Throughout Korea’s Chosn Dynasty (1392-1910), women had few social, economic and political opportunities, and their access to formal education was limited. They were recognised mainly for their reproductive role and were expected to give birth to male heirs. The social status of women changed in 1945, following the establishment of the Democratic People’s Republic of Korea (commonly known as North Korea). The principle of equality between men and women is stipulated in a number of laws, including the Constitution.
Officially, women in North Korea now have the same legal rights as men but their situation remains difficult as a result of the country’s generally poor conditions following decades of dictatorship and economic isolation. Women are expected to work as many hours as men, but they also shoulder most of the responsibility for household chores.
While the following information is believed to be accurate, readers should note that information from NGOs and women’s rights activists in North Korea is scarce.
Women in North Korea appear to be fairly well protected within the family context. The 1946 Law on Sex Equality set the minimum age of marriage at 17 years for women and 18 years for men. It also states that marriages are to be based upon the free will and mutual consent of both parties. Compatibility of class origins is a primary consideration in marriage and most young people marry only if they have the approval of their parents. According to defectors, the government does not promote early marriage and encourages young people instead to devote more time to work for their country and its people. Radio Free Asia reports that women in North Korea tend to marry at the age of 28 or 29, while men wait until they are 30 or 31 years old.
Article 7 of the Law on Sex Equality criminalises polygamy. The 1990 Family Law grants men and women equal parental authority, implying that they have the same rights and obligations to care for their children. In the event of divorce, custody is decided by mutual agreement or by a court. The Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women (CEDAW) reports that custody of children younger than three years of age is usually awarded to the mother, unless there is a compelling argument against this practice.
No evidence is reported regarding legal discrimination against women in the area of inheritance, but information on actual practices is limited.
Lack of data makes it difficult to assess the degree to which North Korea protects the physical integrity of women. Violence against women is believed to be quite common. The issue is not well covered in the country’s report to the CEDAW and any statistical data are likely to be underestimates. For example, the country recorded only two cases of rape in 2003 and only one in 2004. Independent sources, including the UN special rapporteur, report that women in prison camps are subject to sexual abuse and forced abortions. The US Department of State provides evidence that the trafficking of women and young girls into China also occurs.
There is no evidence that North Korea practises female genital mutilation. Despite persisting traditions of son preference, there is no empirical evidence to suggest that North Korea is a country of concern regarding missing women. However, according to the CEDAW, grandparents have been known (on rare occasions) to demand continued childbirth until their own children deliver a grandson.
Women in North Korea are not subject to gender-based discrimination in the realm of financial autonomy. Means of production in North Korea, including land, are owned by the public and the state is responsible for supplying its citizens with food, clothing and housing. The CEDAW reports that, as such, individual property rights in North Korea derive from socialist distribution according to work carried out, and that the law makes no distinction between men and women in this respect. Within marriage, both spouses have equal rights to access to land and access to property other than land: they separately own and control property of a personal nature or, alternatively, share joint ownership of any family property.
Women can have independent control over their finances and are able to conclude various contracts. At present, no information is available regarding women’s access to bank loans.
North Korea has no legal restrictions against freedom of movement for women. However, certain regulations prevent women from “dangerous and harmful labour” and prohibit pregnant women or women with infants from working at night. In general, North Korean women are expected to know their “proper place and behaviour” as wives and mothers. A report by Lankov states that, as a consequence, women have been subject to bans that forbid smoking, driving and riding a bicycle.
Similarly, female modesty has always been encouraged and this extends to women’s freedom of dress. The Lankov report also shows that, for many years, women in Pyongyang and other major cities were not allowed to wear trousers, other than at work.
CEDAW (Committee on the Elimination of Discrimination against Women) (2002), Consideration of Reports Submitted by States Parties Under Article 18 of the Convention on the Elimination of All Forms of Discrimination against Women: Democratic People’s Republic of Korea, CEDAW/C/PRK/1, CEDAW, New York, NY.
Countries and Their Cultures (n.d.), Culture of North Korea, www.everyculture.com, accessed 31 January 2008.
Lankov, A. (2007), “A Woman’s Life”, Korea Times, Seoul, www.koreatimes.co.kr.
Radio Free Asia (2004), Seoul to Soul: Dating and Marriage in the Two Koreas, Radio Free Asia, Washington, DC, www.rfa.org.
Savada, A.M. (ed.) (1993), North Korea: A Country Study, Government Printing Office for the Library of Congress, Washington, DC.
UN (United Nations) (2004), World Fertility Report 2003, UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Population Division, New York, NY.
US Department of State (2007), Country Reports on Human Rights Practices: Korea, Democratic People’s Republic of, US Department of State, Bureau of Democracy, Human Rights and Labor, Washington, DC.
