Immediate Separation of Parents Upon Occurrence of 'Child and Adolescent Abuse' Within the Household

Holding the Social Relations Ministers' Meeting for Realizing an Inclusive Nation
Deletion of Parental Discipline Rights in Civil Law... Considering Harsher Punishment for Child Abuse

[Asia Economy Reporter Jo In-kyung] To eradicate child abuse disguised as discipline or corporal punishment, an 'immediate separation system' will be introduced that allows children to be immediately separated from their parents when abuse is detected. There is also a plan to delete the disciplinary authority clause from the Civil Act, which allows parents or guardians to impose necessary discipline to protect and educate the child.

On the 29th, the Ministry of Education held the 11th Social Relations Ministers' Meeting at the Government Seoul Office to discuss the 'Child and Youth Abuse Prevention Measures' containing these details.

At the meeting, the government first decided to establish a close collaborative system at the local level and share information among related agencies to detect and assist children and youth in crisis early on the ground.

To enable thorough community observation and early detection of children in crisis, local related agency councils will be organized and operated nationwide. In particular, information on abused children and children at risk of abuse will be shared with local governments and educational sites so that school staff can detect suspected cases of child abuse early.

Especially in the situation where it has become difficult to identify children in crisis after the COVID-19 pandemic, teachers will be required to consult and manage students' health status via phone or online (video connection) during remote classes.

To provide protection and support without blind spots, information and systems on children and youth in crisis, which were managed separately by each ministry, will be linked and integrated, and the infrastructure will be boldly improved to strengthen on-site investigations and protection foundations. To ensure sufficient support for children in need of protection, child protection agencies and shelters for abused children will be expanded, and efforts will be made to improve the treatment of workers at these institutions.

Also, local government officials dedicated to child abuse, originally scheduled to be deployed by 2022, will be deployed by next year, and support will be provided to enhance their expertise through job training and other means.

At home, laws and systems will be supplemented to prevent child abuse and excessive discipline under the pretext of exercising parental authority. The disciplinary authority clause in the Civil Act, which could be misunderstood as permitting parental corporal punishment causing physical and mental pain, will be revised, and an 'immediate separation system' will be introduced allowing child abuse officers to immediately separate children when necessary for abuse investigations to protect the victims.

In addition, anonymous reporting and reporter protection systems will be intensively guided to elementary, middle, and high school staff, daycare and kindergarten workers, medical personnel, workers supporting integrated services for vulnerable children (Dream Start), and workers at domestic violence-related facilities.

When reports of child and youth abuse are received, the scope of places that police and child abuse officers can enter will be expanded to include 'places for protecting abused children' to ensure the prompt protection of the victims. Youth shelters, which have been relatively under-supported compared to child welfare facilities, will provide self-reliance support allowances to help youth achieve economic independence after leaving the shelter.

The government will also operate a special task force (TF) to review improvements to punishment standards and sentencing guidelines to strengthen penalties for child abuse. Employment restrictions will be expanded to prevent abusers from working in child-related institutions such as medical and adoption agencies. Furthermore, new sanctions will be established against abusers who unjustifiably refuse case management by child protection agencies to prevent recurrence, and fines will be imposed on abusers who refuse counseling, education, or medical and psychological treatment three or more times without justifiable reasons.

The government plans to ensure that these measures do not end as a one-time announcement by checking progress every six months with related ministries and private experts and continuously supplementing the plans.

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