Press conference regarding the evaluation on 1 year women’s policies by Lee Myeong Bak government

<Press conference regarding the evaluation on 1 year women’s policies by Lee Myeong Bak government>
 


On February 18, 2009, a press conference was staged regarding the evaluation on women’s policies by Lee Myeong Bak government for the past one year.  In a word, the current government ‘failed’. Evaluators by sector saw the women’s policies by the current administration as “loss of gender equal policies,’ “absence from the awareness of women’s human rights and gender sensitive governance,’ ‘retreat of family and childcare policies,’ ‘nominal job creation for women.’ Many women veteran activists such as Kwon Mi-hyuk, chairperson of the Korean Womenlink, Nam-Yoon Insoon,  the KWAU, Jeong Moon Ja, chairperson of the KWWA, Jeong Choonsook, chairperson of the Korea Women’s Hot Line, Lee Yoon-sang, chairperson of the Korea Sexual Violence Relief Center, Han Kook-yeom, chairperson of Women Migrants Human Rights Center, and Jang Myeongsook, chairperson of Differently Able Women United, participated in the major evaluation session.

1. Major policy tasks for women are as follows:
Since the current government was launched, Worries have been raised that the Korean democracy and human rights are absent, and violence and discrimination by the government are also far more serious. In addition, the communication and cooperation with the civil society have reached not only the level of cessation but also that of suppression, surveillance and split. Under these social circumstances, the recent heavy crimes have showed the worsening discrimination and violence against the social weak such as women and the disabled. Amidst the economic crisis in which things are tough and there are no emotional rooms, the government should take more care of human rights, providing social security for the social weak.
① The consolidation of the Ministry of Women and the enactment of gender equality basic law;
② The establishment of public childcare policies whose responsibility was taken by the government;
③ The establishment of comprehensive family policies in combination of gender issues and family issues;
④ The establishment of comprehensive countermeasures against low birth rates;
⑤ 500,000 decent job creation for women;
⑥ Stop the retrogressive revision of Temporary Employee Protection Act and regularize women irregular workers in the public sector;
⑦ The establishment of long and short term schemes for the prevention of domestic violence and protection of victims;
⑧ The provision of long-term gender sensitive women’s policies to prevent violence against women and support women victims;
⑨ Criminal law reform (in terms of violation of sex self-determination, abolishment of offense subject to complaints, and suspension or extension of statute of limitations) 
⑩ The consolidation of execution of the law controlling sex agencies;
⑪ The prevention of the commercialization of women and violation of women’s human rights in the course of their inflows through international marriage;
⑫ The establishment of human right-oriented and gender-sensitive and diversity-based policies rather than social integration based on family;
⑬ The provision of life-long education for disabled women
⑭ Re-adjustment of uneven budgets and policies

2. The evaluation and tasks regarding women workers’ policies are as follows:
<Overall evaluation>
1) The Lee Myeong Bak administration declared to create 500,000 women-tailored jobs and set up ‘New Occupation for Women Centers (Now Centers)’  for women whose careers are discontinued as women’s labor policies, and to create family friendly enterprises as its grand scheme. However, no women’s labor policies were fulfilled except the establishment of 3 model NOW Centers and appointment of the 50 centers.
2) Women’s job policies in the social service sector are fulfilled in the form of vouchers to promote market principle-oriented competition in the social service sector, and in particular, because different ministries are in charge, the administration does not seize how many women’s jobs are there in the social service sector.
3) Although the current administration claims to protect vulnerable classes and irregular workers, it forces workers to take the economic burdens to tackle the current economic crisis.  Most of women are low wage irregular workers. The administration tries to reduce incomes of irregular workers and change for the worse of the duration of irregular periods.
4) The administration suggested making family friendly enterprises as its public pledges and grand schemes through balancing women’s jobs and family, but the related ministries such as the Ministry of Women and the Ministry of Labor do not have such plans nor carry out them.  We doubt if the administration will help both of men and women to balance their jobs and families: work together and take care of their families together.

<Policy demands>
1) 500,000 decent job creation for women:
Because two thirds of the workers in the social service sector are regarded as women, decent jobs should be created in the social service sector.  The administration should fulfill its public pledges.  They include the provision of standard wages (annual 20 million won, which accounts for 60% of average wages of the whole workers), the application of the labor law and 4 social insurances, the provision of training opportunities, and public spirited social service, and 500,000 job creation for women in the social service sector.
2) Stop the retrogressive revision of the Temporary Employee Protection Act and regularize women irregular workers in the public sector:
The government and the Grand National Party try to transfer to the Temporary Employee Protection Act, the responsibility for worsening employment due to the current economic crisis. Their attempt to extend the duration in which workers have to work as irregular workers from 2 years to 4 years is to produce only 4 year term irregular workers.

The size and treatment of women irregular workers in the public sector are determined unreasonably in accordance with the governmental small budget. Taking the circumstance into consideration, the government should proclaim its scheme to regularize irregular workers from the public sector to improve gender equality.
3) Creating social atmosphere for women to balance their jobs and lives:
There has been an increase in dismissals and disadvantages to women due to their pregnancy and childbirth amidst the current economic crisis (In 2008, according to counseling by KWWA, these disadvantages rose by 34% compared to 2007.)  We demand the administration to stop dismissals and disadvantages due to women’s pregnancy and childbirth, and the supervision should be reinforced; to stop the cancellation of contracts when irregular women workers take maternity leave; and to provide the right to remunerate women for maternity leaves if their contracts were terminated during their maternity leaves. The government should view this as extending women’s contracts; and we also demand the government to improve insurance subscription rates for low incomers (including very small size self-employers, specially hired workers, and care workers in the informal sector) through encouraging social insurances.

4) Withdrawing the retrogressive revision of the minimum wage and realizing living wages
The government should provide living wages for workers who work hard to overcome the current economic crisis.  It should provide living wages for women workers through increasing the minimum wage up to the level 50% of average wages of all workers, in order to upgrade women workers’ power of purchase and boost the domestic market.