, revealing the absence of credible official data.

She also noted that the National Forensic Service’s child death review system was suspended in 2022 due to budget issues, stressing, "The government must comprehensively review all child deaths, not just those caused by abuse." Assemblywoman Jin urged the prompt introduction of a 'child death review system' to analyze the causes of child deaths and develop preventive measures.

In addition, Assemblywoman Jin raised concerns about delayed birth registration and welfare disparities for children born outside of hospitals. As of 2023, 416 children were born outside medical institutions, but due to the lack of automatic registration, some remained legally unregistered for up to seven years. She criticized this as "a violation of the fundamental principle of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child, which states that the very act of being born marks the beginning of rights."

She also pointed out disparities in welfare support. Currently, mothers giving birth in hospitals receive 1 million won in pregnancy and childbirth medical expenses, whereas those giving birth outside medical institutions receive only 250,000 won, resulting in a 750,000 won gap. Assemblywoman Jin criticized this as "a birth-friendly policy that, in practice, leads to discrimination based on place of birth," and called for the establishment of equal standards.

Assemblywoman Jin urged the Ministry of Health and Welfare to: ▲ introduce local government-initiated and simplified registration procedures for children born outside hospitals; ▲ establish non-discriminatory standards for welfare support for all children; and ▲ institutionalize the child death review system.

She emphasized, "Children’s rights must be guaranteed not only while they are alive but also after death," and added, "Regardless of the place of birth, the Ministry of Health and Welfare must take the lead in improving systems so that every child can be protected by the state from the moment they are born."