국제결혼을 통한 이주여성의 지위

Abstract

Korea just stepped on enhancing its international status and set in the process of stable economic growth from the point of the Olympics held in Seoul in 1988. During those period, we needed a lot of foreign workers ranging from farming and fisheries, livestock, manufactures to service sectors. And with the frequent exchanges of human resources between countries, the number of intermarriages gradually increased. According to statistics from the National Statistical Office, As of 1990, the ratio of intermarriage was just 1.2% of total newly married-couples in Korea. Since then it has been increased up to 13.6% in 2005. Now Korea is facing a range of concerns related with intermarriage families, ‘multicultural families’. Most of the children from multicultural families are now on the age of schooling through primary, middle, or highschool. We have to minimize language barriers and cultural disorders which these children are facing and also we have to establish the stable social infrastructure for multiracial society. Now it is time to extend our concerns on intermarriage women and their children. Foreign nationals who get married to koreans can acquire korean nationality after a certain period of time elapse. Lots of illegal brokers are making ill use of that system. They arrange phony marriages and exploit them in financial or human rights side. So we have to hurry up to make the related laws and regulations into effect to control and supervise those intermarriage matchmaker firms legally operated. Many intermarriage women in korea are suffering mental conflicts because of language and cultural differences. And also their children are easily subject to discrimination because of different skin colors and appearances. So national and local governments, civic groups altogether have to enforce effective policies for intermarriage women and their children. Education of korean language, culture and history for them can be some of those policies. With those comprehensive efforts they can be naturally integrated into korean society as real koreans. Intermarriage is the combination of mankind beyond the nationality. It makes new multicural family and spread cultural diversity over the community. Thus the country can be globalized not only by exchanging of capital resources but also by intermarriage. To maximize these positive effects we have to step up our efforts to improve legal treatment, effective application of social security system for intermarriage women and to expand educational assistance for their children and so forth. At the same time, we have to alleviate the national, cultural exclusiveness. And then we have to make prompt change in social awareness through expanding our understanding of multi-ethnic, multicultural society. This dissertation is focused on finding aggressive and comprehensive policy which will enhance the social and legal status of intermarriage women in korea.