It has been reported that 25 local governments across the country, including Gangwon Province, have already discontinued the ‘sending rural bachelors to marry migrant women’ project or plan to eliminate it in the first half of this year.
The National Human Rights Commission noted on the 14th that it welcomes the discontinuation of the project that supported various costs, including marriage brokerage fees, when rural unmarried Namsung men marry migrant women based on the so-called ‘international marriage support local government ordinance.’
Previously, the Human Rights Commission and the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family recommended improvements to local governments, stating that the international marriage support ordinance needed to be enhanced from a human rights perspective to ensure the establishment of marriage and family life based on individual dignity and gender equality.
The Human Rights Commission stated that this ordinance has been criticized for promoting the issue of purchasing foreign migrant women through marriage brokerage firms under the guise of addressing the problem of declining rural populations. It was also reported that there were criticisms stating, 'Foreign migrant women are mentioned as bearers of unpaid labor obligations within families, such as childcare, household chores, and farming,' and 'Migrant women are referred to as second-class citizens meant to fill the positions of local women.'
According to the findings of the Human Rights Commission, as of November 2023, the international marriage support ordinance was implemented in 24 basic local governments, including Gangwon Province, Gyeongnam Haman County, Jeonnam Gangjin County, Jeonbuk Buan County, and Chungbuk Danyang County. Subsequently, the Human Rights Commission negotiated with the 25 local governments regarding the repeal of related ordinances and projects for over a year.
In this process, the Human Rights Commission stated that 'to increase the population, various population attraction measures can be established beyond marriage, and indigenous people, migrants, women, and Namsung men should receive support democratically and equally.'
Accordingly, as of the 9th, the international marriage support ordinance will be repealed or is expected to be repealed in 25 local governments in the first half of this year. The Human Rights Commission stated, 'We would like to express special thanks to the heads and related staff of the 25 local governments who actively cooperated in the repeal of discriminatory ordinances.'