South Korea’s President Issues Formal Apology for Decades of Flawed Adoption Practices
South Korean President Lee Jae Myung has issued a formal apology for decades of mismanaged foreign adoption programs that saw thousands of Korean children sent abroad under fraudulent or coercive circumstances.
In a heartfelt statement posted Thursday, Lee expressed “deep apology and words of comfort” to adoptees and their families, acknowledging the state’s failure to protect their rights.
The apology follows findings by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, which confirmed that widespread human rights abuses occurred in international adoptions, many of which were driven by government efforts to reduce welfare costs.
Investigations revealed that countless adoption records were falsified, portraying children as abandoned when they had living parents. Some were even separated from their families without consent.
The Commission’s landmark report echoed a 2024 Associated Press and Frontline investigation that found South Korean and Western agencies collaborated for decades to send approximately 200,000 Korean children overseas, despite knowing that many adoptions were ethically and legally compromised.
President Lee urged the creation of new systems to uphold adoptees’ rights and to support those seeking to reconnect with their birth families.
The apology coincides with South Korea’s recent ratification of the Hague Adoption Convention, an international treaty designed to ensure that intercountry adoptions protect the best interests of children.
This moment marks a crucial step toward justice and recognition for generations of adoptees whose right to identity, family, and protection from exploitation was denied for far too long.
