Korean men urged to stop beating and raping their wives by Ministry of Gender Equality and Family
November 27th, 2012 . by ErrolThe Supreme Court of Korea (appointed by Park Chung-hee) ruled in 1970 that legal remedies for physical violence against wives are inadmissible in Korean law courts and that even wife rape cannot be considered to be abuse in Korean law courts.
“You cannot rape your wife” is the headline for the Korea Times article. This is because forced sexual intercourse of a wife has not been regarded as rape by the Korean Supreme Court since 1970. Is the Korean Supreme Court thereby protecting the conjugal right of Korean men to engage in forced, violent sex with their wives?
The Ministry of Gender Equality and Family in an effort to address this issue of conjugal rights announced on Monday (26 November) its 4th basic policy program involving women’s affairs for 2013-2017, the program is designed to prevent sexual and domestic violence and strengthen the punishment of violators.
The United Nations has long called on Korea to recognize wife rape.
“There has been opposition from legal circles but there is a need for serious discussion on the issue. Even among married couples, people have a right to choose and this should be part of the law,” said a female official from the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family .