The National
Human Rights Commission of Korea once again calls for the prompt legislation of
the Equality Act
(Anti-Discrimination Law)
Statement from the Chairperson of
National Human Rights Commission of Korea
The National Human Rights Commission of
Korea has presented its opinion to the National Assembly for prompt legislation of the
Equality Act (Anti-Discrimination Law) on June 30, 2020, with the view that the
enactment of the Law is an urgent matter which can no longer be neglected in
order to fulfill human rights dignity and equality set
forth in the Constitution. The equality legislation
has been consistently recommended by the international community.
The assemblymen from the Justice Party and the Democratic Party of Korea have proposed four bills to legislate the Equality Act (Anti-Discrimination
Law), and the Legislation and Judiciary Committee of the National Assembly
unanimously adopted the plan to hold a public hearing to discuss the bill on April 26, 2022.
However, the process is currently in
deadlock with no specifics on the timeline of the public hearing, the necessary
step for the legislation. Meanwhile, it has been a month since human rights activists began the hunger strike for the enactment of Equality
Act, and the number of people joining the hunger strike movement is growing.
While the four bills for the equality legislation were pending at the
National Assembly, the National Human Rights Commission Korea surveyed 1,003 respondents aged over 18 on the 'General Perception on Equality' in April 2022. According to the
survey, eight out of ten respondents agreed that
‘discrimination is a social issue which needs our closeattention’. Roughly seven out of ten respondents(67.2%) agreed on the ‘necessity of promptly enacting the Equality Act
currently pending at the National Assembly’. The percentage of respondents who were for the Equality Act legislation
far outnumbered those who disagreed (28%).
The result of the survey was all the more
meaningful as it shows that the people are
generally supportive of the Equality Act legislation and the yearnings for the
Equality Act is not merely an emotional empathy.
The common understanding of the people on enacting
the Equality Act has also been proved repetitively through the survey on the 'Perception on Discrimination' in 2020, where nine out of ten respondents agreed on the equality legislation
as well as the ‘National Petition for the
Equality Act Legislation’.
The common understanding and social consensus have been formed to legislate the Equality
Act (Anti-Discrimination Law) in Korea, and at this
moment, there are people who are risking their lives, demanding the
enactment of the Law to the National Assembly. The National Human Rights
Commission of Korea emphasizes the urgency of the matter in desperation, in
times of the government transition in Korea.
The National Human Rights Commission of
Korea strongly calls on the government to immediately begin the process to
review bills, including the public hearing which was previously agreed by the
ruling and the opposition parties.
May 8, 2022
Doo-hwan Song
Chairperson of the
National Human Rights Commission of Korea