The BBC reported on the 28th that Korea, which has the lowest birth rate in the world, is breaking its own record every year, and that although birth rates are falling in developed countries, nowhere is this more extreme than in Korea.
The BBC published a lengthy article specifically analyzing why women do not want to have children. As of the morning of the 28th, this article is listed as the BBC’s most read article.
◇ Lack of male childcare sharing
: Ye-jin, who works at a broadcasting company, said, “It is difficult to find a man in Korea who can equally share housework and childcare,” and “I gave up on marriage.”
Instead, he decided to focus on his career.
◇ Working hours are too long
: He works from 9 to 6, but usually does not leave work until 8 p.m. and works overtime. When he gets home he only has time to clean the house or exercise.
◇ Pressure for self-development
: He is also under pressure to study in his free time for self-improvement.
“Koreans have this mentality that if they don’t constantly strive for self-improvement, they will fall behind and become failures,” he said. “This fear makes them work twice as hard.”
◇ Ringer fighting spirit
: He sometimes gets injections on the weekends to give him enough energy to go back to work on Monday. He said it casually as if this was a very normal everyday thing.
◇ You should quit your job when you have a child.
: Not only this, but in Korea, there is implicit pressure from companies to quit your job when you have a child.
A 28-year-old woman who works in public relations said she had seen colleagues lose promotions after quitting their jobs or going on maternity leave, which was enough to convince her that she should not have children.
Korean women have the highest level of education among the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) countries, but Korea has the highest gender wage gap.
Women have to choose between having a career or raising a family. More and more women are choosing careers.
Stella Shin, 39, said, “Children are so cute, but I decided not to have children.” He added that it was a “passive decision.”
After being married for six years, he wanted to have a child, but found it difficult to combine work and gave up on having a child.
◇ Housing and education costs are too high
: Even if you want to give up your job to have a child, you can’t because housing costs are too high.
Aside from housing costs, private education costs are also enormous. From the age of 4, children receive expensive extracurricular classes in everything from math, English, music, and taekwondo.
As a result, Korea has become the most expensive country in the world to raise a child.
Yejin, tired of living in Korea, decided to immigrate. After researching which countries ranked highest in gender equality, he found out that New Zealand did, and headed to New Zealand.
He has been living in New Zealand for three months. When he met the reporter again and was asked if he would not return to Korea, he said, “I am satisfied with my current life,” and “I have no desire to return to Korea.”
◇ Ban on same-sex marriage also contributes to the decline in birth rate
: In addition, the BBC analyzed that the ban on same-sex marriage is also having an impact on the decline in birth rates.
The BBC reported that because same-sex marriage is illegal, it is also illegal for unmarried women to become pregnant through sperm donors, which is also contributing to the decline in birth rates.
Source: Donga
Mark Jones is a world traveler and journalist for News Rebeat. With a curious mind and a love of adventure, Mark brings a unique perspective to the latest global events and provides in-depth and thought-provoking coverage of the world at large.