CEDAW and Korean Women's Movement by OH Kyung-jin
Channel: U.S. - Asia Law Institute NYU
Date: 15/06/2023

Check our event page to download background readings and the slides: https://usali.org/events/cedaw-and-the-korean-womens-movement

About the webinar: 

The women’s movement in the Republic of Korea has been one of the most active and impactful in the region. South Korea joined CEDAW in 1984 and ratified its optional protocol in 2006. A Ministry of Gender Equality and Family was established and has led important reforms. But women activists are now facing a severe backlash, and the ministry itself is under attack. Korean feminist activist OH Kyung-jin will discuss the history and development of the women’s movement, the role played by CEDAW in its achievements, and the factors that have produced the current backlash against women’s rights activism. 

About the speaker: OH Kyung-jin

OH Kyung-jin is the executive director of Korea Women’s Associations United (KWAU), an umbrella organization of seven chapters and 28 member organizations that strive to achieve gender equality, democracy, and peaceful reunification in the Korean Peninsula through collective action. KWAU focuses on monitoring government policies and promoting gender-mainstreaming strategies at the national/local level with a view to improving legal and institutional systems from a gender equality perspective. Her interests include women’s human rights and inter-generational and transnational feminist networks. Before joining women’s NGOs, she was actively engaged in a number of international development NGOs on a project basis. She served as an executive manager of Korea Women’s Political Solidarity, a member organization of KWAU, from 2014 to 2015 and joined KWAU in 2016.