Korean Bishops Decry Proposed Abortion Law Amendment: ‘It Obscures the Very Essence of Life’

The Catholic Bishops' Conference of Korea (CBCK) has strongly denounced a proposed amendment to South Korea’s abortion law, warning that it “obscures the very essence of life,” Fides News Agency reported.

The “partial amendment to the Maternal and Child Health Law,” filed by Representative Nam In-soon of the Democratic Party, seeks to change the current term “artificial intervention for abortion” to “artificial termination of pregnancy.”

According to Fides, the bishops said this change would reduce abortion from “a decision to terminate” to a mere “routine medical procedure.” They also noted that the amendment aims to legalize “all forms of abortion, whether pharmacological or surgical.”

CBCK warned that the proposal could lead to a significant rise in abortions and pose risks to women’s physical and mental health.

“By including this intervention in health insurance, the government is attempting to create a system in which abortions are publicly funded. This measure fundamentally undermines the state's duty to protect the right to life,” the bishops said in a statement quoted by Fides.

They further stressed that the amendment violates Article 10 of the South Korean Constitution, which states: “It shall be the duty of the State to confirm and guarantee the fundamental and inviolable human rights of individuals.”

“Although a woman’s right to self-determination must be respected, this right must not override the fetus’s right to life,” they said.

The bishops urged the government to draft laws that safeguard both the fetus’s right to life and women’s rights, emphasizing that women and their unborn children should not be seen as “opposing beings.”

The CBCK has long maintained a firm stance against abortion. When Bishop Mathias Lee Yong-hoon of Suwon became president of the bishops’ conference in 2020, he criticized the “trend of neglect of life” in South Korea.

“To defend the dignity of life and to protect it cannot be compromised for any reason. I am firmly opposed to abortion and will continue to do so,” he said.

In a 2020 statement, the CBCK stressed the need to foster a culture of life in South Korea.

“We sincerely hope that our society will establish a fair system in which we take co-responsibility for pregnancy and childcare, and strive to be a ‘better Korea’ by building a foundation of respect for life and a culture of life,” the bishops wrote.