The first half of 2023 was a very important time for LGBTQ+ people in South Korea. Korea’s first transgender athlete participated in a provincial sports festival, and there was great progress such as Civil Union Bill and three bills on Rights to Found Family being proposed. However, queer festivals were at the forefront of the struggle as conservative local governments suppressed various queer festivals.
English Translation: 피웊
Translation review: 지니, Juyeon
Writer of the original text: 에스텔
Review and amendments to the original text: Miguel
In 2023, we have consistently delivered LGBTQ+ news in Korea. While many important events happened recently, we want to address three significant events that have happened.
Bills on protecting the rights of sexual and gender minorities have been proposed
On April 26, 2023, 11 lawmakers including Yong Hyein of the Basic Income Party proposed, for the first time in Korea, the Civil Union Bill. Following, Jang Hye-young and others of the Justice Party held a press conference in front of the main building of the National Assembly on the 31st of April. They announced their proposal of three bills, including the Marriage Equality Bill, Civil Union Bill, and Non-marriage Support Bills, aimed at “widening the legal definition of the family.”
The three bills on the Rights to Found Family are meaningful in that the Marriage Equality Bill directly mentions the legislation of same-sex marriage, which has been treated as ‘taboo.’ In this context, domestic human rights organizations that have been insisting on same-sex marriage legislation have welcomed the Civil Union Bill and Non-marriage Support Bill along with the aforementioned bills.
In addition, Rainbow Action Against Sexual-Minority Discrimination South Korea and Marriage Equality Korea have held a press conference and announced that they would launch “Marriage For All” campaign to urge the legislation of same-sex marriage. As part of this, the groups will screen the advertisements “Love Will Win” on the billboards of the plaza and city buses in time for the Seoul Queer Festival to be held on July 1st, and will also launch a full-scale campaign to promote marriage equality rights, including efforts to pass legislation for legislate same-sex marriage and filing a nationwide lawsuit for same-sex marriage before next year’s general elections
Marriage For All: Love Will Win. Family Now, Family Always
Police and Local Governments Confront at Daegu Queer Festival
The Daegu Queer Festival was held successfully on June 17th despite interference from conservative Protestants and local governments. It is against the Constitution to prevent a legitimate rally, but Daegu Mayor Hong Joonpyo, who is a member of the ruling People Power Party(PPP), refused to cooperate, saying the road could not be used, and ordered the city buses to not detour for the festival and pass through the festival venue. However, the Daegu police bypassed the city bus and other vehicles, and the event proceeded safely at the scheduled place.
In response, Daegu local government tried to forcibly remove booths and festival facilities by mobilizing city officials, but was blocked by the police. In this context, there was a unique scene in which citizens who participated in the festival cheered the police.
However, some argue that the police should not be considered human rights friendly just because they cooperated with the Daegu Queer Festival. Hong Joonpyo, the mayor of Daegu, who attempted to block the queer festival, is a former presidential candidate and is seen as a nonconformist within the conservative ruling party, which makes the central government's intention to restrain him reflected in the movements of the police. It is also worth noting that the police acted on the sidelines back when LGBTQ+ people were attacked at Incheon Queer Festival took place.
Korea’s first transgender athlete who participated in provincial sports festival
Na Hwarin, who was a cyclist and is currently engaged in agriculture, is the first transgender person in Korea to participate in the Provincial Sports Festival. Asked if the purpose of participating in the competition was ‘awards,’ she replied as follows.
“I want to provoke controversy.”
She knew that the participation itself would be controversial and the topic of fairness would be under fire. “I know very well that if I win an award, the public will not sympathize nor recognize me, and that I’ll not be in honor. But, I, who was a man before a woman now, do exist. In the end, I wanted to talk about distinction, not discrimination, by betting my life on the participation of the race. It is creating a hole in the dichotomous male or female participation so that LGBTQ+ people can also participate,” she explained.
She won three gold medals at the festival. In an interview after the ceremony, she said, “I think I scored about 90 out of 100 on becoming controversial. I did consider staying low-profile and focusing on agriculture. Though, I decided I need to finish what I have started. I’ll appear on various media to develop an active forum of discussion.”
Na Hwarin’s participation has raised a hot topic in Korean society, but the discussions on gender distinctions in transgender and athletic events are still insufficient. First of all, Gangwon-do Province Governor Kin Jintae said at an event attended by a large number of pastors from Gangwon province that he would never let queer festivals take place in the region, adding that he is responsible for blocking Na Hwarin’s participation of Korean National Sports Festival. Following, Gangwon-do Province Governor Sin Gyeongho also expressed opposition to the queer festival, raising concerns about the actions of anti-LGBTQ local politicians.
English Translation: 피웊
Translation review: 지니, Juyeon
Writer of the original text: 에스텔
Review and amendments to the original text: Miguel
References (available in Korean)
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