Birth Strike: Women in South Korea Reclaim Their Autonomy
The women of South Korea are on a birth strike. A survey revealed that Korean women are more adverse to welcoming children than their male counterparts.
Trigger Warning: This story covers sensitive materials and references sexual misconduct
Korea has maintained the lowest birth rate in the world in the last three years. From 0.81 last year to 0.73 babies per woman this year. More women chose to work rather than get married. Korea’s President Yoon Suk-yeol blamed “feminism” for preventing “healthy relationships between men and women.”
In Korea’s patriarchal society, women have to deal with a lot. Feminists in Korea are standing up against extreme beauty standards, gender-based violence, and slaving away after marriage. Moreover, many married women give up their work ambitions after marriage.
"They said to my face that there is no place in the company for a woman with a child, so I needed to quit." My story on why South Korea's latest measures to stop the "birth strike" drew scorn from women @AFP https://t.co/2gtQszSb61
— Hawon Jung (@allyjung) December 18, 2018
According to the Korea Research Institute, in 2019, Korea’s employment graph was M-shaped. Most women drop out of the workforce in their 30s to take care of their families. In addition, Korea has an increasing problem of digital sex crimes, which are “shockingly widespread.” In 2018, women protested the government’s lack of response to digital sex crimes. Chants of “My life is not your porn” and “Are we not human?” rang throughout Seoul.
These protests sparked the start of the 4B or Bihon movement in Korea. The movement stands against sex, childbearing, dating, and sex with men. “Practicing bihon means you’re eliminating the risks that come from heterosexual marriage or dating,” Yeowon, a 26-year-old office worker, told The Cut.
South Korea records world's lowest fertility rate again because without equality, safety, live/work balance and support at home intelligent women are choosing personal survival #birthstrike #southkorea https://t.co/p6NX0pONFq
— GreenFeminist (@greenfeminist) August 25, 2022
These feminist movements successfully decriminalized abortion and got stricter penalties for rampant digital and spycam-porn crimes in Korea. However, the traditionalist men in Korea are not happy with this movement. “The birth strike is women’s revenge on a society that puts impossible burdens on us and doesn’t respect us,” Jiny Kim, a Seoul office worker, told The New York Times. The rise in living costs and housing prices are other reasons why young Koreans choose not to get married.
The declining birthrate, coupled with the acceptance of Feminism in Korea, has alarmed the government. Over the last 16 years, the government has poured 280 trillion won ($210 billion) into incentives to procreate. But the women in Korea have had enough. “Society can’t end the birth strike without acknowledging women’s grievances,” Ms. Chung, the previous gender equality minister, stated.
Furthermore, many Korean women see the birth strike or marriage strike as their sole solution to combat patriarchy. The movement remains strong and does not appear to subside until necessary changes are made in the country. Consequently, the decisions of whether they meet the requirements of these women will no doubt have a significant impact on the future state of South Korea.
