photo source, News1
The government is of the view that the work of the Ministry of Recreation and the Ministry of Welfare overlaps to a large extent.
After the abolition of the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family (hereinafter referred to as the Ministry of Leisure), the government organization law reform plan was announced, which included the transfer of related functions to the establishment of the ‘Population and Family Gender Equality Headquarters’ under the Ministry of Health and Welfare (Ministry of Welfare).
Minister of the Interior and Safety Lee Sang-min held a press conference at the Government Complex in Seoul on the 6th at 2 pm and confirmed the reform plan containing these contents.
The reorganization plan also includes the promotion of the Ministry of Veterans Affairs to the Ministry of Veterans Affairs and the establishment of the Office of Overseas Koreans under the Ministry of Foreign Affairs.
If the government organization is changed according to the reorganization plan, the system of 18 departments, 4 departments, 18 offices, and 6 committees (46) will be changed to 18 departments, 3 departments, 19 offices, and 6 committees (46).
However, as the opposition party, the Democratic Party, occupies a majority of the seats in the National Assembly, it is unclear whether the government organization law reform bill will be passed in the National Assembly. Opposition parties support the promotion of the Ministry of Veterans Affairs and Veterans Affairs and the establishment of the Office of Overseas Koreans, but are concerned about the abolition of the Ministry of Leisure.
If the amendment bill is passed by the National Assembly, the Ministry of Leisure will be closed for the first time in 21 years since it was launched as the ‘Ministry of Women’ during the Kim Dae-jung administration in 2000.
From ‘Department’ to ‘Headquarters’
What will change when the leisure department becomes ‘headquarters’ instead of ‘wealth’?
The head of the Population and Family Gender Equality Headquarters is given a lower rank than the minister but higher than the vice minister, like the head of the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy’s Trade and Negotiation Headquarters, and attends cabinet meetings attended by ministers.
It is planned to transfer the functions of ‘Youth and Family’, ‘Gender Equality’ and ‘Promoting Rights and Interests’ that were in charge of the Ministry of Leisure to the Ministry of Welfare and the ‘Employment of Women’ functions to the Ministry of Employment and Labor.
Minister of the Interior and Safety Lee Sang-min said, “It is just that the Minister of Welfare has more duties, but the function of the existing Leisure Ministry is not weakened or degraded.”
Rather, the government analyzed that the Ministry of Health and Welfare’s policy on childcare and seniority and the Ministry of Employment and Labor’s women’s employment policy overlapped with the Ministry of Recreation’s policy to support youth, family and career break, resulting in inefficiency in the state of affairs.
On the other hand, Democratic Party spokesman Oh Young-hwan, after receiving a report on the reform the previous day, said, “When we downgrade (the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family) to the vice-ministerial level, we are serious about the fact that we are not a member of the State Council when discussing sex crime-related policies, so our negotiation power with other ministries may weaken. We have clearly communicated our concerns and concerns.”
Spokesperson Oh explained, “Crimes against women, such as the stalking and murder case at Sindang Station, are still a major social issue, and it is an international situation for the UN to recommend the need for an independent ministry related to gender equality.”
The Ministry of Recreation and Leisure has not yet held an official press conference on this reorganization plan. However, when reporters asked a question after announcing ‘Measures to strengthen support for youth inside and outside school’ on the same day, Minister Kim Hyun-sook said, “I know that he is not a vice-minister-level general manager, but a general manager equivalent to that of a minister. We are working hard so that functions can be operated in a structured way even when ministries are transferred,” he said.
‘Women’s Policy’ needs to be supplemented
Although experts can pursue administrative efficiency by integrating the functions of the Ministry of Welfare and the Ministry of Leisure, concerns are raised that policies focused on women, such as promoting women’s rights and interests, will weaken.
Park Hyung-joon, a professor of public administration at Sungkyunkwan University, told BBC Korea, “Considering the functional aspect, I think it is right for the Ministry of Leisure to exist as a headquarters under the Ministry of Welfare. There are advantages to that,” he said.
However, Professor Park believes that it is necessary to prepare additional supplementary measures, such as the establishment of an administrative agency committee with practical authority, rather than just an advisory role, in order to promote women’s rights rather than from a welfare service perspective.
He said, “There is a way to create a Gender Equality and Family Committee like the Financial Services Commission or the Fair Trade Commission and give them practical powers. We need to have an investigation and enforcement function,” he advised.
Meanwhile, 286 women’s civil society organizations across the country issued a statement on the 4th, saying, “We strongly condemn the power of the government and the people to reverse the policies for women’s human rights and gender equality by stating ‘abolition of the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family’ in every political crisis.” Taking the murder case as an example, he emphasized that “the responsibility and authority of the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, the ministry in charge of gender equality policies, should be further strengthened so that women can live their lives without discrimination and violence.”
“I am opposed to the abolition of the leisure ministry itself,” said Jang Pil-hwa, president of the Korea Women’s Foundation.
He continued, “Even among the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) member countries, there are many women-only organizations and the trend is to expand them.” ), I think that sticking with it can be a self-reinforcing tool even politically.”