South Korean president offers first formal apology for ‘unjust’ baby export malpractices
An official inquiry in March found numerous human rights violations in international adoptions of South Korean children
An official inquiry held the government accountable earlier this year for easing adoptions through fraudulent practices, including falsifying documents and switching identities.
The country – now Asia’s fourth-largest economy and a global cultural powerhouse – was for decades one of the world’s biggest exporters of children, having sent more than 140,000 overseas for adoption between 1955 and 1999.
“At such times, the state did not fully meet its responsibilities. On behalf of the Republic of Korea, I offer my heartfelt apology and words of comfort to overseas adoptees, their families, and their birth families who have endured suffering.”
