Change of Gender Equality Week from July to the First Week of September Starting This Year

September 1 'Passport Communication Day' Commemoration
25th Anniversary Marked by Various Ceremonies and Events
Three Recipients Awarded National Medals of Honor

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Hyun-joo] From this year, Gender Equality Week will be changed from the first week of July to the first week of September.

The Ministry of Gender Equality and Family announced on the 27th that starting this year, Gender Equality Week will be held from September 1 to 7, including the legally designated commemorative day, "Yeogwontongmun Day" (September 1).

Yeogwontongmun, Korea's women's rights declaration, has its announcement day, September 1, designated as a legal commemorative day. Written under the names of ordinary women Lee Sosa and Kim Sosa on September 1, 1898, Yeogwontongmun predates International Women's Day, which began with the strike of American women workers on March 8, 1908, by 10 years. It contained demands for equal educational rights, employment rights, and suffrage for women in the patriarchal social structure of the time.

Seoul City announced on the 25th that it will hold the event "Voices Started in Bukchon, Yeogwontongmun" as a non-face-to-face program at the Bukchon Cultural Center in Seoul to coincide with "Yeogwontongmun Day," a legal memorial day designated on September 1st.

"Yeogwontongmun" is an abbreviation of "Yeohakgyo Seolsi Tongmun (女學校 設始 通文)," referring to Korea's first women's rights declaration made by women in Bukchon on September 1, 1898, advocating for equal educational rights.

The photo shows the components of the "Traditional Book Making" experience kit commemorating "Yeogwontongmun." [Image source=Yonhap News]

To mark Gender Equality Week, the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family will promote various commemorative events and projects. On the 2nd of next month, the 25th anniversary ceremony of Gender Equality Week will be held. Lee Yeon-ja, former co-chair of the Northeast Asia Women's Peace Conference and founder of the "Environmental School," will receive the Order of Civil Merit, Dongbaek Medal. Lee Mi-kyung, director of the Korea Sexual Violence Counseling Center, who has led victim-centered support activities such as operating the country's first sexual violence counseling center, will receive the Order of Civil Merit, Magnolia Medal. Lawyer Lee Chan-jin of Jeil Hapdong Law Office, who has supported various legal activities to promote women's rights since 1997, will also receive the Order of Civil Merit, Magnolia Medal.

On the 3rd of next month, in cooperation with Statistics Korea, the report "Women's Lives Seen Through 2020 Statistics" will be released. It covers statistics in seven areas related to women: population and family, decision-making, work-life balance, violence against women, employment, income, and health. Additionally, with the designation of Equal Pay Day as a legal commemorative day, a forum on measures to eliminate the gender wage gap will be held. Various other planned exhibitions, displays, and concerts will also be organized.

Minister of Gender Equality and Family Lee Jung-ok said, "Expanding women's social participation and spreading a culture of gender equality are the shortcuts to realizing an inclusive nation for both men and women. We will make every policy effort so that today's step-by-step efforts can bear the fruit of gender equality for us and future generations."

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