[Asia Exclusive] Lee Jung-ok, Minister of Gender Equality and Family, "One-fifth of government department chiefs are women, early achievement of 2022 goal"

Younger Generation Has Less Gender Aversion
Fostering a Culture of Gender Collaboration

Ministry of Gender Equality as Government's Control Tower
Coordinating Digital Sex Crime Eradication Policies

Ensuring No Blind Spots in COVID-19 Era
Supporting Single-Parent Families and Marriage Immigrants

Minister of Gender Equality and Family Lee Jeong-ok. Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

"There are cases where men emotionally react to protective measures for women and express that there is inequality in employment opportunities and such. However, I see that as healthy as well. It is also evidence that awareness of equality has relatively strengthened and that gender mainstreaming (the flow of women participating equally and having decision-making power) has been somewhat achieved."

Lee Jeong-ok, Minister of Gender Equality and Family, who is entering her ninth month in office, responded this way to a question about how she views the current gender conflicts, especially the reverse discrimination issues many men complain about. When asked whether true gender mainstreaming has been achieved in our society, she cited changes in the proportion of women in senior positions in the public sector as an example.

According to the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, the proportion of women at the director level in central government ministries is 20.8%, an increase of more than 40% compared to 2017. Female executives in public institutions reached 21.1%, surpassing 20% for the first time. The 20% target was expected to be achieved only by 2022.

Minister Lee emphasized, "Kim Jin-sook, President of Korea Expressway Corporation, is the first female head of the institution in its 51-year history, and Lee Mi-jung, Chief Judge of the Patent Trial and Appeal Board, is the first female senior official with a doctorate recruited specially within the Patent Office." She added, "The numbers might not seem that impressive at first glance. However, good news continues to come from fields where female advancement was considered difficult, such as legislative affairs officers and commanders of the Army Aviation Operations Command." Minister Lee also placed special significance on the substantial increase in the proportion of women at the director level in government ministries. Directors are the 'core' who plan, create, and execute specific policies. She stressed, "Enhancing women's representation is an important factor not only for productivity and efficiency but also for realizing fairness values. It is a key foundation for organizational innovation and democracy."

The next area catching Minister Lee's attention is the private sector. On the 2nd of last month, she met with Park Yong-man, Chairman of the Korea Chamber of Commerce and Industry, to discuss cooperation measures related to securing gender diversity on corporate boards under the amendment to the Capital Market Act. The law stipulates that listed companies with total assets exceeding 2 trillion won must not compose their entire board of directors with only one gender. Minister Lee said, "I urged efforts to promote women's participation on boards with different perspectives and experiences so that Korean companies can grow into competitive companies in the international community," and added, "We also discussed how to improve women's employment and reform authoritarian and rigid organizational cultures." During the meeting, Chairman Park reportedly responded, "The younger generation has less resistance to gender, so a culture of gender collaboration will be established soon. Once a rational work culture is established, balanced utilization of personnel by gender will also be possible."

The Ministry of Gender Equality and Family is the control tower for the government's gender equality policies. Whether it is gender mainstreaming or gender equality, it is difficult to bring about change by the ministry's power alone. Therefore, the ministry's 'coordination' function is important, and the recently announced 'Digital Sex Crime Eradication Measures' is the most effective example of the ministry's policy coordination function. The measures, announced jointly by government ministries, include raising the age of statutory rape for minors to 16, punishing digital sex crimes as preparatory and conspiracy offenses even if they do not lead to actual crimes, and significantly increasing penalties for possessing, producing, or selling illegal recordings. Minister Lee said, "There is a strong atmosphere among all related ministers, including the President, to take the issue of digital sexual violence very seriously. There is also a strong will to find fundamental solutions." She continued, "We are discussing the sustainability of these measures for the next generation, especially since both victims and perpetrators of Telegram sex crimes such as the 'Nth Room' case are in their teens and twenties." She also expressed her feelings as the minister in charge regarding recent digital sex crime incidents. "It is a case of too little, too late. It is because we failed to establish a social regulatory framework in line with technological development."

Minister of Gender Equality and Family Lee Jeong-ok. / Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

The policies promoted and recommended by the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family gain meaning when implemented by each ministry. In May last year, dedicated gender equality departments were established in ministries including the Ministry of Education, Ministry of Justice, Ministry of National Defense, Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism, Ministry of Health and Welfare, Ministry of Employment and Labor, the Supreme Prosecutors' Office, and the National Police Agency. The Ministry of Gender Equality and Family holds monthly meetings with gender equality officers from these eight ministries to discuss gender mainstreaming and policies to eradicate sexual harassment and sexual violence. As a result, the Ministry of National Defense strengthened or established gender equality centers in the Army, Navy, Air Force, and Marine Corps; the Supreme Prosecutors' Office did so in 66 prosecution offices; the Ministry of Justice designated 112 gender equality policy officers in its affiliated agencies; and the National Police Agency selected and deployed dedicated gender equality policy personnel in 23 local police agencies. Minister Lee said, "This year, we will strengthen the implementation of gender equality policies and promote gender-responsive budgeting and gender equality education to enhance gender awareness capabilities within the public service."

The keywords Minister Lee considers important after equality are 'safety' and 'care.' It is also the ministry's role to ensure that blind spots in care and safety do not arise due to the COVID-19 pandemic. Minister Lee said, "As social care functions weaken, the burden of care within families is increasing," and added, "At the daily Central Disaster and Safety Countermeasure Headquarters meetings, the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family actively communicates with related ministries to ensure there are no policy blind spots in disaster and crisis situations and conducts on-site inspections."

She cited single-parent households, marriage immigrants, and foreign workers as representative blind spots. The ministry provides COVID-19 prevention and behavioral guidelines translated into 12 languages, including Vietnamese, Filipino, and Mongolian. The Danuri Call Center, staffed by marriage immigrants, supports three-way interpretation in connection with the Korea Disease Control and Prevention Agency's 1339 call center, public health centers, and the Central Medical Center. Ahead of online school openings for elementary, middle, and high schools, the ministry dispatches visiting education instructors to support learning for multicultural families expected to face difficulties with remote classes, as well as single-parent and grandparent-headed families. For out-of-school youth, the ministry supports meals by providing mobile vouchers, delivery food, and instant food parcel shipments to youth supported by centers. Minister Lee pledged, "We will strive to create a society where women, children, and youth can live safely, and especially during the COVID-19 situation, we will be a reliable Ministry of Gender Equality and Family that reaches out closely to those who are easily marginalized and struggling."

▶Minister Lee Jeong-ok's Profile ▲Born 1955 ▲1984?2019 Professor of Sociology at Daegu Catholic University ▲2013?2019 Director of Korea Transparency Organization ▲2014?2019 Co-chair of Women Peace Diplomacy Forum ▲2018?2019 Civilian Chair of the Ministry of National Defense Gender Equality Committee ▲September 2019?Present Minister of Gender Equality and Family

Interview by Shin Beom-su, Head of Social Affairs Department

Compiled by Lee Hyun-joo, Reporter

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.