17정책0004

미가입조약 가입 저출산, 고령화 문제의 인권적 해결 여성, 청년 고용 노인인권 기업과 인권 군대 인권 차별금지법 제정

미가입조약 가입
저출산, 고령화 문제의 인권적 해결
여성, 청년 고용
노인인권
기업과 인권
군대 인권
차별금지법 제정

유엔 인권이사회 국가별 인권상황 정기검토(UPR) 실무그룹의
제3기 대한민국 UPR 심의를 위한
국가인권위원회 의견서(Written Contribution)
대한민국 국가인권위원회는 2001년 설립 이후 세계국가인권기구연합(Global Alliance of National
Human Rights Institutions, GANHRI)평가에서 A등급을유지하고있는대한민국의독립적국가인
권기구이다.이의견서는제2기대한민국 UPR심의권고사항중주요사안의이행현황을평가하
고권고안을제시함과동시에,제2기심의에서다루어지지않은몇가지주요이슈를제시한다.
이행일반
1. 대한민국은인권이사회및 UPR을매우적극적으로지지하는국가중하나이다.현이사국
이면서 2008년부터 2013년까지연임하여이사국을수임하였고 2016년에는제10대의장국으로활동
하는등인권이사회최대협력국중하나이다.
2. 그럼에도불구하고, UPR권고중국제협약가입이나유보철회또는제도개선권고에대
한대한민국정부(이하 "정부"라한다)의이행노력은다소부족하다. 붙임평가표에서보는바와
같이, UPR권고이행에대한많은노력에도불구하고,일부사항의경우실질적효과가크지않았
다.특히 [권고 15]에서강조된시민사회및국가인권위원회와의협력강화의경우, UPR권고이행
상황전반에대한상시적모니터링이아닌일회성의견수렴에그치는한계가있다.
3. 정부가제2기 UPR권고후이를반영하여제2기(2012~2016) 국가인권정책기본계획(NAP)
을수정한것은긍정적이다.그러나 NAP자체의이행성과가미흡하고, 2016. 7.국가인권위원회의
제3기 NAP수립권고에도불구하고,정부는부분공개형태의공청회 1회개최외 NAP를수립하
지않았다. 또한, UPR과 NAP담당기관이여러정부부처중하나인법무부여서구심점역할을
하는데한계가있다.

4. 한편 2016. 2. 국가인권위원회법 개정을통해인권위원면책조항·위원자격규정신설,
선출·지명기관이투명한선출절차와구성의다양성을보장하도록명시하는등인권위원선출절
차를보완함으로써독립성보장에진전이있었다.
5. 권고 : UPR권고가 NAP수립시반영될수있도록하며, UPR과 NAP의실효성을강
화하기위해총리실또는이에준하는조직이컨트롤타워역할을수행할필요가있다.나아가
국가인권위원회및시민사회단체와의실질적협력을증진시키기위해 UPR과 NAP이행시상
시적모니터링체계구축및참여보장등제도적보완이필요하다.
6. 권고 :국가인권위원회의독립성을강화하고인권보장체제를확고히하기위해향후
헌법개정시헌법기관화하는것이필요하다.
미가입국제인권조약가입및가입조약의국내이행
7. 대한민국은현재국제인권조약및그선택의정서 18개중 7개1)에가입하지않았고, 정부
는미가입조약에대해 "고려중"또는 "연구중"이라고만밝히고있을뿐,이에대한구체적인성과
는발견되지않는다.일부가입조약들의경우도유보조항을두고있다.2)
8. 또한 2015. 11. 자유권규약위원회는제4차대한민국국가보고서에대한최종견해발표시
인종차별문제의중요성을지적하고성적지향등을이유로한차별,양심적병역거부,평화적집회
의자유등의항목에대한우선이행을강조한바있으며, 2016. 11.국가인권위원회도적극적이행
필요성을정부에의견표명하였다.
9. 권고 :미가입인권조약가입과유보조항철회를위한노력을실질적으로진행하며,이
미국내법제도개선이이루어진일부유보조항에대해서는조속히철회절차를밟아야한다.
10. 권고 : 2015년자유권규약위원회의권고이행을위해국제인권조약에서금지하고있는
차별사유전체를아우르는포괄적차별금지법을제정하고양심적병역거부자를위한대체복
무제를도입할것을권고한다.3) 최근평화적집회보장을위한대한민국정부의노력을높게
평가하고앞으로도이런노력이계속되기를기대하며, 사실상허가제로운영될수있는집회
신고제도개선등의노력도지속하기를당부한다.

저출산과 고령화, 노인인권 문제
11. 노인자살률과빈곤율등의지표를볼때,대한민국에서노인의인권상황은점점심각해
지고있다. 기초연금제도에도불구하고생활비를충당하기에는부족하고여전히저임금비정규
노동을계속해야한다.4) 한편, 2001년이후 16년째초저출산현상이지속되고있다.5) 저출산은다
른구조적문제의귀결이지원인이아님에도,행정자치부의출산지도논란에서보듯저출산문제
를사회구조차원이아닌여성탓으로인식하는문제가있다.6) 여성은경력단절후재취업이매우
힘들거나저임금비정규일자리로내몰리며,양질의국?공립어린이집은부족하고남성육아휴직
이활성화되지않는등일과육아를양립하기어려운상황이고,청년일자리상황이매우열악해
지고있기때문에한국의젊은이들은결혼과출산을최대한늦추거나포기한다고추측된다.7)
12. 정부는 2004년제정된 저출산·고령화에관한법률에따라 5년마다 저출산·고령사회
기본계획을수립하며,현재는제3차기본계획(2016~2020년)이진행중이다.제3차기본계획이기존
의고령사회 "대비"개념을넘어 "활기찬"고령사회라는좀더적극적인비전으로바뀌었으나,여전
히고령화와저출산을연계한생산가능인구감소문제에초점이맞추어져있어개별노인들의인
권주제를다루기에부족한점이있다.8)
13. 권고 :저출산문제를해소하기위해서는청년일자리확보,청년주거문제해소,여성
의경력단절극복,국·공립보육시설확대와같은대안적육아체계확충등사회?구조적문
제를종합적으로고려해야한다는점을강조한다.
14. 권고 :노인문제를경제적관점이아닌노인의완전한권리실현및삶의질향상을위
한인권적관점에서접근할필요가있다.특히노인의빈곤과자살문제가심각하다고보이므로
정부의적극적인대응이필요하다.
여성,아동및장애인인권문제
15. 여성이고용시장에서과소대표되는문제도심각하지만,9) 특히심각한문제는일자리의질
이남성에비해매우낮다는데있다.남녀간비정규직비율격차는 2011년이후점차줄어들었으
나, 2016년상반기현재 2012년수준이상으로다시상승하였다.10) 이러한격차는 30세를전후로
육아등의문제로경력단절이발생한후에특히심각해진다.11) 이는유리천장현상과더불어남녀
임금격차가매년 OECD회원국내최고를기록하는이유중의하나이다.12)

16. 2017. 3. 1. 발표된여성가족부의조사결과에따르면, 아동?청소년대상성범죄로확정
판결을받아신상이공개된성범죄자중강간사범의집행유예비율은 2015년 32.3%로나타났다.
2012년 42.0%이후지속적으로감소하긴했으나아동?청소년대상강간사범셋중한명은여전
히집행유예로석방되고있다.13)
17. 최근전세계적으로 SNS등온라인에서의성희롱?성폭력및디지털성범죄사례가다수
보고되고있고,대한민국도예외가아니므로대안마련이필요하다.또한학교내에서학생들간의
성폭력도급증하고있다는통계가있다.14) 아동사교육비는지속적으로증가추세에있으며,15) 아동
의놀권리보장을위한목소리가높고,아동학대16)와학교내간접체벌17) 등문제도제기되고있
다.
18. 2007년 장애인차별금지및권리구제등에관한법률이제정되고국가인권위원회의꾸
준한장애차별시정노력으로지난수년간대한민국의장애인인권신장에가시적인성과가있었
다.정신장애인의경우도최근관련법률이전면개정되는등제도개선이있다.18) 그러나 2014년
기준 70%를상회하는비자의(非自意)입원비율이의미있게감소할지는의문이며,19) 또한장애인
시설을여전히혐오시설로받아들이면서반대하는님비현상도종종보고되고있다.20)
19. 권고 :정부는여성과청년의고용률증진을위해많은정책적노력을하였으나,최근
3년간각종통계지표상효과가미미하므로근본적인재검토가필요하다.법정근로시간준수및
노동시간단축,양질의일자리확보를위해정부가적극적으로노력할필요가있다.
20. 권고 :아동?청소년대상성폭력가해자처벌강화를위한근본적인대책을마련하고,
온라인성폭력및학생간성폭력건수가우려스러울정도로급증하고있으므로, 국가차원의
종합적대책이필요하다.
21. 권고 : 장애인인권신장을위한제도개선등정부의노력을높이평가한다. 그러나
장애인에대한사회적인식에개선의여지가많고정신장애인의경우는여전히지역사회에의
한치료보다는병원치료,특히자의가아닌비자의입원이많다는점을우려한다.장애인의사
회복귀지원및탈시설화등장애정책의전환및적극적인노력이필요하다.

노동문제
22. 전체임금근로자중최저임금미만근로자비율은 2015년말 11.5%에이른다.21) 또한,근
로자와유사한보호의필요성이있는특수형태근로종사자의규모및직종이계속늘어나고있음에
도이들에대한보호입법이지연되고있어여전히사회적보호의사각지대에놓여있다.22)
23. 전국공무원노동조합이나전국교직원노동조합등이노동조합자격을인정받지못하고있다.
또한,파업(쟁의행위)에대한형법상업무방해혐의기소사례에대해법원및헌법재판소에서유
의미한입장변화가있지만,23) 이는기소자체를규제하지못할뿐만아니라사업주의고발행위
도막을수없고,단지유죄판결될확률이적어졌다는것을의미한다.기업이파업행위에대해손
해배상을청구하는등민사소송은여전하다고보고되고있다.
24. 권고 :최저임금미만근로자비율이여전히 10%를상회하고있다는데우려를표한다.
또한간접고용·파견및비정규직확대로인한사회적갈등문제를해소하고,특히공공사업장
및특수고용형태근로종사자의노동3권보장과산업재해보험대상자확대등노동취약계층의
권리증진을위해노력할것을권고한다.
소수자보호및차별철폐
25. 최근대한민국사회에서는여성과외국인등을대상으로하는혐오표현문제가사회적이
슈로확산되고있고,여성,성소수자,장애인,이주민등취약계층이느끼는혐오표현에대한두려
움은매우높다.24) 이문제를제기한지난제2기 [권고 30]에대해정부는수용의사를밝힌바있
음에도불구하고차별금지법제정등혐오표현대응제도개선노력은부족하다.
26. 난민법을제정하고다양한다문화정책을실시하는등이주민에대한보호정책에유의
미한진전이있다는점을긍정적으로평가한다.그러나이들정책이대부분등록외국인,특히고
용허가제를통해입국한외국인노동자및결혼이주자에게초점이맞추어져있는탓에미등록외
국인및그자녀의경우매우취약한상태에있다.또한고용허가제의경우는노동자의작업장이
동에제한이있으며,결혼이주여성의경우배우자종속이크다.한편,예술흥행비자(E-6비자)입국
여성이성매매에강제로노출되는경향도큰것으로나타났으며,난민인정신청을하였다가난민
인정심사에회부되지않은외국인이이에불복하는소송을제기하는과정에서출국대기실의열악
한환경하에장기간머무르는사례도발생하고있다.25)

27. 권고 :사회적약자를대상으로한혐오표현을줄이기위한방안을마련할것을권고
한다.또한,체류외국인,특히미등록외국인에대한인도주의적보호장치강화와난민과난민
신청자의기본적인권보장을위해노력할필요가있다.특히외국인아동은등록·미등록구
분없이 "아동이익최대보호"의원칙에따라적극적인보호정책이실시되어야하며,결혼이
주여성과성매매등에노출된 E-6비자소지여성의인권이보장될수있도록현황에대한정확
한실태파악및제도개선이필요하다.
군대내인권
28. 그동안국방부등국가기관이군인권개선을위해다양한노력을해왔지만, 2014년성추행
과가혹행위에의한병사사망사건등이발생하는등군부대인권침해가여전하다. 2014년국가인
권위원회의권고이후 2015년 12월 군인의지위및복무에관한기본법이제정되었다.26) 그러나
여전히욕설과폭언및가혹행위,건강및의료권침해,자살등생명권침해등이발생하고있다.
2017. 3.현재국가인권위원회에군인권보호관(군옴브즈만)을설치하는법안이국회에계류중이다.
29. 권고 :군대내인권상황에대한많은진전이있지만,군복무부적응자에대한인권침
해등이빈번히발생한다.군대내인권문제를근본적으로해결하기위하여국가인권위원회에
군옴부즈만을조속히설치하는것이필요하다.
기업과인권
30. 국가인권위원회는 2016년포괄적인권 NAP와구분하여기업과인권 NAP를별도로수립
할것을정부에권고하였다.한편,유엔기업과인권실무그룹은 2016. 6. 1.방한결과발표시국민
연금의투자활동,수출입은행의대외경제협력기금집행등에유엔기업과인권이행지침의인권에
대한실천점검의무를반영해야한다고지적하였고, OECD국내연락사무소(NCP)에다양한이해관
계자들이참여하는자문단설립을제안하였다.
31. 권고 :기업과인권에대한별도 NAP를조속히수립하고, OECD국내연락사무소(NCP)
의역할을강화할수있는조치를취할필요가있다.

<미주>
1) 사회권규약선택의정서(개인진정),자유권규약제2선택의정서(사형제폐지),고문방지협약선택의정서(방문조사및
예방기구설치),아동권리협약제3선택의정서(개인진정),이주노동자권리협약,강제실종협약,장애인권리협약선택
의정서(개인진정),
2) 자유권규약제22조(결사의자유),여성차별철폐협약제16조제1항사호(姓선택의자유),아동권리협약제21조가항
(입양허가제) 및제40조제2항나호의(5)(상소권보장), 그리고장애인권리협약제25조마호(생명보험가입)의경우
유보를아직철회하지않고있다.이중여성차별철폐협약제16조제1항사호(姓선택의자유)와아동권리협약제
21조가항(입양허가제)은국내법제도가개선되는등의진전이있으므로현재유보철회를위한장애는줄었지만
아직철회절차를밟지않고있다.
3) 차별금지법에대해서는주제 B31의 [권고 23]평가.양심적병역거부자인권에대해서는주제 D42의 [권고 45]
평가를참조하라.
4) 2014년대한민국의실질은퇴연령은평균 72.9세로 OECD최고수준으로, OECD평균보다 7~8년더일하는상황
(OECD, Pension at a Glance 2015)이다.통계청의 <2016고령자통계>에따르면, 65세노인의기대여명 20.9년중
질병없이건강한상태인기간은 9.1년으로,기대여명절반이상동안질병을앓는것으로나타나노인의건강상
황도열악하다. 2013년기준 66세이상한국노인의상대빈곤률은 49.6%로 OECD국가중최고(전체평균 10.6%
의 4.4배, 2위인이스라엘 24.1%의 2배이상)이고,전체인구의상대빈곤률은 14.6%(2013)로 OECD평균(11.9%)과
큰차이가없다는점을고려하면,연령이증가함에따라빈곤화가진행되는속도도상당히빠른것으로예상된다.
한편, 65세이상노인인구중공적연금수급자비율은점차증가하고있으나 2015년기준여전히 42.3%수준에
불과하다. 55~79세연령대의공적연금과개인연금을포함한전체연금수령액은월평균약 51만원이고,특히월
100만원이상연금수령자(공무원연금등)는 12.5%에불과한반면, 75.2%는 50만원미만수령자이고, 25만원미
만수령자도 49.5%에이른다(이상통계청, <2016고령자통계>).따라서대부분의연금수령자들은별도근로소득,
가족지원,기초생활수급등다른소득이나지원이없을경우절대빈곤탈출이어렵다.또한, 2014년 7월부터시
행된기초연금은만 65세이상노인의 70%에게최대월약 20만원이지급되지만,보충성의원리를적용하여기초
생활수급금액만큼덜받으므로이들최빈곤층노인들에게기초연금은큰의미를갖지못한다.노인자살의경우,
2015년인구전체자살사망률은인구 10만명당 26.5명으로 OECD회원국평균자살사망률(12.1명, 2014년기준)
의 2배정도이지만, 65세이상노인자살사망률은 58.6명으로급증하는데,이연령층이높아질수록더가파르다
(65~69세 37.1명, 70~74세 54.9명, 75~79세 72.5명, 80세이상 83.7명).자살의원인은빈곤,가정불화,고독순으로
나타났다(통계청, 2015인구총조사, OECD Health Data 2015).요컨대,노령에접어든직후(65세~69세)보다 70세
이후자살사망률이급증한다는사실은노후의삶이 "살기힘들정도로"매우열악하다는반증이다.
5) 2001년초저출산시대(합계출산율 1.3미만)로접어든후 2005년 1.08쇼크(합계출산율 1.08)를겪었고,이후조금회
복되었으나여전히 1.17수준(2016년)이다.
6)행정자치부는 2016. 12.출산율을제고한다는목적으로별도의웹사이트(http://birth.korea.go.kr)를개설하고 "대한
민국출산지도"를공개한바있다.이지도는각지방자치단체별가임기여성수와출산율에순위를부여하여그
래픽으로표현하고있다.이에여성을아이낳는도구로여기는성차별적사고방식이라는여론의비판이커져,행
정자치부는해당웹페이지를삭제하였고,현재는 "수정공지문"만게시되어있다.
7) 20~29세남녀의고용률은 59%내외로거의비슷하거나여성이높지만, 30세이후남녀간격차는급속도로커진
다.이는여성의출산·육아로인한경력단절문제때문인것으로보인다.남성의경우 20대에비해 30대고용률
은 90%수준으로급증하지만,여성의경우반대로 30대고용률이감소하고, 40대여성고용률은 20대, 30대에비
해높아전형적인 M자형경향을보이며이때의일자리는대부분비정규직으로서일자리의질이 20대나남성에
비해낮다는우려가있다.특히통계청자료에따르면, 2015년부터 30대여성고용률최저점이 30대초반(34세이
하)에서후반(35세이상)으로이동하였었는데, 이는 20대에좋은일자리를확보한여성들이출산을미루고있는
현실을반영하는것이다.
<연도별성별고용률>

구분 연도별고용률(%)
성별 연령대 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014
남자
20~29 59.2 58.4 58.2 58.3 57.3 55.7 55.8
30~39 90.3 89.1 89.5 89.8 90.3 90.2 90.9
40~49 91.8 90.9 91.2 91.6 91.7 92.0 92.7
여자
20~29 59.1 58.0 58.3 58.7 58.8 57.8 59.0
30~39 54.7 52.7 53.7 53.7 54.5 55.5 56.3
40~49 64.7 64.1 64.2 64.9 64.6 64.6 65.1
(자료 :통계청경제활동인구조사 2016)
한편, 2013년현정부출범이후 15~29세청년고용률은 39.7%(2013), 40.7%(2014)및 41.5%(2015)로소폭상승하
였으나실업률도동시에증가하여 8.0%(2013), 9.0%(2014)및 9.2%(2015)수준이다. 2015년청년실업률 9.2%는최
근 10년간최대치이며상승추세에있으므로,청년실업과고용문제가사회전반적으로우려할만한수준이다.
8) <고령화에관한마드리드국제행동계획(MIPAA)>에서는소득보장과경제활동지원은노년이전부터충분히공급
되어야한다는점,그리고건강권문제도 "현재"노인들에한정되지않고, "건강한상태로노년에접어들도록"훨씬
이전세대부터보장되어야함을강조하고있음에주목해야한다. "저출산"은사회적위기의한징후로서,극복되어야
하지만고령화는 “인류의위대한승리”인긍정적가치이다.매우큰도전이기에더적극적인대응이필요하다.
9)현정부는국정과제중하나로 "고용률 70%로드맵"을설정하면서여성고용률의 10%p제고를목표로생애주기별
경력유지지원방안등다양한정책을수행하였으나,아래표에서확인할수있는것처럼, 2016. 11.현재 2013년대
비 2.3%p높였을뿐이다.
<2011년이후성별(15~64세)고용률추이>
(단위 : %)
구분 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016. 11.
남자 74.5 74.9 74.9 75.7 75.7 75.8
여자 53.1 53.5 53.9 54.9 55.7 56.2
(자료 :통계청경제활동인구조사 2016)
10)
<성별비정규직비율>
(단위 : %, %p)
구분 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016.6.
전체 34.2 33.3 32.6 32.4 32.5 32.8
남자 27.8 27.2 26.5 26.6 26.5 26.4
여자 42.8 41.5 40.6 39.9 40.2 41.0
남녀격차 15.0 14.3 14.1 13.3 13.7 14.6
(자료 :통계청경제활동인구조사근로형태별부가조사 2016. 8.)
11)위미주 7)의표참조
12)영국소재민간회계컨설팅업체인 PwC가매년공개하는 OECD회원국간성별임금격차(gender pay gap)지
수를보면, 대한민국의 2015년대한민국의남녀평균임금격차는 36%로최악이다(PwC, PwCWomenInWork
Index:Closingthegenderpaygap, 2017. 2, p.24).
13)여성가족부가한국여성정책연구원에의뢰하여 2015년 1년간유죄판결이확정된신상정보대상자판결문을분석
한결과, 2015년전체아동?청소년대상성범죄로신상정보공개판결을받은자는 3,366명으로 2014년(3,234명)
보다 4.1%증가했는데,강간사범은 855명(2014년)에서 733명(2015년)으로줄었지만이 733명중 495명(67.5%)만징
역형을받았고, 237명(32.3%)은집행유예로풀려났다(여성가족부 2017. 3. 1.자보도자료).
14) 교육부가 2016년국회에제출한자료에따르면, 학생대상성폭력건수는 2012년 679건, 2013년 892건, 2014년
1,306건으로지속적인증가추세를보이고있다.같은기간중성폭력피해학생의 87%는같은 "학생"으로부터성
폭력피해를입은것으로나타났다.이에교육부,여성가족부,경찰청등학생성폭력관계부처는 2017. 2. 학교

내학생대상성폭력예방대책을발표하고,초등학교단계부터성폭력예방교육적극실시,학생성폭력에대
한신고·상담인프라강화,학교내에서의피해학생보호와지원체계강화등을추진할방침임을밝혔다.
15)붙임평가표주제 E1 [권고 60]평가참조
16)붙임평가표주제 F13 [권고 40]평가참조
17)붙임평가표주제 D25 [권고 38]평가참조
18) 2016. 5. 29.개정으로현행 정신보건법은 2017. 5. 30.부터 정신건강증진및정신질환자복지서비스지원에관
한법률로변경되며,신법에서는정신장애인에대한지역사회중심의치료가입원치료보다우선해야한다는원
칙을도입하였다(신법제2조제5항).
19)중앙정신보건사업지원단통계에따르면,자의입원은 29.7%에불과하며,법개정이되더라도이비율이현저히줄
어들것으로보이지않는다. 또한신법개정전구법의비자의입원(보호의무자에의한입원)관련조항(제24조
제1항,아래참조)에대한위헌제청심판사건(2014헌가9)에서 2016. 9. 29.헌법재판소는헌법불합치결정을내렸다.
동조항은정신질환자의신체의자유침해를최소화할방안을충분히마련하지않고있기때문이라는이유에서다.
전문의 1인에게부여된입원결정도권한이남용될우려가있다고도보았다.동결정이전에개정이확정(2016. 5.
29.)된신법에서도동조항은크게바뀌지않았으므로,향후헌법재판소결정취지에부합하도록법률이개정되거
나최소한시행령등하위규정에서남용방지를위한제도적방안을마련하고,입원치료가아닌지역사회치료가
가능하도록사회복귀시스템도적절하게마련될필요가있다.
제24조(보호의무자에의한입원)①정신의료기관등의장은정신질환자의보호의무자 2인의동의(보호의무
자가 1인인경우에는 1인의동의로한다)가있고정신건강의학과전문의가입원등이필요하다고판단한
경우에한하여당해정신질환자를입원등을시킬수있으며,입원등을할때당해보호의무자로부터보
건복지부령으로정하는입원등의동의서및보호의무자임을확인할수있는서류를받아야한다.
20)국가인권위원회는 2015. 12. 29.의견표명을통해당시사회적논란이된장애인직업센터건립을반대하는주민
들의행위가 "장애인차별행위"가될수있다는점을지적하고관할지방자치단체에지역내장애인에대한차별
행위가재발되지않도록장애인이해와인식개선을위해적극적인노력을기울일필요가있음을강조한바있다.
21) 2016. 7. 16.최저임금위원회는 2017년최저임금을시급 6,470원(주 40시간근로자의경우월 1,352,230원)으로확
정하였다. 또한최저임금위원회의보도자료에따르면, 이는 2016년대비 7.3%인상된액수로, 인상률은 2016년
8.1%보다낮고, 2014년(7.2%)및 2015년(7.1%)과비슷하다.최저임금미만근로자비율은경제위기시기였던 2009
년 12.8%로최고를기록한이후점차감소하였으나, 2013년이후증가세로돌아섰다.연도별최저임금미만근로
자비율은아래와같다.
<전체임금근로자중최저임금미만근로자비율>
(단위 : %)
연도 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015
비율 11.9 10.8 12.8 11.5 10.8 9.6 11.4 12.1 11.5
(자료 :최저임금위원회, ◆2017년최저임금심의를위한임금실태등분석◆ 2016. 6, 12쪽)
22) 2007. 9. 17.국가인권위원회는국회와정부에특수형태근로종사자의최소근로기준보호,노동3권보장, 4대사회
보험적용을위한특수형태근로종사자보호를위한법률의조속한제·개정이필요하다는의견을표명한바있고,
2014. 11. 27. 산업재해보상보험법의적용을받고있는 6개직종종사자에대한산재보험적용을실질화하고나
아가모든특수형태근로종사자를산재보험적용대상에포함시킬것을권고하였다. 2008년 산업재해보상보험법
에특수형태근로종사자에대한특례규정(제125조)이신설되어현재사업장전속성이있는 9개직종(2008. 7. 4개
직종, 2012. 5. 2개직종추가, 2016. 7. 3개직종추가)의특수형태근로종사자가산재보험의보호를받게된것이
외에지난 10년간특수형태근로종사자의보호를위한입법은추진되지않고있다.
23)헌법재판소와대법원은아래와같이파업에대한형법상업무방해죄적용관행과관련한중요한태도변화를보
였다.즉,파업행위가형법상업무방해죄로선고되기위한조건이매우엄격해졌다.
a.헌법재판소(2010. 4. 29. 2009헌바168결정)는 형법 제314조제1항(업무방해죄)위헌소원사건에서이전결정과
같이합헌결정하였으나,쟁의행위는그자체불가피하게업무방해를초래하지만헌법상기본권에해당하므로

형법상업무방해죄가성립되기위해서는추가적인입증이필요하다는점을강조하였다.
b.대법원(2011. 3. 17.선고 2007도482전원합의체판결)은 "파업의전격성", "심대한혼란내지막대한손해"등 2개
의추가조건을충족해야만업무방해죄가구성된다는것,그리고이입증책임은검사측에있다고판단하였다.
24)국가인권위원회가 2016년에실시한 ◆혐오표현(hate speech)에대한실태및개선방안연구◆에따르면,여성,성소
수자,장애인,이주민모두혐오에대해두려움을느끼고,이로인해범죄피해에위협을느끼고,정체성을숨기는
사례도있었으며,온라인과오프라인혐오에대한대응방안을잘모르겠다는응답이절반을넘어서고있다.
25) 2016. 8. 25.국가인권위원회는법무부에, 난민법 제6조에따른난민인정심사회부여부결정시불회부사유는
형식적요건중심으로최소화하고,명백히난민이아닌경우가아닌한난민인정심사에회부하도록관련법령
을개정할것을권고하였다.그러나법무부는불회부사유를형식적요건위주로최소화할경우적법한방법으
로입국이어려운자들이출입국항난민신청제도를악용하여, 국경관리시스템을무용화시킬우려가있다면서
국가인권위원회권고를불수용하였다.
26) 2014. 11. 5.국가인권위원회는 a.군인권법제정을추진할것, b.구타·가혹행위등인권침해예방을위해실효적
인대책을강구할것, c.군인권교육을 "통제과목"으로지정하는등인권감수성향상을위한방안을마련할것, d.
소원수리제도관련법규등을정비시행할것, e.병영생활운영에장병의직접참여제도를확대하고,초급간부들
의인권상황을개선할것, f.부대진단시외부전문가참여를보장할것등을주문으로하는권고를국방부장관에
게하였다.국방부는권고안이행에소극적이었지만국회의노력으로 2015. 12. 9. 군인의지위및복무에관한
기본법이제정되었고, 2016. 6.부터시행중이다.동법에서는군옴부즈만설치를별도의법률로할것을규정하고
있고,현재관련법률(국가인권위원회에군옴부즈만을설치하는법안)이국회에계류중인데,국방부는 "군인의인
권을보장하려는개정안의취지는이해하나,군옴브즈만제도를새로도입하는것에는신중할필요가있으며,불
가피하게군옴브즈만을설치할경우라도지휘권보장, 조사의신속성, 군사보안보호, 실효성있는구제등의
측면을감안하여국방부에설치하는것이타당하다는입장"이다.

Written Contribution
By National Human Rights Commission of Korea
For the 28th UPR Working Group Session for the review of the
human rights situation in the ROK
March 2017
The National Human Rights Commission of the Republic of Korea (NHRCK) is an
independent national human rights institution of the country which has been constantly
holding an accredited "A" status by the Global Alliance of National Human Rights
Institutions since its establishment in 2001. This written contribution is to evaluate the
implementation status of the recommendations made in the 2nd Universal Periodic Review
(UPR) of the Republic of Korea (ROK) and to suggest recommendations for the 3rd UPR of
the country and, at the same time, to come up with some key issues which were not dealt with
during the session of the 2nd UPR.
NHRCK Contact details:
W: http://www.humanrights.go.kr
E: nhrc@nhrc.go.kr
P: 340 Samil-daero, Narakium Jeo-dong Building, Seoul, Korea 04551
T: (+822)2125-9882
F: (+822)2125-0918

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NHRCK Written Contribution
For the 28th UPR Working Group Session for the review of the
human rights situation in the ROK
Implementation in general
1. The ROK is one of the highly supportive States that has been very cooperative with HRC
and UPR process: it had been a member of HRC from 2008 through 2013 and has also taken the
current membership until 2018, and served as the President of HRC for the 10th cycle in 2016.
2. Nevertheless, the ROK Government (Government) has not shown fully sufficient efforts to
implement the UPR recommendations (Recommendations) such as accession to the human rights
treaties (Treaties), withdrawal of its reservations to some Treaties and relevant institutional
improvements. As seen in the Thematic List of Recommendations (Annex), in spite of the
Government"s numerous policy efforts to implement the Recommendations, some of them did not
have a significantly practical effect. In particular, with regard to necessary cooperation with civil
society organizations and the NHRCK, which was stressed in Recommendation 124.15, the adopted
mechanism was limited in that it simply concerned a one-off process of opinion collection, rather than
a permanent monitoring system to cover the overall implementation progress of the
Recommendations.
3. It is a positive development that the Government incorporated the Recommendations from
the 2nd cycle to revise the 2nd (2012-2016) National Action Plan on Human Rights (NAP). However,
the NAP itself has not been fully implemented and, despite the NHRCK"s recommendation for the
establishment of the 3rd NAP (2017-2021), the Government has just held one session of public
hearing which was partly open to the public and has not established the 3rd NAP yet. Furthermore, as
the authority responsible for the UPR and the NAP is the Ministry of Justice,which is just one of the
government ministries, it has some limitations in playing a pivotal role in the work of promoting the
UPR process and implementing the NAP.
4. In the meantime, the NHRCK Act was revised in February 2016 to insert new provisions on
the immunitiesand qualifications of Commission members and strengthen the selection process of
Commission members by providing for the guarantee of transparency and diversity in the process.
These revisions meant progress towards NHRCK"s independence.
5. Recommendation: Ensure that the Recommendations be always incorporated into the NAP
and that the Prime Minister"s Office or other corresponding state body play as a control tower for
more effective implementation of the UPR and the NAP. Make institutional improvements to
substantially enhance the Government"s cooperation with the NHRCK and civil society organizations

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including the establishment of a permanent and periodic channel guaranteeing their participation in
the monitoring process of the Recommendations and the NAP.
6. Recommendation: It is imperative that the NHRCK should be promoted to a constitution-
based body at a future time of constitutional amendment in order to strengthen the NHRCK"s
independence and cement the current national regime for the promotion and protection of human
rights.
Accession to and the implementation of the Treaties
7. The ROK has yet to accede to seven1 out of eighteen Treaties and their optional protocols
(OPs). With regard to the Treaties and the OPs which remain unratified, the Government has just said
that it is "reviewing" or "studying" the possibility but no specific progress has been found in this
regard. For some of the Treaties to which the Government has acceded, it has put some reservations.2
8. The Human Rights Committee (CCPR), in its Concluding Observations of November 2015
on the ROK"s fourth periodic report, highlighted the severity of the racial discrimination and stressed
the priority implementation in the areas of discrimination based on sexual orientation, conscientious
objection and the right to peaceful assemblies. The NHRCK also expressed its view that the
Government needs to take positive actions for the implementation of the CCPR"s recommendations in
November 2016.
9. Recommendation: Make substantial efforts to accede to the unratified Treaties and OPs and
to withdraw several reservations, and start the procedure for the withdrawal of reservations at the
earliest possible time in relation to the reservations whose relevant national legal or institutional
arrangements have been improved.
10. Recommendation: In order to implement the CCPR"s recommendations of 2015, adopt a
comprehensive anti-discrimination law which prohibits all the grounds of discrimination forbidden in
the international human rights instruments and introduce alternatives to military service for the
conscientious objectors.3 Mindful that its recent efforts to guarantee the right to peaceful assemblies
are highly thought of, continue these efforts in future years, and try further to improve the current
reporting system of assembly which may be operated as a de facto prior reporting.
Low fertility rate, population aging and human rights for the older people
11. The indicators such as suicide and poverty rates reveal that older people"s situations are ever
worsening. In spite of the Basic Pension scheme for older people, the benefit is not enough to cover
their living costs. This forces them to stay in low-paying and non-regular labour market.4 Meanwhile,
the ROK has been experiencing the lowest low fertility rate for sixteen consecutive years since 2001.5
Although it is not a cause but a consequence of other structural problems, the tendency is that, as
illustrated in the controversial "ROK Fertility Map" of the Ministry of the Interior, low fertility is
considered as individuals" responsibilities instead of being viewed in the dimension of social
structure.6 In the ROK, women, once their career is interrupted, find it very hard to get reemployed

3 / 12
or end up in low-paying non-regular jobs. Moreover, the balance of work and family is particularly
difficult, largely due to the lack of decent State-run or other public day care facilities and the low use
of paternity leaves, and the conditions surrounding younger people"s employment continue to be
deteriorated, which are the most likely reasons why younger people delay their marriage and
childbirth as far as possible or even give up starting a family.7
12. The Government, in accordance with the Act On Low Fertility and Population Aging which
was legislated in 2004, sets up the Basic Plan on Low Fertility and Population Aging every five years,
and the 3rd Plan (2016-2020) is currently in progress. Although the ongoing Plan has introduced a
more positive vision of "Active Ageing" beyond the previous one of "preparation" for an aging society,
it is still focused on the issue of the reduction in economically active population which resulted from
the link between population aging and low fertility; and is not sufficient in addressing human rights of
individual older persons8.
13. Recommendation: In order to tackle low fertility, adopt a comprehensive approach taking
social and structural shortcomings into accounts together, which may include securing decent jobs for
younger people, resolving their housing problems, helping women recover from career breaks and
expanding alternative childcare facilities such as state-run or other public day-care centres.
14. Recommendation: Full realization of human rights and improvement of quality of life for
older people can be secured not by economic perspectives but by rights-based approaches. As the
poverty and suicide among older people are particularly problematic, the Government needs to take
more active responses.
Women, children and persons with disabilities
15. Women"s under-representation in the labour market is a serious problem indeed9, but what is
more serious is that the quality of women"s jobs is much lower than that of men"s. The difference in
the proportions of non-regular work between men and women had gradually decreased since 2011
until it grew again to the level of 2012 in the first half of 2016.10 This gap becomes particularly large
around the age of 30 when many women are forced to have their career interrupted largely due to their
childcare responsibilities.11 Women"s career breaks combined with "glass ceiling" is one of the key
reasons for which the ROK ranks in the first place every year among the Organisation for Economic
Co-operation and Development (OECD) members in terms of wage gap between men and women.12
16. According to the survey results released by the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family on 1
March, 2017, among the rape criminals who, after being convicted of sex crimes against children or
adolescents, had their personal information made public, 32.3% were put on probation in 2015.
Although this probation rate, after hitting the peak of 42.0% in 2012, has continuously declined, one
in every three criminals who were convicted of rape against children is still set free on suspended
sentences.13
17. A growing number of online sex crimes, including sexual harassment or violence through
Social Network Services and other online platforms, have been reported throughout the world in
recent years and the ROK is not an exception. The Government needs to take actions to address these

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problems. Furthermore, statistical data show that there is an increase in the cases of sexual harassment
by students at school.14 The expenditures of children"s private education are on the rise, 15 and the
call for the guarantee of children"s right to play is voiced while the problems of child abuse16 and
indirect corporal punishment at school17 are also raised.
18. Largely thanks to the formulation of the Act on the Prohibition of Discrimination against
Persons with Disabilities, Remedy against Infringement of their Rights in 2007 and the NHRCK"s
consistent efforts to rectify the discrimination against persons with disabilities, the ROK has
witnessed a visible progress towards enhancing human rights of persons with disabilities over the last
several years. Legal and institutional improvements have also been made in regard of persons with
mental disabilities: for instance, a relevant law was recently revised on a full scale.18 However, it is
still doubtful whether the involuntary hospitalization rate, which was as high as 70% in 2014, will
mark a significant decline sooner or later,19 and reports are often made about the people who,
thinking of the facilities for persons with disabilities as "noxious" ones, are opposed to the
establishment of such facilities in their neighbourhood.20
19. Recommendation: The Government has made many policy efforts to increase employment
rates of women and younger people, but those efforts have shown little effect for the last three years.
Make a thorough review on existing policy measures, and take active measures to ensure that
statutory hours of work be observed, working time be reduced and decent jobs be retained and
increased.
20. Recommendation: Draw up drastic measures to step up sanctions on perpetrators of sex
crimes against children or minors, and take comprehensive actions at national level to tackle the
alarming growth of online sexual violence and sexual violence among students at school.
21. Recommendation: It is appreciated that the Government has made efforts to improve legal
and institutional arrangements for promoting human rights of persons with disabilities. However, it is
concerned that there is still much room for improvement in public awareness about them and that
many persons with mental disabilities are, largely involuntarily, hospitalized simply for medical
treatment, instead of being provided with community care. Shift policy focus and take active
measures to help persons with disabilities return to social life and promote their deinstitutionalization.
Labour issues
22. The proportion of workers who are paid less than minimum wage was 11.5% of total wage
earners in end-2015.21 Moreover, although the number of workers in special types of employment
(economically dependent workers, EDWs) who need similar level of protection as ordinary workers
continues to grow and the number of EDW occupations also keeps growing, the legislation to protect
them has not been fully introduced yet, leaving these workers outside legal protection.22
23. Major trade unions like the Korean Government Employees" Union and the Korean Teachers
and Education Workers Union, have not been recognized as lawful. Furthermore, although the
Supreme Court and the Constitutional Court have shown significant changes in their positions about
the cases where workers were indicted on charges of interference with business due to their

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participation in strikes23, these changes alone do not regulate the prosecution itself or prevent
employers from making complaints on industrial actions but simply means that it is less likely that
strikers may be found guilty. Indeed, it is reported that the situations concerning the civil proceedings
initiated by employers over industrial actions remain unchanged.
24. Recommendation: It is concerned that the proportion of workers paid less than minimum
wage still exceeds 10%. Address the social conflicts resulting from the expansion in indirect
employment and non-regular work, and make efforts to guarantee three basic labour rights
particularly for EDWs and those who are hired by the Government and local governments, and to
promote the rights of vulnerable working people like EDWs and dispatched workers by extending the
coverage of the Industrial Accident Compensation Insurance, for example.
Protection of minorities and elimination of discrimination
25. Recently, hate speeches, particularly against women and foreigners, have gained a growing
attention as a social issue, and disadvantaged groups, such as women, sexual minorities, persons with
disabilities and migrants, are highly fearful of the hate speeches against themselves.24 Although the
Government revealed its position to accept Recommendation 124.30 which raised this issue, it has
failed to make sufficient efforts to make legal or institutional improvements for handling hate
speeches, including the legislation of a comprehensive anti-discrimination law.
26. It is encouraging that a significant progress has been made in the Government"s policy
measures to protect migrants, including the legislation of the Refugee Act and the implementation of a
range of multicultural policy actions. Still, most of these actions are focused on registered foreigners,
notably including migrant workers who come to the ROK under the Employment Permit System (EPS)
and marriage migrants, leaving unregistered migrants and their children in very vulnerable conditions.
In addition, the EPS restricts employees" freedom of changing their work places; and female marriage
migrants are highly dependent on their spouses. Meanwhile, it is reported that female migrantsholding
E-6 visas (arts and entertainment) are highly likely to be exposed to sexual exploitation. Moreover,
there are some cases where a foreigner who, after it was decided that his/her application for refugee
status recognition would not be forwarded to the deliberation process, filed a suit in defiance of the
decision, had to stay for long in poor conditions of the waiting room for departing foreigners while the
proceedings were in progress.25
27. Recommendation: Map out policy actions to mitigate hate speeches against socially
disadvantaged groups. Reinforce existing humanitarian protections for the foreigners staying in the
country, including unregistered migrants, and guarantee fundamental human rights of refugees,
asylum seekers and refugee status applicants. In particular, the Government should provide strong
protection to foreign children, whether registered or unregistered, in accordance with the principle of
"the best interests of the child", and needs to have a clear understanding about the situations of female
marriage migrants and E-6 visa holders who are exposed to the risk of sexual trafficking and improve
the relevant legal and institutional framework.

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Human rights in the armed forces
28. Several government bodies, including the Ministry of National Defence, have made various
efforts to improve human rights conditions in the armed forces for the past years, but human rights
infringements still take place in the armed forces, as seen in the death of a soldier who suffered sexual
assaults and abusive treatment in 2014. After the NHRCK"s recommendation of 2014, the Framework
Act on Military Status and Service was formulated in December 2015.26 However, reports are still
made about the cases of linguistic violence, abusive treatment, infringements on the rights to health
and health care and infringements on the right to life (including suicide) in the armed forces. As in
March 2017, the bill on the establishment of a Military Ombudsman within the NHRCK is pending
before the National Assembly.
29. Recommendation: Despite a considerable progress in human rights conditions in the armed
forces, human rights infringements are frequently committed against the soldiers who find it difficult
to adapt themselves to military life. It is necessary to establish a Military Ombudsman within the
NHRCK at the earliest possible time, as a fundamental protection of human rights in the armed forces.
Business and human rights
30. In 2016, the NHRCK recommended the Government to establish a separate NAP on the
Business and Human Rights, in addition to the general NAP. In the meantime, the Working Group on
the Issue of Human Rights and Transnational Corporations and Other Business Enterprises, in its
report of theofficial visit to the ROK published on 1 June 2016, observed that the Government should
ensure that human rights due diligence in the UN Guiding Principles on Business and Human Rights
is reflected in the investment activities by the National Pension and the execution of the Economic
Development Cooperation Fund by the Export-Import Bank of Korea. It also proposed that an
advisory group consisting of various stakeholders should be formed within the OECD National
Contact Point (NCP) in the ROK.
31. Recommendation: Establish a separate NAP on Business and Human Rights and take
actions to strengthen the role of the NCP.
1
a. Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (OP-
CESCR);
b. Second Optional Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and Political Rights (OP2-
ICCPR) aiming at the abolition of the death penalty;
c. Optional Protocol to the Convention against Torture and other Cruel, Inhuman or Degrading
Treatment or Punishment (OP-CAT);
d. Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child on a communications procedure
(OP3-CRC);

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e. International Convention on the Protection of the Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members
of Their Families (ICRMW);
f. International Convention for the Protection of All Persons from Enforced
Disappearance(CPED); and
g. Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD)
2 The Government has not withdrawn the reservations that it has made to Article 22 (freedom of
association) of ICCPR; Article 16 (1) (g) (right to choose a family name) of CEDAW; and Article 21 (a)
(adoption authorization system) and Article 40 (2) (b) (v) (the guarantee of the right to a review by a higher
authority or body) of CRC; and Article 25 (e) (subscription to life insurance) of CRPD. Although some progress
has been made in improving the national legal and institutional arrangements which were in conflict with Article
16 (1) (g) (right to choose a family name) of the CEDAW and Article 21 (a) (adoption authorization system) of
the CRC, consequently lowering the barrier to the withdrawal of the reservations concerned, the Government
has not embarked on the procedure for the withdrawal of the reservations.
3 For more information on the comprehensive anti-discrimination law, see Recommendation 124.23 of
the Theme B31 of the Annex. For more information on human rights of conscientious objectors, see
Recommendation 124.45 of the Theme D42.
4 The average effective age of labour market exit in Korea was 72.9 years in 2014, which is the highest
among the OECD nations and 7-8 years older than the OECD average (OECD, Pension at a Glance 2015,
pp.161-162). According to the "2016 Statistics on the Aged" by the Statistics Korea, an average person aged 65
or over will remain healthy for 9.1 years out of 20.9 years which is his or her residual life expectancy, which
points to poor healthy conditions among the aged people who are expected to suffer illnesses for almost half of
their residual life expectancy. The relative poverty rate of people aged 66 or over in Korea recorded 49.6% as in
2013, which was the highest among the OECD member states (4.4 times of the OECD average of 10.6% and
more than double of the rate of 24.1% in Israel which ranked the 2nd), while the relative poverty rate of the
entire population in Korea was 14.6%, which was not much different from the OECD average of the same year
(11.9%). This indicates that the pace of povertization grows much faster with age in Korea. And the proportion
of public pension beneficiaries among the people aged 65 or older is growing but was a mere 42.3% as in 2015.
Among the people of 55-79 years of age, the total amount of public and private pension combined per month
averaged about KRW 510,000. In particular, the beneficiaries of monthly KRW 1 million or more in pension
(e.g. the beneficiaries of the Government Employee Pension) accounted for only 12.5%, whereas the
beneficiaries of less than KRW 500,000 took up 75.2% of all pension beneficiaries and even the beneficiaries of
less than KRW 250,000 recorded a high proportion of 49.5% (Statistics Korea, 2016 Statistics on the Aged).
Accordingly, most of the pension beneficiaries find it difficult to escape from absolute poverty unless they have
an additional source of income or financial support, such as earned income, family"s financial support or the
benefit under the National Basic Livelihood Security scheme. In the meantime, the Basic Pension scheme which,
starting from July 2014, provides a monthly benefit of about KRW 200,000 to 70% of the people aged 65 or
over is of no significance to the older persons at the lowest poverty level because, in accordance with the
subsidiarity principle of the Basic Pension scheme, the pension amount available to these people is offset by the
amount of the NBLS benefit offered to them. While the suicide rate of total population in 2015 was 26.5 per
every 100,000 persons, which was approximately twice the OECD average (12.1 persons, as in 2014), the
suicide rate of people aged 65 years or older was much higher at 58.6 persons and the corresponding rate for
sub-groups of aged people grew at a faster pace with age (37.1 persons among those of 65-69 years; 54.9 among
those of 70-74; 72.5 among those of 75-79; and 83.7 among those of 80 or older). It was reported that the
biggest cause of suicide among aged people was poverty, followed by family discord and loneliness (Statistics
Korea, 2015 Population Census; and OECD Health Data 2015). To sum up, the faster growth in suicide rates

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among those aged 70 years or older than the rates among those who are in the initial stage of old age (that is,
those aged 65-69) is a clear indication that older people"s life is getting harder over time "to the extent that they
are neither able nor willing to lead a life".
5 The ROK entered the age of the lowest low fertility (below 1.3 in total fertility rate) in 2001 and
experienced a fertility shock of 1.08 (fertility rate of 1.08) in 2005. The fertility rate has since increased slightly,
but still remains as low as 1.17 in 2016.
6 The Ministry of the Interior opened a new website (http://birth.korea.go.kr) and disclosed "the ROK
fertility map" in December 2016, for the purpose of increasing fertility rate. This map takes the form of a
colourful graph which ranks different local governments according to the number of women at childbearing age
and the fertility rate in the corresponding regions. Faced with the growing public criticism that the map is based
on a sexist idea which regards women as a means of childbearing, the Ministry closed the web page, and only
"the information note: under construction of the page" can be found now on the website.
7
Although men and women have almost the same employment rate of around 59% or women have a
little higher rate in the age group of 20-29 years, the gender gap in employment rate grows dramatically starting
from the age of 30 years, which can be explained by women"s career breaks due to their childbirth or child-
rearing. Men"s employment rate in their 30s records more or less 90%, which is a rapid rise from the rate in their
20s; whereas women"s employment rate in their 30s is lower than the rate in their 20s. Although female
employment rate in their 40s is higher than the rates in their 20s and 30s, in a typical M-shaped trend, it is
worried that most of the jobs among the women in their 40s are in non-regular employment, whose quality is
lower than that of the jobs held by men in the same age group or women in their 20s. In particular, the data
released by the Statistics Korea show that the bottom point of employment rate among women in their 30s
shifted from the early 30s (34 years or younger) to the late 30s (35 years or older), which reflects the reality that
the women who succeeded in finding a good job in their 20s tend to give birth to a child at a later age than in the
past.
Employment rate by year and by gender
Classification Employment rate by year (%)
Gender Age group 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014
Men
20~29 59.2 58.4 58.2 58.3 57.3 55.7 55.8
30~39 90.3 89.1 89.5 89.8 90.3 90.2 90.9
40~49 91.8 90.9 91.2 91.6 91.7 92.0 92.7
Women
20~29 59.1 58.0 58.3 58.7 58.8 57.8 59.0
30~39 54.7 52.7 53.7 53.7 54.5 55.5 56.3
40~49 64.7 64.1 64.2 64.9 64.6 64.6 65.1
(Source: Statistics Korea, Survey of Economically Active Population 2016)
Since the inauguration of the current Government in 2013, youth employment rate among those aged 15-29
recorded slight increases to 39.7% (in 2013), 40.7% (in 2014) and 41.5% (in 2015), but youth unemployment
rate also increased to 8.0% (in 2013), 9.0% (in 2014) and 9.2% (in 2015). As the 9.2% youth unemployment rate
of 2015 is the highest in the recent decade and this upward trend in youth unemployment is likely to continue
for a while, youth unemployment is emerging as a serious social problem.
8
It should be noted that the “Madrid International Plan of Action on Ageing (MIPAA)” stresses that
support for income security and economic activities should be provided even before people start their old-age
life and the issue of right to health should not be limited to "currently" older people but should be expanded to
younger generations so that the latter may "start an old-age life in good health conditions". "Low fertility" is a

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sign of social crisis which should be overcome, but aging is a positive development which can be regarded as “a
great victory for the humanity”. Just as much as it is a very big challenge, aging needs to be dealt with active
responses.
9
The current Government set, as one of its priorities for national administration, "the road map for 70%
employment rate", which includes a wide range of measures, such as different supportive programmes to help
women continue their work career in different life courses, under the goal of increasing female employment rate
by 10%, but it has been pointed out that these measures are not effective enough. Since the current Government
was inaugurated in 2013, female employment rate grew by a mere 2.3%p as in 2016 and it still remained much
lower than male employment rate (by about 20%p). In terms of female employment rate as in 2015, the ROK
ranked only the 29th among the then 34 OECD member states.
Trends in employment rate by gender (15-64 years of age) since 2011
(Unit: %)
2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 Nov 2016
Men 74.5 74.9 74.9 75.7 75.7 75.8
Women 53.1 53.5 53.9 54.9 55.7 56.2
(Source: Statistics Korea, Survey of Economically Active Population (SEAP) 2016)
10
Proportion of non-regular work by gender
(Units: %; %p)
2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 Jun 2016
All 34.2 33.3 32.6 32.4 32.5 32.8
Men 27.8 27.2 26.5 26.6 26.5 26.4
Women 42.8 41.5 40.6 39.9 40.2 41.0
Gender gap 15.0 14.3 14.1 13.3 13.7 14.6
(Source: Statistics Korea, Supplementary Survey by Employment Status of the SEAP, August 2016)
11
See Endnote 7 above.
12 According to the gender pay gap indicators of OECD members which are annually published by PwC,
a UK-based independent accounting consulting firm, the ROK recorded 36% in average gender pay gap in 2015,
which was the worst among the observed nations (PwC, PwC Women In Work Index: Closing the gender pay
gap, Feb 2017, p.24).
13 According to an analysis of the court decisions that confirmed sex crimes and ordered the perpetrators"
personal information to be made public in 2015, which was commissioned by the Ministry of Gender Equality
and Family to the Korean Women"s Development Institute, 3,366 persons were given an order of personal
information disclosure after being convicted of a sex crime against children or juveniles over the year, which
was a 4.1% increase from the previous year (3,234 persons), while the number of convicted rapists declined
from 855 (in 2014) to 733 persons (in 2015), of which only 495 (67.5%) were put into prison and 237 (32.3%)
were released on probation (the press release dated 1 March 2017 of the Ministry of Gender Equality and
Family).
14 The data presented by the Ministry of Education to the National Assembly in 2016 showed that the
cases of sexual violence against students were on the rise, from 892 in 2013 to 1,306 in 2014. It was also
revealed that, during the same period, 87% of the student victims suffered sexual violence from other "students".
In response, the relevant government agencies, including the Ministry of Education, the Ministry of Gender
Equality and Family and the National Police Agency, jointly announced the Measures to Prevent Sexual

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Violence against Students at School in February 2017, under which they plan to provide active education for
sexual violence prevention starting from the level of elementary school, reinforce the infrastructure for reporting
and counselling of sexual violence cases against students and strengthen school programs to protect and support
student victims.
15 See Recommendation 124.60 of the Theme E1 in the Annex
16 See Recommendation 124.40 of the Theme F13 in the Annex.
17 See Recommendation 124.38 of the Theme D25 in the Annex.
18 The current Mental Health Act will be renamed to the Act concerning Mental Health Promotion and
Welfare Service Support for the Mentally Disabled on 30 May 2017, in the wake of its revision bill adopted on
29 May 2016. The revised Act includes a new principle that, in taking care of persons with mental disabilities,
community-based care should be preferred to hospitalized care (Article 2 (5) of the revised Act).
19 According to the statistical data of the National Mental Health Commission, voluntary admission
takes up a mere 29.7% of the total cases of hospitalization and it is not likely that the high proportion of
involuntary admission will record a significant decline in the near future. Moreover, on 29 September, 2016, the
Constitutional Court, in the case of petition (2014Heonga9) for unconstitutionality of the provision on
involuntary admission (Article 24 (1) (Hospitalization by a person responsible to provide protection; see below)
of the Mental health Act, ruled that the provision in question is not constitutional. The Constitutional Court
reasoned that the provision is not complemented by sufficient measures designed to minimize infringement on
the personal liberty of mentally disabled persons. It also determined that the right given to the psychiatrist to
judge on the hospitalization concerned might be abused. As this provision remains almost unchanged in the new
version of the Act which was finalized (on 29 May 2016) before the Constitutional Court gave the ruling of
unconstitutionality, the Act should be revised again to incorporate the Court"s ruling or, at least, new measures
should be introduced into its subordinate regulations, including the Enforcement Ordinance, to prevent the abuse
or misuse of the provision. Moreover, an adequate system for mentally disabled persons" return to society needs
to be set up so that they can be provided with a community care program, instead of being hospitalized.
Article 24 (Hospitalization by Person Responsible to Provide Protection) (1)
The director of a mental institution, etc. may, limited to the cases where a psychiatrist judges
that hospitalization, etc. is necessary, hospitalize a mentally disabled person, with the
consent of two persons responsible to provide protection to the mentally disabled person
(with the consent of one person, in cases where one person has the responsibility to provide
protection), and shall receive, from the person responsible to provide protection, a written
consent to hospitalization and a document verifying that he/she is a person with such
responsibility.
20 The NHRCK, in the statement of its views on 29 December 2015, pointed out that the residents"
opposition to the establishment of a vocational training centre for persons with disabilities, which was one of the
heated social controversies at that time, might constitute "an act of discrimination against persons with
disabilities", while stressing that the local government concerned needs to make further efforts to improve
people"s understanding and awareness about persons with disabilities in order to prevent recurrence of
discrimination against disabled persons in the local community.
21
On 16 July 2016, the Minimum Wage Commission finalized hourly minimum wage for the year 2017
at KRW 6,470 (KRW 1,352,230 per month in the case of 40-hour work per week). According to the press
release by the Minimum Wage Commission, this hourly minimum wage is a 7.3% rise from the year 2016, and

11 / 12
this increase rate of minimum wage in 2017 is lower than the corresponding rate (8.1%) of 2016 but is similar to
the rates in 2014 (7.2%) and 2015 (7.1%). The underpayment rate (the proportion of workers who are paid less
than minimum wage, as percentage of all wage workers) began to decline after it peaked at 12.8% in 2009, but
rebounded in 2013.The underpayment rate per year is as follows:
Proportion of workers paid less than minimum wage, as percentage of all wage workers
(Unit: %)
Year 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015
Rate 11.9 10.8 12.8 11.5 10.8 9.6 11.4 12.1 11.5
(Source: Minimum Wage Commission, 2017 Analysis on Wage Conditions, etc. for Minimum Wage Deliberation, June 2016, p.12.)
22
On 17 September 2007, the NHRCK expressed, to the National Assembly and the Government, its
opinion that the legislation should be enacted and revised at an early time in order to protect the EDW by
securing minimum labour standards for these workers, guaranteeing them three basic labour rights and applying
four social insurances to them. In addition, on 27 November 2014, the NHRCK recommended that the coverage
of the Industrial Accident Compensation Insurance (IACI) should be made more substantial for the EDW of the
six occupations which are already governed by the IACI Act; and that the coverage of the IACI should be
expanded to cover all of the EDW. In 2008, a special provision on EDW (Article 125) was inserted to the IACI
Act, entitling the EDW in the nine occupations (four occupations in July 2008; two additional occupations in
May 2012; and three additional occupations in July 2016) where those workers exclusively belong to their
current workplaces to the protection of the IACI. However, ten years have passed since this legal revision, with
no additional legislative action being taken to promote protection of the EDW.
23
The Constitutional Court and the Supreme Court of the ROK have showed some significant changes
in their practices of applying the criminal penalties of obstruction of business to workers" strikes, as described
below:
a. The Constitutional Court (in Decision No. 2009Heonba168 on 29 April 2010), in relation to the
petition for unconstitutionality of Article 314 (1) (obstruction of business) of the Criminal Act,
stressed that an industrial action, even if it inevitably causes interference with business, is a
fundamental right under the Constitution and, therefore, additional evidence is required to
establish that the industrial action constitutes a crime of interference with business, although
the Court upheld its position that the provision is constitutional.
b. The Supreme Court (Full-bench Decision No.2007Do482 on 17 March 2011) ruled that a strike
may be established as a crime of obstruction of business only when the two additional
conditions of "suddenness of the strike concerned" and "serious confusion or enormous damage
due to the strike" are satisfied and that the burden of proof is on the prosecution.
24
According to the aforementioned survey conducted by the NHRCK with regard to hate speech, all of
the respondents (about 1,000 persons) who are women, sexual minorities, persons with disabilities or migrants
were fearful of hate speech and felt threatened by relevant crimes, and some of them even hid their identity in
fear of their exposure to hate speech and relevant crimes. More than half of the respondents said that they did
not know how to react any hate speech made online or offline against themselves.
25
On 25 August 2016, the NHRCK recommended the Ministry of Justice to revise the Refugee Act and
other relevant legislation so that the reasons for the decision not to refer a refugee status application to the
deliberation process should be minimized to non-compliance with formal requirements and that all applications
should be referred to the deliberation process, except for the cases where it is apparent that the applicant
concerned is not a refugee. However, the Ministry of Justice refused to accept the NHRCK"s recommendation,

12 / 12
saying that if the reasons of not-to-refer decision are minimized to non-compliance with formal requirements,
the Ministry is concerned that those who find it difficult to enter this country in a lawful manner might take
advantage of refugee status application scheme and, as a result, current national border security system could
collapse.
26 On 5 November 2014, the NHRCK recommended the Minister of National Defence:
a. to seek to legislate a law on human rights in the armed forces;
b. to work out effective measures to prevent human rights infringements, including beating and
other abusive acts;
c. to draw up the measures to enhance human rights sensitivity, including the designation of
human rights education in the armed forces as a controlled subject;
d. to upgrade and enforce the law and regulations concerning the grievance-handling system;
e. to expand the institutional framework for officers" and soldiers" participation in the operation of
military camp life and improve human rights conditions of junior officers; and
f. to guarantee external experts" participation in the process of military unit assessment.
Although the Ministry of National Defence was passive in implementing these recommendations, the
Framework Act on Military Status and Service was formulated on 9 December 2015 and came into force in June
2016, largely thanks to the endeavours from the National Assembly. This Act provides that the Military
Ombudsman may be appointed under a separate law, and a relevant bill (concerning the establishment of the
Military Ombudsman within the NHRCK) is currently pending before the National Assembly.

UPR of the ROK (2nd Cycle - 14th session) Thematic list of recommendations Page 1 of 47
Recommendation Position Full list of themes Assessment/comments on level of implementation
Theme: A12 Acceptance of international norms
124.3. Ratify OP-CAT (Spain); Sign and ratify OP-
CAT as a matter of priority and found the national
preventive mechanism accordingly (Czech
Republic); Accede to OP-CAT and establish an
effective national mechanism to prevent torture or
degrading treatment (Bulgaria); Adhere to OP-CAT
and consequently establish a national mechanism
responsible to conduct visits to detention centres
(Costa Rica); Consider ratifying OP-CAT (Slovenia);
Rapidly complete the process of considering ratifying
OP-CAT (Tunisia);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 8
Noted A12 Acceptance of international norms
A44 Structure of the national human rights machinery
D25 Prohibition of torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading
treatment
Affected persons:
- general
- persons deprived of their liberty
The NHRCK recommended already in 2006 that the
Government should accede to OP-CAT, but there has been no
significant development in this regard until now.
The Government said, in its Mid-term Report of 2015, that a
study on necessary legislative proposals for the accession to
OP-CAT had been adopted as a 2015 agenda at the Korean
Institute of Criminology, but it is not confirmed whether this
study was actually carried out, nor has a final outcome of the
study been published yet.
The Government has the position that the NHRCK is, in
practice, playing the role of a national preventive mechanism
mentioned in OP-CAT. According to the NHRCK Act, the
NHRCK has the powers to investigate into the complaints
involving confinement and care facilities and visit the
facilities for investigation, but the definition of confinement
and care facilities under the NHRCK Act is narrower than the
one under OP-CAT. That is, the Enforcement Ordinance to
the NHRCK Act limits the scope of the places that the
NHRCK may visit for investigation purpose to "confinement
and care facilities" such as prisons, lock-ups and mass care
facilities, whereas the Article 4 of OP-CAT defines, as place
of detention, “any place… where persons are or may be
deprived of their liberty, either by virtue of an order given by
a public authority or at its instigation or with its consent or
acquiescence”, even including police vehicles, other vehicles
for transportation of detainees and any other place of
detention.
In addition, the NHRCK"s visit for investigation should be

UPR of the ROK (2nd Cycle - 14th session) Thematic list of recommendations Page 2 of 47
Recommendation Position Full list of themes Assessment/comments on level of implementation
paid, in principle, after a prior notice is given to the places or
facilities that it will visit,1 which is not compatible to the
principle of investigation without notice under OP-CAT.
124.8. Sign and ratify the UNESCO Convention on
Discr imination in Education (Iraq);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 6
Supported A12 Acceptance of international norms
B31 Equality & non-discrimination
E51 Right to education - General
Affected persons:
- general
- children
N/A
124.6. Ratify the International Convention for the
Protection of All Persons from Enforced
Disappearance (CPED) (Spain); Study the possibility
of ratifying the CPED (Argentina); Sign and ratify
the CPED (Iraq);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 11
Noted A12 Acceptance of international norms
D32 Enforced disappearances
Affected persons:
- disappeared persons
- general
On January 14, 2008, the NHRCK recommended the
Government to sign and ratify CPED, but no significant
change has been made in this regard. At the time of the
recommendation, the NHRCK also stressed that CPED is
needed to be ratified even if revision of some domestic laws
could be necessary as follows:
Definition of enforced disappearance
The Criminal Code does not fully incorporate the definition
of enforced disappearance under the CPED: “a refusal to
acknowledge the deprivation of liberty or by concealment of
the fate or whereabouts of the disappeared person, which
place such a person outside the protection of the law”
Punishment of superiors
It is not impossible to punish “any person who commits,
orders, solicits or induces” in Article 6 (1) (a) of CPED under
the provisions about joint-principals, incitement and instigator
in the Criminal Code, while responsibility of superior of
Article 6 (1) (b) and order or instruction of Article 6 (2) may
not be punished under any current law. However, the latter
1 Article 3 (1) of the Enforcement Ordinance to the NHRCK Act (Visit to detention and protection facilities for investigation) In case the National Human Rights Commission of Korea
(hereinafter referred to as “the Commission”) intends to pay a visit for investigation under the provision of Article 24 (1) of the Act, it should give a prior notice to the head or manager of the
detection or protection facility concerned, specifying the reason, time and location of the visit. However, this shall not apply in the cases where a visit needs to be paid urgently or it is admitted
that a prior notice may prevent the Commission from achieving the purpose of the visit.

UPR of the ROK (2nd Cycle - 14th session) Thematic list of recommendations Page 3 of 47
Recommendation Position Full list of themes Assessment/comments on level of implementation
could be punished if Articles 4, 5 and 15 of the Act on the
Punishment of Crimes within the Jurisdiction of the
International Criminal Court be applied.
Universal jurisdiction
Article 9 (1) (a), (b) and (c) refer to territorial principle, active
personality principle, and active personality principle
(protective principle) respectively. The Criminal Code of the
ROK has also the same provisions in Article 2, 3 and 6.
Article 9 (2) formulates limited universal jurisdiction scheme
jurisdiction, which allows States Parties can exercise its
jurisdiction “when alleged offender is present in any territory
under its jurisdiction.” Article 3 of the Act on the Punishment
of Crimes within the Jurisdiction of the International Criminal
Court can easily be applied to this case.
124.2. Ratify the Optional Protocol to the
International Covenant on Economic, Social and
Cultural Rights (OP-ICESCR) (Spain) ; Consider
signing and ratifying OP-ICESCR (Palestine);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 7
Noted A12 Acceptance of international norms
E1 Economic, social & cultural rights - general measures of
implementation
B51 Right to an effective remedy
Affected persons:
- general
The NHRCK, when it expressed its opinion about the fourth
periodic report of the ROK on the International Covenant on
Economic, Social and Cultural Rights (ICESCR),
recommended the Government to make a progressive review
on the possibility of acceding to the Optional Protocol to the
ICESCR. The Government stated, in its Midterm Report of
2015, that it had commissioned a study in relation to the
possibility of acceding to the OP-ICESCR and was in the
process of reviewing final conclusions. However, as the
Government has not provided any information on the results
of the study and its position, it is not possible to ascertain the
Government"s position about the accession to the OP-
ICESCR.
124.7. Continue to exert its utmost efforts to ratify
ILO core Conventions, including the recent ILO C.
No 189 on Decent work for domestic workers
(Philippines); Ratify and implement the ILO
Convention concerning Freedom of Association and
Protection of the Right to Organise (Convention 87);
ILO Convention concerning the Application of the
Principles of the Right to Organise and to Bargain
Noted A12 Acceptance of international norms
E31 Right to work
D27 Prohibition of slavery, trafficking
E32 Right to just and favourable conditions of work
E33 Trade union rights
Affected persons:
- general
Government has been reluctant to accede to the ILO
Convention Concerning Decent Work for Domestic Workers,
on the ground that some provisions of the Convention are in
conflict with the national legislation, whereas the NHRCK
recommended the Government to sign and ratify the
Convention on 23 December 2016.
Among the eight Core Conventions of the ILO, the ROK has

UPR of the ROK (2nd Cycle - 14th session) Thematic list of recommendations Page 4 of 47
Recommendation Position Full list of themes Assessment/comments on level of implementation
Collectively (Convention 98); ILO Convention
concerning Forced or Compulsory Labour
(Convention 29); and ILO Convention concerning
the Abolition of Forced Lab our (Convention 105)
(Uruguay);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 12
yet to ratify Conventions Nos. 87 and 98 on freedom of
association and Conventions Nos. 29 and 105 on elimination
of forced labour.2
The Government is passive about ratifying Conventions Nos.
87 and 98, because it is reluctant to acknowledge civil
servants" and teachers" rights to organize trade unions and
engage in strikes. In addition, the Government is passive
about ratifying Conventions Nos. 29 and 105, on the ground
that social service work, an alternative to military service,
may be regarded as forced labour. However, the NHRCK,
judging that social service work does not constitute forced
labour as defined in the ILO Conventions, and recommended
the Government to ratify those Conventions in November
2006.
124.4. Consider an early ratification of the third
Optional Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of
the Child on a communications procedure (OP-CRC-
IC) (Slovakia);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 9
Noted A12 Acceptance of international norms
F31 Children: definition; general principles; protection
B51 Right to an effective remedy
Affected persons:
- children
With regard to the ratification of the third Optional Protocol
to the Convention on the Rights of the Child (OP3-CRC), the
Government said that “review is underway regarding
domestic remedies and relevant court rulings”, but has not
submitted any clear information on the progress or a plan to
accede to or ratify the OP3-CRC.
124.9. Adhere to the Hague Convention on
Protection of Children and Co-operation in respect of
Supported A12 Acceptance of international norms
F31 Children: definition; general principles; protection
The Government signed the Hague Convention on Protection
of Children and Cooperation in respect of Intercountry
2
Principles Eight Fundamental Conventions Ratification
Freedom of association
Freedom of Association and Protection of the Right to Organise Convention (No. 87)
No
Right to Organise and Collective Bargaining Convention (No. 98)
Prevention of forced labour
Forced Labour Convention (No. 29)
Abolition of Forced Labour Convention (No. 105)
Prevention of child labour
Minimum Age Convention (No. 138)
Yes
Worst Forms of Child Labour Convention (No. 182)
Anti-discrimination
Equal Remuneration Convention (No. 100)
Discrimination (Employment and Occupation) Convention (No. 111)

UPR of the ROK (2nd Cycle - 14th session) Thematic list of recommendations Page 5 of 47
Recommendation Position Full list of themes Assessment/comments on level of implementation
Intercountry Adoption (France); Ratify the Hague
Convention on Protection of Children and Co-
operation in Respect of Intercountry Adoption
(Honduras); Accede to the Hague Convention on the
Protection of Children and Co-operation in Respect
of Intercountry Adoption (Ireland);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 6
F32 Children: family environment and alternative care
Affected persons:
- children
Adoption in May 2013, but had a plan to ratify the
Convention once the relevant legal and institutional
framework is in order. However, no progress has been made
since then. The bill for "the law on intercountry adoption", a
national implementing law for the ratification of the Hague
Convention, was proposed in December 2015 but, upon
termination of the National Assembly session, was
automatically discarded. The same bill was submitted to the
session of the National Assembly now in progress (in
September 2016), but it is pointed out that the bill needs to be
improved.
124.1. Study the possibility of ratifying the
International Convention on the Protection of the
Rights of All Migrant Workers and Members of
Their Families (ICRMW), the Second Optional
Protocol to the International Covenant on Civil and
Political Rights, (ICCPR-OP2) aiming at the
abolition of the death penalty, the Optional Protocol
to Convention against Torture and Other Cruel,
Inhuman or Degrading Treatment or Punishment
(OP-CAT) (Argentina);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 6
Supported A12 Acceptance of international norms
G4 Migrants
D23 Death penalty
E31 Right to work
D25 Prohibition of torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading
treatment
B21 Right to self-determination
Affected persons:
- general
- migrants
- persons deprived of their liberty
See Recommendation 124.3 above, with regard to the OP-
CAT
In regard of the accession to the second OP-ICCPR, the death
penalty system should be abolished in advance. The NHRCK
has consistently called for the abolition of death penalty,
including in its recommendation for the 3rd NAP on Human
Rights (in July 2016), but the Government has shown no
significant change in its relevant policy actions.
After the Supreme Court ruled, in the case of "Migrants Trade
Union (MTU) of Seoul and Gyeonggi Area" in June 2015,
that migrant workers can organize or join a trade union even
when they do not have a valid work permit, it has become
possible for migrant workers to organize or join a trade union.
Still, the Government has made no significant change in its
policy actions in relation to the ratification of ICRMW.
124.5. Further consider acceding to the relevant
Conventions, especially the ICRMW in line with its
domestic legislative process (Cambodia); Consider
ratifying the ICRMW (Philippines); Consider
ratifying ICRMW (Rwanda); Consider the possibility
of adapting national legislation in order to allow for
the ratification of ICRMW (Algeria); Consider
acceding to the ICRMW (Morocco); Accede to
ICRMW (Sudan); Ratify the ICRMW (Chile); Ratify
the ICRMW, in order to better protect the rights of
Noted A12 Acceptance of international norms
G4 Migrants
E31 Right to work
Affected persons:
- migrants
See Recommendation 124.1. above

UPR of the ROK (2nd Cycle - 14th session) Thematic list of recommendations Page 6 of 47
Recommendation Position Full list of themes Assessment/comments on level of implementation
migrant workers, including undocumented migrant
workers (Indonesia);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 10
Theme: A13 Reservations
124.10. Consider withdrawing the remaining
reservations to international human rights
instruments to which it is a party (namely to the
CRC, ICCPR, OP-CRC-SC, CEDAW) (Slovenia);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 13
Noted A13 Reservations
D51 Administration of justice & fair trial
F31 Children: definition; general principles; protection
D1 Civil & political rights - general measures of implementation
F12 Discrimination against women
Affected persons:
- general
- children
- women
The following are the reservations that the ROK has made to
the international human rights treaties to which it is a State
Party:
a) Article 22 (freedom of association) of the ICCPR;
b) Article 16 (1) (g) (right to choose a family name) of
the CEDAW; and
c) Article 21 (a) (adoption authorization system) and
Article 40 (2) (b) (v) (the guarantee of the right to a
review by a higher authority or body) of the CRC
In regard of a), as the reservation restricts civil servants" right
to organize a trade union, the Government needs to make
efforts to guarantee three basic labour rights for civil servants
so that the reservation to Article 22 of the ICCPR may be
withdrawn.
In relation to b), some progress has been made in that, with
the revision of the Civil Act in 2005, it is now possible to use
mother"s family name as one"s own. However, the principle is
that father"s family name should be chosen first and mother"s
may be used on the condition of an agreement between the
parents, which means that "the freedom of choosing a family
name" is not fully guaranteed in this country.
In regard of c), the Government should positively consider
withdrawing the reservation to the "adoption authorization
system", particularly given that the relevant national
legislation and institutions have been improved, as described
in the Government"s Mid-term Report of 2015.
124.11. Withdraw its reservations on Article 21(a) of
the Convention on the Rights of the Child
Supported A13 Reservations
F32 Children: family environment and alternative care
Affected persons:
See Recommendation 124.10. above

UPR of the ROK (2nd Cycle - 14th session) Thematic list of recommendations Page 7 of 47
Recommendation Position Full list of themes Assessment/comments on level of implementation
(Germany); Lift its reservation to artic le 21 (a) of the
CRC (Ireland);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 6
- children
Theme: A24 Cooperation with special procedures
124.16. Extend an invitation to the Special
Rapporteur on Torture (Belarus); Strengthen
cooperation with the relevant UN human rights
mechanisms in areas such as racial discrimination,
the restriction on the freedom of religion and belief,
human trafficking (Uzbekistan);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 6
Supported A24 Cooperation with special procedures
D42 Freedom of thought, conscience and religion
B32 Racial discrimination
D27 Prohibition of slavery, trafficking
D25 Prohibition of torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading
treatment
Affected persons:
- general
- minorities/ racial, ethnic, linguistic, religious or descent-based
groups
The ROK has extended a standing invitation to all thematic
special procedures. The Special Procedures with visits to the
ROK for investigation which have been conducted since 2013
are listed below, and the NHRCK has been actively
cooperating with Special Rapporteurs for their visits to and
activities in the ROK, including the meetings with the
Chairperson and working-level personnel of the NHRCK.
a) Special Rapporteur on the situation of human rights
defenders (May 2013)
b) Special Rapporteur on contemporary forms of
racism, racial discrimination, xenophobia and
related intolerance (September 2014)
c) Special Rapporteur on the implications for human
rights of the environmentally sound management
and disposal of hazardous substances and wastes
(October 2015)
d) Special Rapporteur on the rights to freedom of
peaceful assembly and of association (January
2016)
e) Working Group on the issue of human rights and
transnational corporations and other business
enterprises (May 2016)
Theme: A3 Inter-State cooperation & development assistance
124.70. Continue strengthening the mechanisms to
promote international cooperation with a focus on the
promotion and protection of human rights, as
fundamental principles of the official development
assistance (Paraguay).
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 42
Supported A3 Inter-State cooperation & development assistance
Affected persons:
- general
Every year, the NHRCK, in cooperation with the Korea
International Cooperation Agency, provides support to human
rights work in developing countries and, in an effort to
increase cooperation with those countries, invites civil
servants of the countries to Korea for education and training.

UPR of the ROK (2nd Cycle - 14th session) Thematic list of recommendations Page 8 of 47
Recommendation Position Full list of themes Assessment/comments on level of implementation
Theme: A41 Constitutional and legislative framework
124.56. Review regularly the application of the
National Security Act, to ensure its consistency with
human rights principles (Australia); Specify
modalities for the implementation of the National
Security Law so that this law cannot be used against
freedoms of expression, association and peaceful
assembly (France);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 31
Noted A41 Constitutional and legislative framework
D43 Freedom of opinion and expression
D45 Freedom of association
A42 Institutions & policies - General
D44 Right to peaceful assembly
A12 Acceptance of international norms
Affected persons:
- general
In August 2004, the NHRCK recommended the Government
to abolish the National Security Act and has consistently
pointed out, including in its recommendations for the 2nd
(2012-2016) and the 3rd (2017-2021) NAP, that the
Government needs to take actions to ensure that the Act is not
abused and the provision of Article 7 of the Act is improved.
Moreover, the UN Special Rapporteur on the rights to
freedom of peaceful assembly and of association who paid a
visit to the ROK in January 2015 recommended that Article 7
of the National Security Act should be abrogated (Para 93.
Other Recommendations, (a)).
However, the Government has not shown any significant
change in its position about the possibility of relevant legal
and institutional improvements, including the abolition of the
National Security Act and the amendment to Article 7 of the
Act.
Theme: A42 Institutions & policies - General
124.44. Give consideration to the implementation of
measures and programmes to provide assistance to
landmine victims such as psycho-social, medical an d
financial support (Thailand);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 24
Noted A42 Institutions & policies - General
A12 Acceptance of international norms
B53 Support to victims and witnesses
Affected persons:
- general
- persons affected by armed conflict
According to a 2011 survey of the Gangwon Province area
(Census on Civilian Landmine Victims in Gangwon
Province) conducted by the Peace Sharing Association, which
is the Korean branch of the International Campaign to Ban
Landmines, it was revealed that, since the end of the Korean
war, 228 civilians lost their life or were injured due to the
landmines washed away or shallowly buried under the
ground. In October 2014, the Special Act concerning the
Support for Landmine Victims came into force to provide
compensation for those landmine victims.
However, according to the current status on the consolation
payments made to civilian landmine victims, which was
released by the Ministry of National Defence, as in January
2017, out of 397 persons who have applied for consolation
payment since the Special Act took effect, only 46 applicants
(12%) have received consolation payments. It is pointed out

UPR of the ROK (2nd Cycle - 14th session) Thematic list of recommendations Page 9 of 47
Recommendation Position Full list of themes Assessment/comments on level of implementation
that some victims have not applied for compensation because
of the lack of knowledge about the Special Act and that the
amounts of compensation which depend on the victims" time
of death may raise an equitability issue3.
Theme: A45 National Human Rights Institution (NHRI)
124.14.Strengthen the national human rights
institution and strengthen its independence (Spain);
Continue its efforts to provide the National Human
Rights Commission with more independence and
resources (Tunisia); Take steps to ensure that bodies
entrusted with overseeing the protection of rights,
such as the National Human Rights Commission, are
fully mandated and resourced (Australia);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 15
Noted A45 National Human Rights Institution (NHRI)
Affected persons:
- general
The "NHRCK Act" was revised in February 2016 to set up
specific qualifications for Commission members in order to
guarantee diversity in the makeup of Commission members
and transparency in the procedures of selecting Commission
members; to ensure that a wide range of social groups
participate in the process of selecting Commission members;
and to insert new provisions on Commission members"
immunities from liability to what they said in relation to their
work. However, it is necessary that the NHRCK should be
promoted to a constitutional agency when the Constitution is
amended, in order to further increase the NHRCK"s
independence.
Theme: A47 Good governance
124.46. Continue its endeavours in fostering the rule
of law and social cohesion (Viet Nam);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 6
Supported A47 Good governance
Affected persons:
- general
N/A
Theme: A61 Cooperation with civil society
124.15. Establish a channel for the National Human
Rights Commission and civil society organizations to
participate in the work of the National Human Rights
Policy Council on the implementation of
recommendations from the Universal Periodic
Noted A61 Cooperation with civil society
A45 National Human Rights Institution (NHRI)
A27 Follow-up to Universal Periodic Review (UPR)
Affected persons:
- general
In December 2013, the Government revised the 2nd NAP
which was established in March 2012, by reflecting the 2nd
UPR recommendations. However, in general, it is not easy for
civil society to participate in the processes of reviewing the
implementation progress of the UPR recommendations or the
3 According to the office of Rep. Ju-min Park, as the amount of consolation payment for a landmine victim is based on the monthly average wage at the time of the victim"s death, the
total amount of consolation payment for the victims who died or got injured in the 1970s when the wage level was generally very low is no more than several hundreds of thousands of Korean
won, which many of the victims or surviving families refuse to accept. By contrast, the compensation for the victims who died or suffered injuries in recent years amounts to hundreds of
millions of won. The consequence is that the largest compensation is as much as 512 times larger than the smallest one, just because of the difference in the time of accident (Reason for the
proposal of the revision bill; November 21, 2016).

UPR of the ROK (2nd Cycle - 14th session) Thematic list of recommendations Page 10 of 47
Recommendation Position Full list of themes Assessment/comments on level of implementation
Review and treaty bodies (Bulgaria); Incorporate the
results of the UPR into its current National Action
Plan on Human Rights, taking into account the
proposals of the civil society and present a mid-term
evaluation report to the Council on the
implementation of the recomme ndations of this UPR
(Hungary);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 16
NAP, except in public hearings or debates, and the civil
society"s role, if any, in the processes is only limited.
In particular, in assessing the implementation status of the
recommendations from treaty organizations and the UPR
process, a one-off session for opinion collection, instead of a
permanent monitoring system, is used. In this light, in order
to promote substantial cooperation with the NHRCK and civil
society organizations, the Government needs to make
institutional improvements including the establishment of a
permanent and periodic channel guaranteeing their
participation in the monitoring process of the UPR
recommendations and the NAP.
Theme: B31 Equality & non-discrimination
124.23. Continue its ongoing efforts to arrive at a
national consensus on a general act on anti-
discrimination (Indonesia); Strengthen efforts and
take measures towards adoption of the law to fight
discrimination (Palestine); Accelerate efforts to adopt
an Anti-Discrimination Law (Chile); Step up efforts
to adopt a comprehensive Anti-Discrimination Bill in
line with the relevant international human rights
instruments (Slovenia); Adopt an anti-discrimination
law to replace the law that was suspended in May
2008 (Chad); Ensure the passage of the Anti-
Discrimination Act (India); Adopt a comprehensive
and broad-based anti-discrimination law (Australia);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 19
Supported B31 Equality & non-discrimination
A41 Constitutional and legislative framework
Affected persons:
- general
After the NHRCK recommended the Government to adopt
the Anti-Discrimination Act on 24 July 2006, the Government
had sought to enact the law but the Government-drafted bill
was discarded upon the end of the 17th National Assembly"s
four year term in 2008. Current administration has proceeded
with the enactment of the Anti-Discrimination Act, as one of
its priorities for national administration, but no government
bill has been worked out yet. In response, the NHRCK
reiterated its recommendation for the adoption of a
comprehensive Anti-Discrimination Act when it submitted
the recommendations for the 3rd NAP (2017-2021).
However, no significant development has been made yet.
124.24. Adopt the Anti-discrimination Act as a
matter of priority while encompassing also grounds
for discrimination on the basis of sexual orientation
(Czech Republic); Include in the Anti-discrimination
Law a specific prohibition on discrimination on the
basis of sexual orientation (Spain);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 21
Noted B31 Equality & non-discrimination
A41 Constitutional and legislative framework
Affected persons:
- lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex persons
(LGBTI)
The Human Rights Committee (CCPR) expressed its
concerns and recommendations, as seen below, in its
Concluding Observations published in November 2015 after
the consideration of the Fourth State Report by the ROK:
a) While noting the existence of a number of
individual laws prohibiting specific forms of
discrimination, the Committee is concerned that
comprehensive anti-discrimination legislation is
lacking. It is particularly concerned about the

UPR of the ROK (2nd Cycle - 14th session) Thematic list of recommendations Page 11 of 47
Recommendation Position Full list of themes Assessment/comments on level of implementation
current lack of legislation defining and prohibiting
racial discrimination and discrimination on the
grounds of sexual orientation or gender identity.
(Para. 12)
b) The State Party should adopt comprehensive anti-
discrimination legislation, explicitly addressing all
spheres of life and defining and prohibiting
discrimination on any ground, including race,
sexual orientation and gender identity. The
legislation should impose appropriate penalties for
direct and indirect discrimination committed by
both public and private entities, and should provide
for effective remedies. (Para. 13)
Moreover, considering that, in the CESCR"s General
Comment 20 (Para. 32), sexual orientation and gender
identity are both the discrimination grounds which are
explicitly forbidden in the ICESCR, sexual orientation and
gender identify should be enumerated as two of the prohibited
discrimination grounds in the comprehensive Anti-
Discrimination Act, to ensure the legislation"s compliance
with the international standards.
124.22. Take continuous measures for the protection
of the rights of women and other marginalized
groups (Nepal); Intensify the efforts aimed at
fighting all forms of discrimination, especially by
strengthening the national l egislative framework
(Algeria);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 19
Supported B31 Equality & non-discrimination
A42 Institutions & policies - General
B32 Racial discrimination
A41 Constitutional and legislative framework
F12 Discrimination against women
Affected persons:
- women
- minorities/ racial, ethnic, linguistic, religious or descent-based
groups
- vulnerable persons/groups
Although some progress has been made in the legislation and
institutions concerning violence against women, including
domestic violence, sexual violence, sex trafficking and sexual
harassment, there still exist some limitations in safeguarding
human rights of the victims. Moreover, it has been pointed
out that the legal and institutional framework is not well-
established to prevent dating violence and stalking and
protect victims of dating violence and stalking.
As single-parent families and single mothers experience
various forms of discrimination and social and economic
exclusion, due to the social bias against them, it is necessary
to take policy responses to address this problem.
With regard to the need to reinforce the legal system to
eliminate all forms of discrimination against women, see

UPR of the ROK (2nd Cycle - 14th session) Thematic list of recommendations Page 12 of 47
Recommendation Position Full list of themes Assessment/comments on level of implementation
Recommendation 124.23 above.
124.34. Review the possibility of repealing laws that
criminalize on the basis of sexual orientation within
the military (United States of America);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 22
Noted B31 Equality & non-discrimination
D46 Right to private life, privacy
A41 Constitutional and legislative framework
Affected persons:
- lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex persons
(LGBTI)
Article 92-6 of the Military Criminal Act provides that any
military or paramilitary person who commits anal intercourse
or other disgraceful conduct shall be punished by
imprisonment with labour for up to two years.
In December 2010, the NHRCK submitted its written opinion
that this provision infringes upon homosexual soldiers" right
to equality, right to self-determination, personal liberty and
freedom of privacy and is also in violation of the principle of
legality, to the Constitutional Court which was then reviewing
this provision for its possible unconstitutionality.4
In addition, the NHRCK called for the repeal of the provision
of Article 92-6 of the Military Criminal Act, not only in its
recommendations for the 2nd NAP (2012-2016) but also in its
recommendations for the 3rd NAP (2017-2021), but no
significant development has been made in the Government"s
position.
124.33. Study the possibility of intensifying
measures aiming at eliminating all discriminatory
treatment on the basis of sexual orientation or gender
identity (Argentina);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 19
Supported B31 Equality & non-discrimination
D46 Right to private life, privacy
A42 Institutions & policies - General
A41 Constitutional and legislative framework
Affected persons:
- lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender and intersex persons
(LGBTI)
- women
According to a survey about hate speeches conducted by the
NHRCK in 2016, it was revealed that sexual minorities feel
highly fearful of people"s hate speeches against themselves on
account of their sexual orientation or identify. Given that this
hate may escalate into serious human rights infringements
and discrimination against them, the Government should take
policy actions, including the legislation of the general anti-
discrimination act as mentioned in Recommendation 124.23
above.
124.21. Work towards passing legislation that
provides ethnic minorities and vulnerable groups,
including women and persons with disabilities,
protection from discrimination and legal recourse for
Supported B31 Equality & non-discrimination
F41 Persons with disabilities: definition, general principles
B32 Racial discrimination
B51 Right to an effective remedy
A41 Constitutional and legislative framework
G1 Members of minorities
See Recommendation 23 above
4 NHRCK, “Decision about the Constitutional Court"s adjudication on the unconstitutionality of Article 92 of the Military Criminal Act”, 8 December 2010. Despite this written opinion
of the NHRCK, the Constitutional Court declared, in its ruling of March 31, 2011, that the said provision is constitutional.

UPR of the ROK (2nd Cycle - 14th session) Thematic list of recommendations Page 13 of 47
Recommendation Position Full list of themes Assessment/comments on level of implementation
victims of discrimination (Canada);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 19
F12 Discrimination against women
Affected persons:
- women
- minorities/ racial, ethnic, linguistic, religious or descent-based
groups
- persons with disabilities
- vulnerable persons/groups
Theme: B32 Racial discrimination
124.30. Continue implementing measures to combat
and prevent racism, racial discrimination and
xenophobia, and to guarantee eq uality of
opportunities (Cuba);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 19
Supported B32 Racial discrimination
A42 Institutions & policies - General
Affected persons:
- minorities/ racial, ethnic, linguistic, religious or descent-based
groups
Since the murder of a woman which happened near the
Gangnam subway station in Seoul in May 2016, hate issues,
including hate speeches against women, have gained a
growing attention as a serious social problem. In response, the
NHRCK carried out the "Survey on Current Situations of
Hate Speech and the Ways to Improve the Situations" in
2016, while the National Assembly made legislative efforts to
address the hate speech issue, including the actions to
introduce the Anti-Discrimination Act which, however, has
yet to be adopted. At present, the Act on the Prohibition of
Discrimination Against Persons With Disabilities, Remedy
Against Infringement of Their Rights is the only law in force
in Korea that regulates hate speech (Article 32 Prevention of
harassment).
The Government"s policy measures to deal with hate speech
are not sufficient. According to the aforementioned survey
conducted by the NHRCK with regard to hate speech, all of
the respondents (about 1,000 persons) who are women, sexual
minorities, persons with disabilities or migrants were fearful
of hate speech and felt threatened by relevant crimes, and
some of them even hid their identity in fear of their exposure
to hate speech and relevant crimes. More than half of the
respondents said that they did not know how to react any hate
speech made online or offline against themselves.
Theme: D1 Civil & political rights - general measures of implementation
124.58. Abolish the “Security Surveillance Law”,
which restricts freedoms of former political prisoners
and prisoners of conscience (Democrat ic People " s
ROK);
Noted D1 Civil & political rights - general measures of implementation
A41 Constitutional and legislative framework
Affected persons:
- general
- persons deprived of their liberty
N/A

UPR of the ROK (2nd Cycle - 14th session) Thematic list of recommendations Page 14 of 47
Recommendation Position Full list of themes Assessment/comments on level of implementation
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 32
Theme: D23 Death penalty
124.35. Consider ratifying ICCPR-OP2, aiming at
the abolition of the death penalty (Rwanda); Ratify
ICCPR-OP2, aiming at the abolition of the death
penalty (Switzerland); Consider ratifying the ICCPR-
OP2, aiming at the abolition of the death penalty
(Slovenia); Modify the penal provisions that provide
for the application of the death penalty with a view to
a total prohibition and ratify ICCPR-OP2, aiming at
the abolition of the death penalty (Uruguay);
Consider the possible establishment of an official
moratorium on the death penalty, since it is not
applied since 1997 (Chile); Convert the present de
facto moratorium on executions into a formal
moratorium (Germany); Take concrete measures in
order to transform the de facto moratorium on the
death penalty into a de jure moratorium on execution
and sentencing (Switzerland); Introduce a
moratorium on all executions and introduce
legislation to abolish the death penalty (United
Kingdom); Maintain effectively the de facto
moratorium on the death penalty (Belgium); Respect
international minimum standards on the death
penalty, if the ROK will maintain it (Belgium);
Consider the abolition of the death penalty
(Honduras); Consider the possibility of the abolition
of the death penalty by the law (Uzbekistan); Take
into consideration the possibility of abolishing the
death penalty (Italy); Take steps towards the
abolition of the death penalty (Norway); Take steps
towards the abolition of the death penalty, while
commuting the existing sentences to life
imprisonment terms (Slovakia); Complete the
legislative process in order to abolish capital
punishment, which as a matter of fact, has been
suspended for more than a decade (Turkey); Take all
necessary measures in order to abolish de jure the
death penalty (France); Abolish definitively the death
Noted D23 Death penalty
A41 Constitutional and legislative framework
A12 Acceptance of international norms
Affected persons:
- general
The NHRCK recommended, in its recommendations for the
3rd NAP (2017-2021), that the Government should accede to
the 2nd OP-ICCPR, abolish the death penalty system,
introduce an alternative penalty to replace death penalty and
continue to refrain from executing death penalty. The
NHRCK is hopeful that the relevant themes will be explicitly
incorporated in the 3rd NAP which the Government is now
working on.

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Recommendation Position Full list of themes Assessment/comments on level of implementation
penalty (Spain); Abolish the death penalty and ratify
ICCPR-OP 2 (Australia);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 18
Theme: D25 Prohibition of torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading treatment
124.13. Include in the Penal Code the crime of
torture, in line with article 1 of CAT (Mexico);
rapidly complete the process of harmonizing national
legislation with CAT with respect to the d efinition
of torture (Tunisia);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 14
Noted D25 Prohibition of torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading
treatment
A41 Constitutional and legislative framework
Affected persons:
- general
- persons deprived of their liberty
The specific definition of torture is not prescribed under any
relevant laws such as the Criminal Code; however, there exist
legal provisions which ban torture. Article 12 Paragraph 2 of
the Constitution stipulates that torture shall be prohibited
while Article 309 of the Criminal Procedure Act cites
confession made by torture as one of the examples which
shall not be taken as evidence of guilt.
However, it seems controvertible that “torture” prescribed in
the provisions above makes clear equivalent of what is
defined in CAT. In particular, those provisions seem unclear
if they include mental pain or suffering as part of torture as
does in CAT.
Relevant laws such as the Criminal Code might as well carry
a clear definition of torture which matches that of the
Convention, paying special attention to criminalization of the
mental form of torture.
A document submitted by the Ministry of Justice to the
National Assembly in 2015 shows that the number of people
under prosecutors" investigation who had committed suicide
from 2005 to 2014 totals 90. It is also noted that there is not
even a survey to record how many testifiers or suspects take
their own lives during police investigation even though they
do from time to time.
The Supreme Prosecutors" Office distributes the “Guideline
for Investigating Suspects” to prosecutors" offices in 2005,
which orders to prevent extreme actions by carefully
protecting human rights of suspects; this guideline, however,
only ignited criticism that it shows nothing but a theoretical
principle. The NHRCK paid attention to the fact that a series
of suicide by those under investigation led to neither analysis

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Recommendation Position Full list of themes Assessment/comments on level of implementation
of fundamental cause nor prevention measures; thus, it
delivered its opinion to Prosecutor General in September
2016, stressing the needs to determine the cause of suicide
attempts and prepare measures to address the issue. The
prosecution has accepted the opinion and agreed to ponder on
the measures in detail.
124.37. Further strengthen measures against torture
and ill-treatment (Czech Republic); Investigate all
allegations of torture by the police and prosec ute the
perpetrators (Belarus);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 23
Supported D25 Prohibition of torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading
treatment
A42 Institutions & policies - General
B51 Right to an effective remedy
Affected persons:
- general
See Recommendation 124.13 above
124.38. Consider establishing the total prohibition of
corporal punishment (Palestine); Carry out public
awareness campaigns on the negative consequences
of the ill-treatment of children to promote positive
and non-violent forms of discipline in schools and at
home as alternative measures to these punishments
(Uruguay); E xpressly prohibit corporal punishment
in all settings (Hungary);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 23
Supported D25 Prohibition of torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading
treatment
F31 Children: definition; general principles; protection
A54 Awareness raising and dissemination
Affected persons:
- children
Corporal punishment at school
With the revision of the Enforcement Ordinance to the
Elementary and Secondary Education Act on 18 March 18
2011, direct corporal punishment at school has been
forbidden. In response, many local governments have adopted
the human rights for students ordinances which prohibit direct
corporal punishment at school. However, indirect corporal
punishment is still allowed and, what is worse, is feared to
increase as direct corporal punishment is forbidden.
At ordinary schools, leapfrogging, a face down position with
the support of one"s feet and hands only, running rounds and
standing long at the back of the classroom are used for
indirect corporal punishment, and it was reported that, even in
some cases, students were forced to beat each other in a form
of indirect corporal punishment.
Indirect corporal punishment is as highly likely to violate
students" human rights as direct corporal punishment, in that
it may infringe on a student"s personal liberty because it
causes physical pain, make the student feel humiliated, and
violate his/her general right to freedom of conduct and
freedom of conscience particularly because the pain-givers
are students themselves.
Article 16 (1) of CAT prohibits "other acts of cruel, inhuman

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Recommendation Position Full list of themes Assessment/comments on level of implementation
or degrading treatment or punishment which do not amount to
torture", and indirect corporal punishment at school may fall
under these forbidden acts. Furthermore, acts of degrading
treatment which are based on race, physical appearance and
family conditions may violate this prohibition, even when
such acts do not cause any physical or mental pain.
It is necessary that a ban should be imposed on indirect
corporal punishment, in proportion to the ban given to direct
corporal punishment; or indirect corporal punishment should
be restricted to the extent that the consequent pain may be
minimized as possible. In addition, any form of punishment
or act which makes a young student feel humiliated should be
prohibited, and monitoring should be reinforced to protect
children from these types of indirect corporal punishment.
Theme: D27 Prohibition of slavery, trafficking
124.43. Consider stepping up its efforts towards
ratification of the Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and
Punish Trafficking in Persons, Especially Women
and Children, Supplementing the United Nations
Convention against Transnational Organized Crime
(Palermo Protocol) (Philippines); Ratify the Palermo
Protocol (Brazil); Ratify the Palermo Protocol (The
Netherlands); Ratify the Palermo Protocol (United
Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern Ireland);
Take comprehensive measures in combatting
trafficking in persons including by the accession to
the Palermo Protocol and by extending an invitation
to the Special Rapporteur on trafficking in persons,
especially women and children (Belarus); Take more
proactive measures to identify and look after victims
of human sex trafficking, especially by ratifying the
Palermo Protocol (Belgium);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 23
Supported D27 Prohibition of slavery, trafficking
F13 Violence against women
F33 Children: protection against exploitation
A12 Acceptance of international norms
Affected persons:
- general
- children
- women
The NHRCK welcomes the ROK"s accession to the Palermo
Protocol.
With regard to the issues concerning trafficking of female
migrant workers, see Recommendation 124.67 below.
124.42. Step up its efforts to address the issue of
trafficking of women and children (Malaysia);
Strengthen the cooperation both at national and
international levels in fighting against human
Supported D27 Prohibition of slavery, trafficking
F13 Violence against women
F33 Children: protection against exploitation
A3 Inter-State cooperation & development assistance
Affected persons:
See Recommendation 124.43 above

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Recommendation Position Full list of themes Assessment/comments on level of implementation
trafficking equally for the purposes of sexual
exploitation and forced labour (Republic of
Moldova);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 23
- children
- women
Theme: D31 Liberty and security - general
124.55. Release all persons including pro-
reunification patriots who were unjustly arrested and
imprisoned according to the “National Security Law”
(Democrat ic People"s ROK);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 31
Noted D31 Liberty and security - general
D43 Freedom of opinion and expression
Affected persons:
- persons deprived of their liberty
See Recommendation 124.56 above
124.36. Consider establishing mechanisms
preventing security forces from using force in an
excessive or unjustified manner, especially agains t
peaceful protesters (Poland);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 27
Noted D31 Liberty and security - general
D44 Right to peaceful assembly
D25 Prohibition of torture and cruel, inhuman or degrading
treatment
Affected persons:
- general
In January 2016, the NHRCK determined that the police
violated the freedom of expression when they regarded, as an
unlawful assembly, the press conference held in front of the
premise of the Constitutional Court by those who were
opposed to the Court"s decision on the disorganization of a
political party and kept them from proceeding with the press
conference. Then, the NHRCK recommended the chief of the
competent local police agency to take actions to prevent
recurrence of similar cases and to educate police officers, and
the local police agency accepted this recommendation.
By contrast, when the NHRCK, after judging that the total
ban on any assembly to be held at a particular area close to
the Presidential Blue House is a violation of the freedom of
assembly, recommended the head of the competent police
office to be more cautious in interpreting and applying the
requirements for a ban on assembly under the Assembly and
Demonstration Act and to take a softer approach first instead
of a total ban, the police office did not accept this
recommendation. However, with regard to the assemblies
which have taken place since October 2016, while the police
still forbid any assembly or demonstration to be held near the
Presidential residence, the court accepted the assembly
organizers" repeated demands for an injunction on the police"s
ban, partly allowing the assemblies and demonstrations to be
held at any place.
In August 2016, the NHRCK demanded that the police should

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Recommendation Position Full list of themes Assessment/comments on level of implementation
ensure safety in using water spray trucks to control
assemblies and demonstrations and also asked the police to
refrain from using them until their safety is confirmed. In
December 2016, the NHRCK expressed its view, to the
National Assembly Speaker, that the National Assembly is
advised to make amendments to the Act on the Performance
of Duties by Police Officers so that straight shots of water
from a water spray truck may not be used towards people,
hazardous substances may not be included in the water and
the police is obliged to perform a duty of care, particularly in
relation to older people. However, these amendments have
not been made yet.
In relation to the recent large-scale assemblies and
demonstrations which have been held for and against
impeachment of the former President Park Geun-hye every
week downtown in Seoul, a positive evaluation is being made
about the police"s efforts to maintain order and, at the same
time, guarantee freedom of assembly.
Theme: D4 Fundamental freedoms
124.57. Define more clearly the regulations of the
National Security Law (Germany); Consider
amending the National Security Law to prevent
arbitrary application and abusive interpretation of the
law (Norway); Amend the National Security Law to
guarantee that its application respects fully the
freedom of expression (Spain); Amend the National
Security Law to provide clarity and prevent abusive
interpretations of the law (United States of America);
Abolish the criminal laws as the “National Security
Law” (Democrati c People " s ROK);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 31
Noted D4 Fundamental freedoms
D43 Freedom of opinion and expression
A41 Constitutional and legislative framework
Affected persons:
- general
- persons deprived of their liberty
See Recommendation 124.56 above
Theme: D42 Freedom of thought, conscience and religion
124.53. With regard to conscientious objection, adapt
existing national legislation so that alternative
services to military service effectively have a civil
nature and that they are placed under the monitoring
Noted D42 Freedom of thought, conscience and religion
A42 Institutions & policies - General
A41 Constitutional and legislative framework
Affected persons:
- general
As in February 2017, the national legislation of the ROK still
does not permit conscientious objection to military service.
Article 88 (1) of the Military Service Act provides that a
person who refuses to enlist in the military or participate in

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Recommendation Position Full list of themes Assessment/comments on level of implementation
of civil authorities (France); Abolish imprisonment
and establish a non-military service for conscientious
objectors (Germany); Ensure that the right to
conscientious objection to military service is
observed (Poland); Recognize the right to
conscientious objection to military service and
introduce alternative service in line with international
standards (Slovakia); Recognize conscientious
objection as a right, guaranteeing an alternative
community service to the military service of a truly
civilian character, and free all conscientious objectors
currently imprisoned (Spain); Immediately introduce
an alternative military service option for
conscientious objectors, ensuring it has a non-
combatant or civilian character and is not of a
punitive nature (United States of America); Introduce
alternative service for consc ientious objectors
(Australia);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 30
- persons deprived of their liberty military training on the ground of his individual faith shall be
punished by imprisonment with labor. In this regard, the
Ministry of National Defense reasons that "under the
mandatory military service system, the state is justified to use
a strong sanction against any person who refuses to comply
with the duty of military service, in order to ensure
effectiveness in enforcing the duty of military service and
realize the justice for military service, that is, fair and
equitable enlistment".
According to the Analytical Report on Conscientious
Objection to Military Service released by the UN Human
Rights Council in June 2013, the number of conscientious
objectors to military service who were detained in prisons
throughout the world in 2012 totaled 723 persons, of whom
669 (about 92.5%) were Korean.
In 2015, CCPR, in its Concluding Observations on the fourth
periodic report of the ROK (CCPR/C/KOR/CO/4), expressed
concerns about the reality that no alternative service programs
have been in place for conscientious objectors to military
service and, consequently, the conscientious objectors are
subject to criminal penalties, recommending that the
Government should legalize conscientious objection to
military service.
On 28 November 2016, the NHRCK submitted its written
opinion, to the Constitutional Court, that the right to object
military service for a conscientious reason should be
protected as part of freedom of conscience which is
recognized in both the Constitution of Korea and the
international human rights instruments and that criminal
punishment of conscientious objectors to military service for
violating the Military Service Act infringes on freedom of
conscience, now that it is possible to adopt a desirable
solution of offering conscientious objectors an alternative
service program and an opportunity to fulfill their duty of
national defense. As in February 2017, this written opinion is
being reviewed by the Constitutional Court. For information,

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Recommendation Position Full list of themes Assessment/comments on level of implementation
the Constitutional Court ruled that the provision for the
criminal punishment of conscientious objectors to military
service in the Military Service Act was constitutional, both in
2004 and 2011.
In the meantime, the trial courts (district courts) of the ROK
have found not guilty a total of 14 conscientious objectors to
military service until January 2017, while a court of appeals
(high court) issued a not-guilty ruling to a conscientious
objector to military service for the first time in October 2016.
As for a conscientious objector to military service who
refused to participate in reserve forces training in January
2017, a trial court found him not guilty. However, the
Supreme Court remains unchanged since it ruled in 2004 that
conscientious objection to military service may not constitute
a justifiable reason for refusing to enlist in the military.
Theme: D43 Freedom of opinion and expression
124.50. Take further actions to ensure freedom of
expression on the Internet, including opinions which
are different from the positions of the Government
(Japan); Ensure full implementation of international
human rights obligations regarding freedom of
expression (Poland); Ensure that laws on freedom of
expression and freedom of the press are applied in
conformity with international standards
(Switzerland);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 26
Supported D43 Freedom of opinion and expression
A12 Acceptance of international norms
Affected persons:
- general
- media
The Report on the Right to Information (2013) of the
NHRCK highlights that excessive regulation on information
distribution on the Internet may result in the contraction of
freedom of online expression.
As was observed by the NHRCK in its recommendations for
the 3rd NAP of July 2016, the Government needs to review
how to improve the relevant legislation and institutions
concerning the Internet real name system, the regulation on
contents and the abuse of cyber defamation charges, for the
purpose of promoting freedom of expression on the Internet.
Meanwhile, considering that, in 2015, the CCPR expressed
concerns about a growing number of criminal charges filed by
the Government or businesses against civilians in the ROK
and emphasized the need to establish a culture of tolerance to
criticism, the Government needs to take actions to improve
social awareness about this issue.
Furthermore, policy actions should be taken to ensure that
public broadcasting agencies are free from the Government"s

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Recommendation Position Full list of themes Assessment/comments on level of implementation
influence while private broadcasting companies exercise their
editing power, independently of the influence from their
owners or large advertisers and the pressure of excessive
commercialization.
124.51. Adopt specific legislation to guarantee the
exercise of the rights to freedom of opinion and
expression (South Africa);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 28
Noted D43 Freedom of opinion and expression
A41 Constitutional and legislative framework
Affected persons:
- general
See Recommendation 124.36 above
124.52. Transfer the functions of the Korean
Communications Standards Commission to an
independent commission (Switzerland);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 28
Noted D43 Freedom of opinion and expression
A42 Institutions & policies - General
Affected persons:
- general
- media
N/A
124.54. Provide training to law enforcement officers
on proper enforcement of the National Security Law
to avoid investigations, detentions, and charges that
restrict freedom of expression and result in a climate
of self-censors hip (United States of America);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 26
Supported D43 Freedom of opinion and expression
B51 Right to an effective remedy
A53 Professional training in human rights
D26 Conditions of detention
Affected persons:
- general
- persons deprived of their liberty
- law enforcement / police officials
See Recommendation 124.56 above
Theme: D51 Administration of justice & fair trial
124.45. Adopt child friendly procedural rules in the
justice system (Hungary);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 6
Supported D51 Administration of justice & fair trial
F34 Children: Juvenile justice
Affected persons:
- children
On 19 May 2016, the NHRCK recommended that the
Government should amend Article 16 of the Act on Special
Cases concerning the Punishment of Child Abuse Crimes so
that the revised provision requires the appointment of public
defenders in the criminal proceedings for child abuse crimes
in order to provide effective support to the children victims.
However, the Ministry of Justice refused to accept this
recommendation, on the ground that the responsible
prosecutors already review the need to appoint a public
defender in a particular case; a public defender may be
appointed by authority, whenever necessary; and the
obligation to appoint a public defender might infringe on the
rights of the child victim concerned in case the appointment is
against the child"s own will, and might result in a waste of
time and resources in case no legal aid is needed.
In this regard, the 2016 Human Rights Report of the Korean
Bar Association proposed that the appointment of public

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Recommendation Position Full list of themes Assessment/comments on level of implementation
defenders for child abuse victims should become mandatory,
as given below:
“The provision on the selection/appointment of a
defending lawyer under the Act on Special Cases
concerning the Punishment of Sexual Violence Crimes
applies mutatis mutandis to the Act on the Punishment of
Child Abuse Crimes. That is, in case a child victim has
no defending lawyer, the prosecutor may appoint a
public defender for the child, by his/her authority or
upon the application of the victim or the victim"s legal
representative. However, in practice, a high proportion
of child abuse crimes are committed by the victims" real
parents and many of the legal representatives who are
not the child abuse perpetrators do not want a lawyer"s
involvement and are reluctant to cooperate with a
lawyer"s investigation into the case. In this light, it is
necessary to oblige the appointment of a public defender
for the children victims under the age of thirteen years.”
In the meantime, the Ministry of Justice has mapped out a
revision bill of the Family Litigation Act. This revision bill is
intended to promote the rights of minors in the course of
family litigations, by adding “protection of minors" rights” as
part of the overarching purpose of the Act; requiring the
appointment of a minor"s assistant who is present at the time
of the minor"s statement and assists the minor in making
his/her statement, whenever necessary; and obliging a court
of law to hear a minor"s statement in case the trial has a direct
effect on the minor"s welfare.
Theme: E1 Economic, social & cultural rights - general measures of implementation
124.60. Continue programmes and actions to
promote and protect economic, social and cultural
rights, in particular in the area of health, education
and food (Cuba); Continue efforts to strengthen
access to quality education and health services,
especially for the vulnerable se gments of society
(Bahrain);
Supported E1 Economic, social & cultural rights - general measures of
implementation
B31 Equality & non-discrimination
E25 Human rights & poverty
A42 Institutions & policies - General
E22 Right to food
E41 Right to health - General
E51 Right to education - General
Affected persons:
Right to health for the disadvantaged
Although the proportion of people in absolute poverty in
Korea is above 8.6% (disposable income), the share of
medical benefit recipients is merely 3% of total population as
in 2014, according to the National Health Insurance Service"s

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Recommendation Position Full list of themes Assessment/comments on level of implementation
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 35 - general
- persons living in poverty
statistical data on medical benefits.
In addition, according to the National Health Insurance
Service"s 2012 Survey on Medical Costs of Insured Patients,
the share of out-of-pocket payments in total medical costs
was still high even in the case of medical benefit recipients: it
was rated at 5.9% for the medical benefit recipients of Class 1
and 7.6% for the recipients of Class 2. In reality, this is more
than they can afford to pay.
Considering that medical security is the largest and the most-
wanted welfare needs of poor people, it is urgent that the
Government should take actions, in the on-going process of
reforming the NBSL scheme, to increase the coverage of
medical benefits and the scope of beneficiaries.
Right to education for the disadvantaged
Since it is customary in the ROK to discriminate people on
the ground of their educational attainments and rank people
based on their schools/universities, those who have graduated
from better schools/universities have more chances to get
better jobs. Amid the fierce academic competition, especially
for admissions to better high schools and universities, there
exists an enormous market for private education. This private
education market is where education inequality is created
between the children in high-income families who can afford
to receive private education and those in low-income families
who cannot afford to. This inequality leads to a vicious circle,
in that the children in low-income families are later forced to
work in non-regular, low-paying and low-quality jobs in this
highly dualized labour market with regular and non-regular
workers. Since 2011, private education participation rate
decreased (from 71.7% in 2011 to 68.8% in 2015) while
monthly expenditure for private education per student
increased from KRW 335,000 in 2011 to KRW 355,000 in
2015. This means that a growing number of students cannot
afford to receive any private education whereas the students
who can afford to receive private education spend more on

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Recommendation Position Full list of themes Assessment/comments on level of implementation
private education.
Furthermore, monthly expenditure on private education per
student was KRW 420,000 among the families with average
monthly income of KRW 7 million or more, but was KRW
66,000 among the families with average monthly income of
less than KRW 1 million. Private education participation rate
was 82.8% in the former group, but was 32.1% in the latter
group. As illustrated in the first graph, participation rate by
income level rose in proportion to monthly expenditure, and,
as shown in the second graph, participation rate was
proportionate to rank in school.5
Theme: E21 Right to an adequate standard of living - general
124.59. Allocate sufficient funding to the poverty
eradication strategy of the ROK (South Africa);
Increase its efforts to expand protection and support
for low-income groups to solve weakening social
integration due to intensifying income polarization
Supported E21 Right to an adequate standard of living - general
E25 Human rights & poverty
E41 Right to health - General
E24 Right to social security
E23 Right to adequate housing
Affected persons:
- persons living in poverty
According to the Household Income and Expenditure in the
4th Quarter and the Full Year of 2016 released by the
Statistics Korea on February 24, 2017, monthly income
among households in the 1st quintile (the bottom 20%)
averaged KRW1,447,000, which was 5.6% down from the
previous year; whereas monthly household income in the 5th
5
Monthly expenditure on private education per student and participation
rate by household income level in 2015
(Source: Statistics Korea, 2015 Survey on Private Education Expenditures in Primary and Secondary School)
Monthly expenditure on private education per student and participation rate
by rank in school in 2015
(Source: Statistics Korea, 2015 Survey on Private Education Expenditures in Primary and Secondary School)

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Recommendation Position Full list of themes Assessment/comments on level of implementation
(Iran (Islamic Republic of)); Strengthen its social
security system in order to effectively guarantee the
poor population the right to health care and housing
so that the results of economic development will
benefit the entire population (China);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 35
quintile (the top 20%) averaged KRW 8,348,000, which was
2.1% up from an year earlier. It is imperative to take policy
actions to address this ever-growing income gap.
Theme: E23 Right to adequate housing
124.61. Continue to implement the “Bogeumjari
Housing” project which ensures solid and affordable
housing to low in come families by 2018 (Kuwait);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 35
Supported E23 Right to adequate housing
E25 Human rights & poverty
A42 Institutions & policies - General
Affected persons:
- general
- persons living in poverty
The Bogeumjari Housing Project was initiated by the
previous Administration to provide public housing for low-
income families, and is not in place any longer under the
current Administration.
Instead, in 2017, with the introduction of the Happy Housing
Project, 362 households began to move into the public rental
houses. About 60% of the tenants are college/university
students, and the remaining are new employees or newly-
married couples. The Happy Housing Project is designed to
relieve the burden of high house rents and improve poor
residential environments, but the supply of housing is short of
the demand. The Government needs to make consistent
efforts to provide a sufficient supply of public rental houses.
Theme: E41 Right to health - General
124.62. Continue to expand the framework for
national health insurance coverage so as to guarantee
the right to health (Kuwait);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 36
Supported E41 Right to health - General
E24 Right to social security
Affected persons:
- general
The Government is now implementing the "2014-2018 Mid-
term Plan to Increase Coverage of the National Health
Insurance (NHI)". The NHI fund recorded a surplus of KRW
3 trillion 196 billion over the period from January to August
2016, and recorded a running total of surplus of KRW 20
trillion 716.6 billion as in August 2016, surpassing the KRW
20 trillion mark for the first time. Nevertheless, "the
programme to increase NHI coverage for four major serious
illnesses" and "the programme to provide temporary support
for catastrophic medical costs of serious illnesses" are not
sufficient enough, in that the proportion of non-covered items
and services and out-of-pocket payments is still high (77%)
and these programmes are available only to some limited
groups of people. Although the Government has recently
converted some non-covered items and services to covered

UPR of the ROK (2nd Cycle - 14th session) Thematic list of recommendations Page 27 of 47
Recommendation Position Full list of themes Assessment/comments on level of implementation
ones, some analyse that balloon effect6 is taking place.
In particular, despite the surpluses of the NHI fund, the NHI
coverage rate continued to decline from 65% in 2009 to
63.6% in 2011, 62.5% in 2012 and 62.0% in 2013, before it
rose slightly to 63.2% in 2014. As in 2013, the share of
medical expenditures financed by the public fund in total
medical expenditures is 55.9%, which is about 18%p lower
than the OECD average of 72.7%.
Theme: E51 Right to education - General
124.63. Take appropriate measures to reconcile
growing tuition fees with the level of education (Iran
(Islamic Republic of));
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 37
Supported E51 Right to education - General
A42 Institutions & policies - General
Affected persons:
- general
- children
The Government has publicized that the goal of "half price
tuition" was already realized in 2005. The explanation is that,
when the Government-funded national scholarship (KRW 3
trillion 600 billion), work-study scholarship (KRW 200
billion), Hope Ladder Scholarship (KRW 100 billion) and
colleges" and universities" efforts to lower tuitions or expand
their own scholarship program (KRW 3 trillion 100 billion)
are combined, this can be seen as having the effect of
reducing the tuition costs by KRW 7 trillion and only half of
the total tuitions of KRW 14 trillion in 2015 were actually
paid by students and their families.
However, the 2016 Study on How to Improve the State-
funded Scholarship Program of the Korean Educational
Development Institute criticized that although a large budget
of KRW 4 trillion was allocated for National Scholarship
Types 1 and 2, smaller amounts of scholarship were provided
to the students in lower-income households after the
eligibility had been expanded up to the students in the 8th
income decile.
In addition, the qualifying score point (currently at least B)
should be lowered. The current qualifying score point is still
an unfavorable condition to the students in low-income
6 National Assembly Budget Office, Hospitals" introduction of new non-covered items and services (Policy Assessment to Increase Coverage of the Health Insurance, June 2016)

UPR of the ROK (2nd Cycle - 14th session) Thematic list of recommendations Page 28 of 47
Recommendation Position Full list of themes Assessment/comments on level of implementation
families who have to spend some time on economic activities,
such as part-time work, and cannot fully commit themselves
to academic activities.
The classification of income deciles for scholarship eligibility
is also problematic. Income deciles are based on the family
income which is used for the purpose of calculating Health
Insurance premiums, and the values of other properties, such
as real estate, house deposit or rent and car. However, this
classification method does not take household debts into
consideration and, therefore, not a few students in the
households with a larger amount of debt than income are
placed in a high income decile, becoming disqualified to
receive national scholarship.
Theme: F12 Discrimination against women
124.25. Continue the legislative review with a view
to ensuring equality between women and men in law
and practice in all areas of life (Palestine); Undertake
a comprehensive review of legislation with a view to
ensuring de jure and de facto equality between men
and women (South Africa);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 19
Supported F12 Discrimination against women
A41 Constitutional and legislative framework
Affected persons:
- women
On November 20, 2013, Rep. Sang-hee Kim (Democratic
Party) proposed a bill for the Act concerning the Prevention
of Gender Discrimination and Sexual Harassment and the
Remedy of Rights, a general law on gender discrimination
and sexual harassment. The NHRCK gave a written opinion
to express its agreement on the need to enact the bill (April
24, 2014), but the bill was not written into law after all, faced
with the opposition from the relevant government ministries,
including the Ministry of Justice and the Ministry of
Employment and Labor.
The transformation of the old Framework Act on Women"s
Development into the new Framework Act on Gender
Equality marks some progress, but the revised law is still
limited in that it does not accommodate diverse sex identities
as it is simply based on the biological distinction of sex, that
is, into men and women.
124.28. Combat discrimination against single
mothers and their children (Brazil); Conduct national
awareness campaigns to eradicate the discrimination
against single mothers, in law and in practice
(Mexico); Establish a governmental authority to
Supported/
Noted
F12 Discrimination against women
B31 Equality & non-discrimination
A42 Institutions & policies - General
F31 Children: definition; general principles; protection
A54 Awareness raising and dissemination
Affected persons:
- children
Since the old Act on the Support for Mother-Child and
Father-Child Families was revised and renamed to the current
Single-Parent Family Support Act, the coverage of the
Government"s support for single-parent families has been
gradually expanded. When the old law was revised in 2011,
the provision of Article 3 (1) - “The mother or father in a

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Recommendation Position Full list of themes Assessment/comments on level of implementation
support and advise single mother s and their children
(Germany);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 20
Comments: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1, para. 20 states:
Recommendation 28 enjoys the partial support of the Government.
The Government accepts the recommendations to combat
discrimination against single mothers and their children (Brazil)
and to conduct national awareness campaigns to eradicate the
discrimination against single mothers, in law and in practice
(Mexico). The Government wishes to note that the Ministry of
Gender Equality and Family is currently carrying out support and
counseling work for single mothers and their children.
- women single-parent family shall not be discriminated in education,
employment, etc. due to pregnancy, childbirth or parenting
without any reasonable justification” - was inserted.
It is pointed out, however, that the Government"s support for
single mothers is largely focused on single mothers in their
teens. In particular, single mothers who are reluctant to
disclose their single-parent status or have no knowledge about
the Government support programs cannot benefit from the
programs.
Moreover, considering that a civil society organization"s
survey reveals that most of the single mothers who previously
worked for a company had to quit their job due to pregnancy,
the Government needs to expand the target group of its single
mother support programmes which are now focused on teen
age single mothers, to include adult single mothers.
124.48. Continue efforts to increase employment
opportunities and improve the employment situation
for women and to promote women"s rights (Japan);
Take effective measures against disadvantages faced
by women in the labour market, including to
overcome the persisting wage gap be tween men and
women (Slovenia);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 33
Supported F12 Discrimination against women
E31 Right to work
A42 Institutions & policies - General
E32 Right to just and favourable conditions of work
Affected persons:
- women
Sex discrimination is serious in structural terms in the labor
market. According to the Women"s Life as Mirrored in the
Statistics of 2016 released by the Statistics Korea, although
women"s college/university enrollment rate is 74.6%, which is
7.4%p higher than men"s corresponding rate, women"s
economic participation rate is 49.9%, which is 21.2%p lower
than men"s rate. Once they have entered the labor market,
women are paid only 62.8% of what are paid to men. The
proportion of permanent work among female workers is
43.1%, which is 9.4%p lower than the proportion for male
workers. Furthermore, female wage workers" national pension
subscription rate is 62.3%, which is 11.4%p lower than male
wage workers" corresponding rate, because a larger share of
female wage workers are in non-regular employment than
their male counterparts.7
7 Proportion of non-regular work by gender
(Units: %; %p)
Classification 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016.6.
All 34.2 33.3 32.6 32.4 32.5 32.8

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Recommendation Position Full list of themes Assessment/comments on level of implementation
124.26. Formulate a national strategy to promote
gender equality so as to advance the status of women,
combat violence and eliminate discrimination against
women (China); Further ensure effective gender
equality into government policies (Republic of
Moldova); Take additional measures aimed at
eliminating all forms of discrimination against
women and at strengthening their situation and
participation in all State institutions (Oman); Increase
governmental efforts to ensure that women, in
particular single mothers, can have access, as men
do, without any discrimination, to employment, equal
pay and matrimonial rights, especially following an
inhe ritance or a divorce (Belgium);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 19
Supported F12 Discrimination against women
F11 Advancement of women
F13 Violence against women
B31 Equality & non-discrimination
D8 Rights related to marriage & family
E31 Right to work
A42 Institutions & policies - General
E32 Right to just and favourable conditions of work
E6 Rights to protection of property; financial credit
Affected persons:
- women
In the "2014 Global Gender Gap Index" published by the
World Economic Forum, the ROK ranked very low in the
117th place among the 142 nations observed. Moreover, in
the "glass ceiling index" that The Economist, a British weekly
magazine, worked out, based on a combination of women"s
representations in high-educated persons, business executive
officers and lawmakers, the ROK scored 25 points on the
scale of 0-100, ranking the lowest among the 29 OECD
nations.
According to the statistical data that the Korea Labour &
Society Institute compiled, based on the business disclosures
of public organizations released by the Ministry of Strategy
and Finance in 2015, women took up 28.98% of the total
employees in 346 public organizations, and only 5.66% of the
executive officers, including presidents (chairpersons),
directors and auditors, were women.
124.27. Consider undertaking educational and
awareness-raising actions promoting co-
responsibility in the domestic sphere and prevent ing
domestic violence (Poland);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 19
Supported F12 Discrimination against women
F13 Violence against women
D29 Domestic violence
A54 Awareness raising and dissemination
Affected persons:
- general
- women
A 2015 survey of the Statistic Korea revealed that women in
dual-earner couples spent a daily average of 3 hours 14
minutes on housework while men in dual-earner couples
spent only 40 minutes on housework, which means that
women did housework almost five times longer than men.
Theme: F13 Violence against women
124.49. Implement legislation criminalizing sexual
harassment in the workplace, and set up mechanisms
to monitor the implementation of this legislation
(The Netherlands);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 34
Noted F13 Violence against women
A42 Institutions & policies - General
A41 Constitutional and legislative framework
E32 Right to just and favourable conditions of work
Affected persons:
- women
In 2014, the Ministry of Employment and Labour disclosed a
revision bill for the Enforcement Ordinance to the Act on
Equal Employment and Support for Work-Family
Reconciliation, which was intended to extend the definition of
small businesses that may, for cost-saving purpose, replace
the mandatory employee education to prevent sexual
Men 27.8 27.2 26.5 26.6 26.5 26.4
Women 42.8 41.5 40.6 39.9 40.2 41.0
Gender gap 15.0 14.3 14.1 13.3 13.7 14.6
(Source: Statistics Korea, Supplementary Survey by Employment Status of the SEAP, August 2016)

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Recommendation Position Full list of themes Assessment/comments on level of implementation
harassment at workplace with the distribution or display of
educational and promotional materials, from businesses with
fewer than 10 permanent employees to businesses with fewer
than 30 permanent employees. However, this revision bill
was not adopted after all, due to the opposition from the
NHRCK in September 2014.
With the revision of the old Framework Act on Women"s
Development, in 2012 the Ministry of Gender Equality and
Family was endowed with the power to require the head of a
public organization to take a disciplinary action against a
perpetrator of sexual harassment in the organization, but no
case has been confirmed in which the Ministry actually called
for such disciplinary action. The power alone is not effective
at all. It is necessary to conduct a study to see how the power
has been used effectively to prevent sexual harassment in
public organizations.
124.40. Take all procedures to prevent all forms of
violence against children and women (Iraq);
Continue strengthening its capacity and its efforts to
combat violence against children (Kyrgyzstan);
Strengthen measures to combat violence against
children (Senegal);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 23
Supported F13 Violence against women
A42 Institutions & policies - General
F32 Children: family environment and alternative care
Affected persons:
- children
- women
Violence against children
According to the key statistical data on "the Current Status of
Child Abuse in 2015" released by the National Child
Protection Agency, a total of 19,209 cases of child abuse
were reported in 2015 and the rate of child abuse reports
increased every year.
According to the Supreme Prosecutor"s Office (the
announcement dated 12 April 2016), the number of people
who were reported to have violated (the provision on child
abuse of) the Criminal Act, the Child Welfare Act or the
Special Act on the Punishment of Child Abuse Crime
increased from 183 in 2011 to 2,691 in 2016. The number of
2,691 persons in 2015 is almost six times as large as the
corresponding number (459 persons) in 2013, the time when
the Special Act was not in place yet. The number of people
indicted for crimes of child abuse also recorded a sharp rise: it
was 49 in 2011 but increased almost by tenfold in 2015.
However, in the ROK, either the rate of child abuse
recognition (the number of children who are recognized as

UPR of the ROK (2nd Cycle - 14th session) Thematic list of recommendations Page 32 of 47
Recommendation Position Full list of themes Assessment/comments on level of implementation
having suffered abuse in every 1,000 children) or the
reporting rate of the people with the obligation to report child
abuse is not high. According to the Ministry of Health and
Welfare, the rate of child abuse recognition is 1 (person),
which is higher than in the previous years but still remains
low, particularly compared with the rate of 9 in the United
States.
In this relation, some experts analyze that this low rate is not
because there are fewer cases of child abuse in the ROK than
in the United States but because child abuse cases are not
properly detected and recognized, which is closely related to
the low reporting rate.
The number of child abuse reports made by those with the
reporting obligation increased by almost fourfold in ten years,
that is, from 1,346 in 2004 to 4,358 in 2014. However, the
reporting rate (of 29%) in 2014 is very low, when compared
with the rates for the same year in Australia (73%), Japan
(68%) and the United States (58%). Moreover, about 10% of
child abuse cases recurred every year, which points to the
lack of initial actions to conduct early intervention in child
abuse and prevent recurrence of child abuse.
Violence against women
In its recommendations for the 3rd NAP, the NHRCK has
recommended that the institutional basis for punishment of
the sexual violence perpetrators, protection for the victims
and education for prevention has been well set up, but it has
been reported that power-driven sexual harassment in the
military, workplace, and college, sexual violence among
students in school have constantly taken place; and new types
of sexual violence in the Internet environment such as
stalking and secret shooting of sexual acts and internet
circulation are increasing. However the institutional basis is
not enough and it is recommended to improve.
124.39. Continue its efforts to prevent and combat Supported F13 Violence against women
D29 Domestic violence
Shelters for violence victims

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Recommendation Position Full list of themes Assessment/comments on level of implementation
domestic violence (Republic of Moldova); Enhance
protection against domestic violence, hiring more
female police inspectors, improving shelter and
rehabilitation services for victims and strengthening
data protection in this regard (Hungary); Ensure that
domestic violence is properly punished and victims,
including those of marital rape, are properly
protected (Slovakia);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 23
B51 Right to an effective remedy
B53 Support to victims and witnesses
D46 Right to private life, privacy
Affected persons:
- general
- women
The legal framework for the protection of domestic or sexual
violence victims and the punishment of the perpetrators has
been upgraded, while the efforts to prevent secondary
damages in the course of investigation and damages due to
exposure to media coverage have been insufficient, and there
are not enough shelters for the victims of domestic violence.
Need to increase the number of female police officers, and
discrimination against women
In order to take proper responses to violence against women,
including domestic violence, it is necessary to increase the
number of female police officers. In 2002, the Division of
Women and Juveniles was newly set up in the national and
regional police agencies and the front-line police offices and,
with the revision of the "Act on Prevention of Domestic
Violence and Protection, etc. of Victims thereof" in 2012, the
police was given the power to access the alleged sites of
domestic violence for investigation purpose. However, the
number of female police officers is not still enough to ensure
that the new functions are effectively implemented.
Accordingly, the National Police Agency needs to take active
measures to hire a larger number of female police officers.
In September 2014, the NHRCK, finding that the female
quota of 12% for annual new entrants of the Korean National
Police University is an excessive restriction, recommended
the Commissioner of the Korean National Police Agency to
increase the female quota. However, the Korean National
Police Agency still limited the proportion of female entrants
for the University in 2017 to 12%. The Agency has reiterated
the position that, as female police officers may be placed in a
limited number of functions due to the nature of police work
which requires physical strength and use of force and the
difference in physical capabilities between men and women, a
sudden change in the proportion of female police officers will
have a negative effect, not only on the operation of the police
organization but also on the police"s ability to keep public

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Recommendation Position Full list of themes Assessment/comments on level of implementation
peace and order.
However, given that the duties of police officers go beyond
the work of maintaining public peace and order and cover a
diversity of functions including welfare service, physical
skills is not a decisive element for police work, which is also
reflected in the fact that the physical test accounts for only
5% of the total scores in the entrance examination of the
Korean National Police University. According to the data
released by the Korean National Police Agency, as in end-
August 2016, women takes up 10.4% of the entire police
officers in Korea, which is much lower than 27% in the
United Kingdom and 20%, respectively in Canada and
France. The Police Statistical Yearbook 2014 showed that
about 82% of female police officers who were titled as police
sergeant, senor officer or constable were concentrated in
lower-ranking positions, and this highlights an urgent need to
make drastic changes to the Government"s policy of recruiting
female police officers and placing them at managerial
positions.
Theme: F31 Children: definition; general principles; protection
124.29. Improve the registration of children with a
view to ensuring that the statelessness of children is
prevented (South Africa); Revise the single parent
family support law and introduce legislation to
ensure that all children are automatically and legally
registered immediately after birth, regardless of
parents" legal status and origin (Norway); Facilitate
the implementation of a birth registration system to
allow immediate registration at birth, independently
of the status or nationality of parents (France);
Provide for a full system of universal birth
registration including immediate registration upon
birth regardless of the parent"s nationality or status in
the country (Ireland); Consider the possibility to
introduce a system of automatic registration of
children born in the country, regardless of the
parents" nationality or status (Italy); Revise the
Noted F31 Children: definition; general principles; protection
A41 Constitutional and legislative framework
D6 Rights related to name, identity, nationality
D8 Rights related to marriage & family
D46 Right to private life, privacy
D27 Prohibition of slavery, trafficking
Affected persons:
- children
Under the national legislation of the ROK, in case neither of
the parents holds Korean nationality, they cannot register
their child"s birth in Korea. When this child"s birth is reported
to the competent local office, this report is classed as "a report
for family relationship registration, not for entry into the
family relationship register" and is kept in a separate file (a
file for special types of reports). This documentation,
however, is simply to prove "what items are included in the
report", but is not to prove "the fact that the child was born".
Under these circumstances, refugees and unregistered
foreigners who cannot register their child"s birth at the
diplomatic office of their nation within the ROK, cannot
register their child"s birth at all. Currently, it is not known
exactly how many children of migrant families remain
unregistered in the ROK. It is just estimated that there are
about 20,000.

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Recommendation Position Full list of themes Assessment/comments on level of implementation
national legislation with a view to guarantee that all
persons are registered at birth, independently of their
migrant condition or the nationality of their parents
(Mexico); Enact measures regarding the civil
registration of children at birth in order to fight the
possible traffic in human beings (Romania); Carry
out a legislative review so as to ensure an automatic
and legal registration at birth, while guaranteeing the
protection of personal data and especially the right to
access such data (Switzerland); Review its birth
registration system to safeguard the human rights of
unwed mothers and children by (i) ensuring
immediate birth registration is available to all
children regardless of the parents legal status; (ii)
ensuring that the birth registration accurately
indicates the biological parent(s) of the child; and
(iii) taking steps to prevent birth registration of
children by third parties, such as adoptive parents,
that could result in the occurrence of de facto
adoptions in the absence of proper judicial oversight,
which could also put children at risk of being
trafficked (Canada);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 17
In the meantime, there are some cases where the parents did
not register their child"s birth although either of them holds
Korean nationality, due to their marital conditions or for an
economic reason.
Children whose birth has not been registered for any of the
aforementioned reasons may have serious health problems in
their infanthood or childhood as they are not entitled to
essential vaccinations and medical care, and are highly likely
to be exposed to the risks of child abuse or abandonment,
illegal adoption and child trafficking.
124.18. Consider establishing a child rights sub-
commission within the Korean National Human
Rights Commission (Palestine);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 6
Supported F31 Children: definition; general principles; protection
A44 Structure of the national human rights machinery
Affected persons:
- children
In May 2016, the Subcommittee on the Rights of Child was
set up within the NHRCK
124.17. Take necessary actions to define the legal
status for an independent child rights monitoring
body and increase its efforts for human rights
training relevant to child abuse and domestic
violence case s (Iran (Islamic Republic of));
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 6
Supported F31 Children: definition; general principles; protection
D31 Liberty and security - general
F13 Violence against women
F33 Children: protection against exploitation
A44 Structure of the national human rights machinery
A53 Professional training in human rights
Affected persons:
- children
- women
Since the NHRCK was delegated by the Ministry of Health
and Welfare to perform monitoring for the rights of child in
2015, the NHRCK has monitored, independently and
permanently, to detect and prevent infringements on
children"s rights.
124.19. Continue giving priority and allocating
adequate resources for the implementation of the
national strategies for the protection and promotion
of the rights of children (Malaysia); Take measures
and establish appropriate mechanisms to enable the
Supported F31 Children: definition; general principles; protection
F41 Persons with disabilities: definition, general principles
A42 Institutions & policies - General
A44 Structure of the national human rights machinery
A63 Budget and resources (for human rights implementation)
Affected persons:
The Government has tried to establish a national-level
mechanism to protect the rights of child, by setting up annual
action plans in accordance with the longer-term Basic Plan on
Child Policy. However, for now, this mechanism is mainly
used to put together the specific programs and tasks that

UPR of the ROK (2nd Cycle - 14th session) Thematic list of recommendations Page 36 of 47
Recommendation Position Full list of themes Assessment/comments on level of implementation
development of legislation and promotion of policies
for the protection of children in all areas (Oman);
Continue to further its efforts to guarantee the rights
of the child (Japan); Take legal measures to provide
appropriate facilities and support for children,
particularly children with disabilities as the most
vulnerable group of childre n (Iran (Islamic Republic
of));
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 6
- children
- persons with disabilities
government ministries and local governments have
undertaken or are seeking to undertake, but does not serve to
ensure effective cooperation and coordination among
different ministries and local governments in relation to their
programs.
Theme: F32 Children: family environment and alternative care
124.47. Continue the review of its international
adoption system with a view to reform relevant
legislation, and to bring it fully in line with the CRC;
make the consent of teenage single mothers in the
process mandatory; and adopt measures for all
adoptions to be subject to the approval of a central
authority with a clear mandate and responsibilities
for the judicial supervision and the regulation
(Honduras); Establish a national adoption centre and
an obligation to regist er right after birth (Germany);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 25
Supported F32 Children: family environment and alternative care
D6 Rights related to name, identity, nationality
D8 Rights related to marriage & family
D51 Administration of justice & fair trial
A42 Institutions & policies - General
F12 Discrimination against women
Affected persons:
- children
- women
With the entering-into-force of the revised Act on Special
Cases concerning Adoption in August 2012, the regulation on
mature deliberation on child adoption was introduced and the
Korea Adoption Services was set up as a foundation. In July
2013, there was another institutional improvement when the
revised Civil Act required the court"s permission for child
adoption.
However, as the Civil Act provides that "a person of parental
authority shall exercise, in place of the child subject to his or
her parental authority, parental authority over children of such
child" (Article 910), the right to give consent to adoption of a
child of unmarried parents shall be exercised, not by the
unmarried parents, but by their parents (that is, those who
have parental authority over the unmarried parents, or the
child"s grandparents). Accordingly, an institutional
improvement needs to be made about unmarried parents"
inability to give consent to the adoption of their child.
In addition, a Central Authority as defined in the Hague
Convention on Protection of Children and Cooperation in
respect of Intercountry Adoption is to discharge the duties
which are imposed by the Convention on such authorities,
and the Central Authorities shall cooperate with each other
and promote cooperation amongst the competent authorities
in their States to achieve the other objects of the Convention
by providing the general information on adoption, while
taking, directly or through public authorities, all appropriate

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Recommendation Position Full list of themes Assessment/comments on level of implementation
measures to prevent improper financial or other gain in
connection with an adoption and to deter all practices
contrary to the objects of the Convention. These functions can
be properly performed by a national authority, not by a
foundation (the bill for the Act on Intercountry Adoption (of
September 2016) which is now pending before the National
Assembly provides that the Ministry of Health and Welfare, a
national authority, shall serve as a Central Authority as
defined in the Hague Convention).
Theme: F33 Children: protection against exploitation
124.41. Take appropriate measures to prevent sexual
violence against children and make more efforts to
effectively prosecute the sexual exploitation of
children (Botswana); Tighten the criminal
responsibility for the crimes related to the sexual
explo itation of children (Belarus);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 23
Supported F33 Children: protection against exploitation
B51 Right to an effective remedy
Affected persons:
- children
According to the survey results released by the Ministry of
Gender Equality and Family on March 1, 2017, among the
rapists who, after being convicted of sex crimes against
children or juveniles, had their personal information made
public, 32.3% were put on probation in 2015. Although this
probation rate, after hitting the peak of 42.0% in 2012, has
continuously declined, one in every three criminals who were
convicted of rape against children or juveniles is still set free
on a suspended sentence.8
The Act on the Protection of Children and Juveniles against
Sexual Abuse terms the children and juveniles who are
engaged in sex trafficking as "children and juveniles
involved", not as "victimized children and juveniles". This
means that these children and juveniles are subject to the
same protective dispositions that the children and juveniles
who have committed a serious crime are subject to under the
Juvenile Act, and they are not entitled to use a public
defender to protect themselves from any damage that may
occur in criminal proceedings. Moreover, the protective
8 According to an analysis of the court decisions that confirmed sex crimes and ordered the perpetrators" personal information to be made public in 2015, which was commissioned by the
Ministry of Gender Equality and Family to the Korean Women"s Development Institute, 3,366 persons were given an order of personal information disclosure after being convicted of a sex
crime against children or juveniles over the year, which was a 4.1% increase from the previous year (3,234 persons), while the number of convicted rapists declined from 855 (in 2014) to 733
persons (in 2015), of which only 495 (67.5%) were put into prison and 237 (32.3%) were released on probation (the press release dated March 1, 2017 of the Ministry of Gender Equality and
Family).

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Recommendation Position Full list of themes Assessment/comments on level of implementation
dispositions entail criminal records and investigation
documentations, which tends to dissuade "the children and
juveniles involved" from reporting their damage from sex
trafficking. What is worse, there are many cases where their
reluctance to report sex trafficking is taken advantage of by a
sex trafficking intermediary or a sex purchaser to coerce them
into sex trafficking. Therefore, legal amendments should be
made to address these problems.
It is revealed that the most common channels that are used by
"the victimized children and juveniles" for sex trafficking are
"smart phone-based chatting apps (67.0%)" and "Internet-based
cafes/chatting sites (27.2%)". Unlike in the past, a rapidly
growing number of sex trafficking cases begin with online
contacts. It is necessary to enact the legislation to regulate and
prosecute these online contacts. Besides, it has been
suggested that the counseling centers which are now in place
to give advice to "the victimized children and juveniles" of sex
trafficking do not provide professional programs for these
victims and, therefore, more specialized service centers which
provide counseling, education, protection and support for the
victims of child sex trafficking should be created.
Theme: F35 Children in armed conflict
124.20. Take measures to ensure the full
harmonization of the provisions of the Optional
Protocol to the Convention on the Rights of the Child
on the involvement of children in armed conflict
(South Africa);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 6
Supported F35 Children in armed conflict
A41 Constitutional and legislative framework
Affected persons:
- children
- persons affected by armed conflict
N/A
Theme: F41 Persons with disabilities: definition, general principles
124.12. Amend article 732 of the Commercial Law
that restricts the possibility of persons with
Supported F41 Persons with disabilities: definition, general principles
A41 Constitutional and legislative framework
F46 Persons with disabilities: protection and safety in situations
The Government stated in the Mid-term Report that an
amendment was made to the provision on insurance of the
Commercial Act. However, the amendment is no more than

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Recommendation Position Full list of themes Assessment/comments on level of implementation
disabilities to obta in life insurance (Costa Rica);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 19
of risk
Affected persons:
- persons with disabilities
the addition of a proviso that "However, this shall not apply
when a person with diminished mental capacity contracts an
insurance policy or joins a group insurance under Article 735-
3 while he/she is able to make decisions" to the existing
provision of Article 732, in response to the continuous
controversy over the provision and the call for its revision.
This amendment has not changed anything about the
provision that any life insurance contract which is signed to
insure persons with diminished or no mental capacities
against death due to an accident shall be null and void, except
that life insurance or group insurance will not be invalidated
only when they are able to make decisions.
Furthermore, it is not easy to determine or prove whether or
not a person with mental disability, who is termed as a person
with diminished mental capacity for the purpose of the
Commercial Act, is able to make decisions. Besides,
considering that almost all of the insurance policies in the
market of Korea include a death benefit, persons with mental
disabilities are practically ineligible to the subscription to
almost all of the insurance policies in the market, or are not
entitled to the death benefit even when they manage to obtain
an insurance policy.
Moreover, although the NHRCK and the Supreme Court
determined that, in deciding whether or not a person with
disability is qualified to obtain insurance, the insurance
company should make a specific and individualized decision,
instead of simply following the ordinary decision, by taking
into consideration the severity and type of the person"s
disability, the amended provision of Article 732 of the
Commercial Act is still incompatible with the determinations
by the NHRCK and the Supreme Court. The amended
provision simply adds the measurement of "the ability to make
decisions" but never suffices to remove the practice of
excluding persons with disabilities from access to insurance
benefits.
All in all, the amended provision of Article 732 of the

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Recommendation Position Full list of themes Assessment/comments on level of implementation
Commercial Act is still in conflict with the Convention on the
Rights of Persons with Disabilities and seems to add to the
controversy over the practice of excluding persons with
disabilities from access to insurance and the discrimination
against them in insurance benefits, rather than eliminating
these discriminative practices, by inserting the specific
measurement of "the ability to make decisions".
Theme: G4 Migrants
124.69. Deal with the issue of irregular migration
sympathetically and consider further legislative
protection of their fundamental human rights
(Bangladesh);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 41
Noted G4 Migrants
A41 Constitutional and legislative framework
Affected persons:
- migrants
See Recommendation 124.32 and 124.66 below
124.68. Strengthen measures aimed at social
protection of refugees, migrant workers and member
s of their families (Belarus);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 38
Supported G4 Migrants
A42 Institutions & policies - General
G5 Refugees & asylum seekers
E24 Right to social security
Affected persons:
- refugees & asylum seekers
- migrants
See Recommendation 124.32 and 124.66 below
124.31. Continue implementing policies aimed at
intensifying the combat against discrimination,
especially with respect to female migrant workers
(Morocco); Fight against all forms of discrimination
and abuse of migrant worker s, particularly women
(Spain);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 19
Supported G4 Migrants
B31 Equality & non-discrimination
A42 Institutions & policies - General
B32 Racial discrimination
F12 Discrimination against women
Affected persons:
- migrants
- women
- minorities/ racial, ethnic, linguistic, religious or descent-based
groups
See Recommendation 124.32 and 124.66 below
124.67. Intensify its comprehensive policies and
concrete plans to guarantee the full enjoyment of
rights and welfare of migrant workers, especially
women, including combating human trafficking and
discrimination in all forms (Viet Nam); Continue its
efforts for the protection of the rights of migrant
workers (Nepal); Carry out actions to protect the
rights of migrants and their families (Senegal);
Continue to take measures to promote and protect the
rights of migrant workers (Sri Lanka); Further
strengthen measures to promote and protect the rights
Supported G4 Migrants
B31 Equality & non-discrimination
A42 Institutions & policies - General
D27 Prohibition of slavery, trafficking
F12 Discrimination against women
E21 Right to an adequate standard of living - general
Affected persons:
- migrants
- women
E-6 Visa holders
According to the "Survey on Human Rights Situations of
Immigrants on E-6 Visas" conducted by the NHRCK in 2014,
the foreigners who entered Korea on E-6 visas were exposed
to serious human rights infringements: 50% of them
experienced violations of labour standards; 46% had their
passports seized; and 23% were forced into prostitution.
In June 2016, the NHRCK made its "recommendation on the
indicators for identification and protection of the victims of

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Recommendation Position Full list of themes Assessment/comments on level of implementation
of all migrant workers by ensuring their appropriate
welfare and standard of living (Thailand);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 38
human trafficking" to the Government, suggesting 27
identification indicators which concern the acts done, the
means, the purpose, etc. and 15 protection indictors including
the measures concerning the police and the immigration
service, all of which have been developed by the NHRCK by
referring to the Palermo Protocol to Prevent, Suppress and
Punish Trafficking in Persons, especially Women and
Children and the human trafficking indicators; and, at the
same time, by adapting the indicators to the real situations in
Korea.
It is needed that more detailed explanations and statistical
data on how the joint government inspections and
crackdowns have been carried out to prevent and detect
human rights violations against foreign women who have
entered the ROK on E-6 visas, including their exposure to
prostitution; the outcomes of the inspections and crackdowns;
and the follow-up measures.
Concerns are raised about the possibility that those who enter
Korea on E-6 visas and then are exposed to prostitution
against their own will may be punished as perpetrators,
instead of being treated as victims of human trafficking.
Please provide statistical data on the people who, after
arriving in Korea on E-6 visas, were criminally booked for
having committed a crime of prostitution. The Government
needs to consider any remedies to ensure that such people are
treated as victims of human trafficking.
Migrant workers in fishing and construction industry"
According to the NHRCK"s "Survey on Human Rights
Conditions of Migrant Workers in Fishing Industry", it was
found that many migrant workers in fishing industry were
forced to pay an extremely high cost of recruitment before
arriving in Korea and were exposed to human rights
violations, such as seizure of their identifications, like
passports, by their employers or agencies, overdue wage
payment and linguistic and physical violence. However, some

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Recommendation Position Full list of themes Assessment/comments on level of implementation
point out that migrant workers in fishing industry hardly
benefit the remedies from the competent authorities when
they suffer unfair treatment at workplace, such as
exploitation, discrimination and overdue wage payment,
because the Foreign Seafarer Scheme has been delegated to
the private sector.
The NHRCK"s "Survey on Human Rights Conditions of
Foreign Workers in Construction Industry" revealed that
14.3% of foreign workers in construction did not sign a
contract of employment before starting to work for their
employer and the common practice of concluding an oral
agreement or side agreement on the comprehensive
(calculation) wage scheme at construction sites often worked
against the migrant workers who were not familiar with the
Korean language.
Protection of female migrant workers
There is a strong feminization of migration in the ROK.
According to the 2016 survey about foreigners" employment
(released on October 20, 2016), out of the 1,425,000
foreigners aged 15 or older staying in the ROK, 788,000
persons (55.3%) were male and 637,000 (44.7%) were
female. This points to year-on-year increases of 31,000 in
women (5.0%) and 21,000 in men (2.7%).
Still, foreign workers as a whole records a low coverage of
the Employment Insurance (EI) which finances
unemployment benefit, maternity benefit and leave, childcare
benefit and leave and vocational training subsidies, as the EI
subscription is optional, not mandatory, for foreign workers
in Korea.
In the fields of work, female migrant workers are placed in
more disadvantaged situations because they are not only
"migrants" but also "women". These dual vulnerabilities expose
female migrant workers to a different dimension of
discrimination and human rights violation, from the one for

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Recommendation Position Full list of themes Assessment/comments on level of implementation
their male counterparts. According to the 2016 Survey on
Human Rights Situations of Female Migrant Workers in
Manufacturing conducted by the NHRCK, out of the total
foreign workers in Korea, 324,000 persons were female and
86,000 of the female migrant workers were engaged in the
manufacturing sector, including textile and electronics, which
is largely marked by poor working environments and low-
paying jobs. However, gender-sensitive perspectives were not
highlighted in the survey.
The survey results also revealed that female foreign workers
are exposed to the risks of unfair dismissal due to the
restriction on the change of workplace and the reporting of
change in employment, no written agreement of employment,
linguistic violence, physical violence and occupational
accidents, and suffer human rights violations in a range of
areas, including working conditions, housing environment,
right to health and right of maternity.
124.65. Take all measures to eliminate restrictions to
the mobility of migrant workers (France);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 40
Noted G4 Migrants
E31 Right to work
E32 Right to just and favourable conditions of work
Affected persons:
- migrants
Although the Government states that it has made consistent
efforts to prevent discrimination against and exploitation of
foreign workers by refining the Employment Permit System
(EPS), some observe that the latest changes made to the EPS
rather have an effect of restricting the rights of migrant
workers.
For instance, the Ministry of Employment and Labour revised
the "Guidelines on Foreign Workers" Workplace Change" in
August 2012: before this revision, a migrant worker who
wanted to change his/her workplace could obtain the list of
available workplaces from the Job Centre and move to the
workplace of his/her own choosing, but after the revision, the
list of job-seeking migrant workers is offered to the
employers who want to hire migrant workers while the list of
available workplaces is not given to job-seeking migrant
workers, so that migrant workers" employment is totally
dependent on the employers" choice, which restricts migrant
workers" right to choose workplace.
Furthermore, with the amendment of Article 13 of the Act on

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Recommendation Position Full list of themes Assessment/comments on level of implementation
the Employment of Foreign Workers, etc. in January 2014,
migrant workers may receive the benefit of the insurance
policy that their employers have contributed to in preparation
for their retirement, no later than 14 days from the date of
their departure from Korea, whereas, under the previous Act,
they could receive the benefit no later than 14 days from the
date of their retirement. This means that, in practice, migrant
workers may not get their retirement insurance benefit while
staying in Korea, which is feared to go against Article 36 of
the Labour Standards Act which provides that an employer
should settle wage, retirement pay and all the other monetary
payments for his/her employee no later than 14 days from the
date of the employee"s retirement.
124.32. Continue to adopt appropriate policies and
laws to counter discrimination of women migrant
workers and ensure that their children can enjoy
rights to education and health (Sudan); Take further
legislative measures to formulate policies on the
prevention of discrimination and violence against
migrant women and child workers and also guarantee
their right to education and healt h (Iran (Islamic
Republic of));
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 19
Supported G4 Migrants
F13 Violence against women
B31 Equality & non-discrimination
A42 Institutions & policies - General
B32 Racial discrimination
F31 Children: definition; general principles; protection
A41 Constitutional and legislative framework
E41 Right to health - General
F12 Discrimination against women
E51 Right to education - General
Affected persons:
- children
- migrants
- women
- minorities/ racial, ethnic, linguistic, religious or descent-based
groups
Female marriage immigrants
The Government states that it has arranged a legal foundation
to permit marriage immigrants to continue to stay in Korea
even after divorce so long as they have an unavoidable reason
to stay here, and that it has relieved the marriage immigrants"
dependency on their Korean-national spouse for their sojourn
status, by removing the legal requirement that marriage
immigrants should submit their Korean-national spouse"s
written guarantee when they apply for a permit of extended
stay.
However, the problem is that, in practice, divorced marriage
immigrants may be permitted to stay for an additional period
only when they prove that the divorce is due to a reason
attributable to their spouse. In particular, in case a female
marriage immigrant is divorced simply for a reason of her
spouse"s change of mind, she fails to get a permit for
extended stay from the Government, and her sojourn status
becomes unstable if her former Korean husband arbitrarily
calls back his guarantee for her.
Unregistered migrant children"s right to education
With the revision of the Enforcement Ordinance to the
Elementary and Secondary Education Act, even unregistered

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Recommendation Position Full list of themes Assessment/comments on level of implementation
migrant children may enter a school or transfer to another
school, based on their "certificate of residence". However,
their access to public education is still very difficult.
As in December 2016, the statistical data of the Ministry of
Justice estimated the number of total foreigners aged 19 or
younger in the ROK at 141,991 persons9, but this number did
not include the children who were born to unregistered
migrant parents staying in this country. Civil society
organizations estimate that there are more than 20,000
unregistered migrant children in the ROK. It is presumed that,
as in 2015, only half of the 28,000 school-age children from
foreign families in Korea, including the foreign-born school-
age juveniles, were enrolled in school.
124.66. Take measures to ensure that the children of
undocumented migrants are provided with access to
medical services (Ireland);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 38
Supported G4 Migrants
F31 Children: definition; general principles; protection
E41 Right to health - General
Affected persons:
- children
- migrants
Unregistered migrant children (including stateless children)
may not subscribe to the Health Insurance (HI) and, therefore,
are not eligible to the medical benefits under the HI. Although
they can have their medical costs discounted or exempted
once they use the designated hospitals under the
"Marginalized Groups Support Program" of the Ministry of
Health and Welfare, there are only a small number of
designated hospitals and these hospitals are not easily
accessible.
The Ministry of Health and Welfare operates the program of
"management numbers" for unregistered migrant children: a
management number is set for each of the unregistered
migrant children who do not have a resident registration
number or a foreigner registration number so that they can get
free vaccinations at public health centers. However, this
program is not well-known to the target group, is not linked
to other relevant programs and is being operated only on a
temporary basis.
9 Monthly Report on Immigration Service and Foreigner Policy (December 2016).

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Recommendation Position Full list of themes Assessment/comments on level of implementation
Theme: G5 Refugees & asylum seekers
124.64. Promote the local integration of refugees,
asylum seekers, and humanitarian status holders by
extending multi-cultural programmes to them
(Botswana);
Source of position: A/HRC/22/10/Add.1 - Para. 39
Noted G5 Refugees & asylum seekers
B31 Equality & non-discrimination
E7 Cultural rights
A42 Institutions & policies - General
Affected persons:
- refugees & asylum seekers
Under the current conditions that the deliberation for refugee
status recognition is a rather long process and the applicants
for refugee are forbidden to get employed for six months
from the date of application, the support for the applicants"
cost of living is the minimal measure required for their
survival. The Government reveals that the refugee status
applicants have been offered the support for the cost of living
in accordance with Article 40 (Support for the cost of living,
etc.) of the Refugee Act which came into force in July 2013.
However, no budget was allocated in 2013 for the support to
refugee status applicants and it has yet to be confirmed
whether the budget amounts allocated to support refugee
status applicants since 2014 are sufficient enough to finance
their minimum living.
According to the data released by the Ministry of Justice, the
total number of refugee status applicants in Korea over the
period from 1994 to April 2016 was 17,523 and 592 out of
them had their application recognized10, and this recognition
rate is lower than the world"s average recognition rate of
27%11 stated in the 2014 Report of the United Nations High
Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR). Consequently, it is
feared that a growing number of people might stay in this
country without having their refugee status recognized or
receiving the minimum support for a life worthy of human
beings.12
On 25 August 2016, the NHRCK recommended the
Ministry of Justice to revise the Refugee Act and other
relevant legislation so that the reasons for the decision not to
refer a refugee status application to the deliberation process
should be minimized to non-compliance with formal
10 Over the period from 1994 to April 2016, 17,523 persons applied for refugee status; 592 of them were recognized as refugees; and 932 were allowed to stay in Korea for a
humanitarian reason Monthly Report on Immigration Service and Foreigner Policy of April 2016).
11 UNHCR, Statistical Yearbook 2014
12 " NHRCK Chairperson"s Statement on World Refugee Day" dated 20 June 2016.

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Recommendation Position Full list of themes Assessment/comments on level of implementation
requirements and that all applications should be referred to
the deliberation process, except for the cases where it is
apparent that the applicant concerned is not a refugee.
However, the Ministry of Justice refused to accept the
NHRCK"s recommendation, saying that if the reasons of
not-to-refer decision are minimized to non-compliance with
formal requirements, the Ministry is concerned that those
who find it difficult to enter this country in a lawful manner
might take advantage of refugee status application scheme,
and as a result current national border security system could
collapse.
The Government needs to establish more active policy
measures in order to protect human rights of refugees as one
of the most human rights oriented countries.