UPR Sexual Rights Database

National Report:
Para 50) The universal birth registration requires mandatory birth reporting upon the birth of a child. The birth of a child of foreign nationals born in the Republic of Korea shall be registered in accordance with the laws of their countries even in cases where the parents are undocumented migrants. Children born to refugees can be registered as foreigners if they submit birth certificate issued by a hospital. The Act on the Registration, etc. of Family Relation was amended in May 2016 to allow a prosecutor or the head of a local government to report a child’s birth if the persons who are obligated to report fails to do and jeopardizes the child’s welfare.

UN Compilation:
Para 15) Noting the universal periodic review recommendation on a birth registration system, the Office of the United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) reported that the birth registration system failed to ensure universal and compulsory birth registration and that foreigners whose children had been born in the country were not able to register their children through the family register, although their children might receive a birth notification document from the hospital.

Stakeholder Summary:
Para 23) JS2 stated that the Government has refused to register births of children of foreign nationals. The parents might register the birth of their child through the embassies of their countries. However, refugees were often reluctant to approach the embassies to register the birth of their child.

National Report:
Para 53) In effort to prevent child sexual abuse, the Government strengthened education by expanding institutions obliged to take preventive education on sexual abuse including schools and workplaces. The Government has tightened punishment for sex crimes, designated police investigative team and prosecutors exclusively in charge of sexual violence, organized annual workshops to train investigators in charge of crimes against women and children, all to facilitate prompt response and investigation. The victims of sex crimes are assisted by public defenders and statement assistance. The sex offenders are not only subject to criminal punishment but also registered in the sex offender registry, and are forbidden to work in facilities designed for children and juveniles. The courts can order the sex offenders against children and juveniles to wear ankle monitors, and those offenders who are sexual deviant and over 19 years of age may be ordered to undergo pharmacologic treatment for up to 15 years.