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media portrayals of adoptees at the time of the last International Gathering in 2004, Korean foster care, sex education, teenage pregnancy, and
more. In addition to learning more about the issues, we are committed to fostering relationships with people and organizations who work on the front
lines.
Chongwol Sunim
ASK is pleased to invite you for an evening of discussion with Chongwol Sunim a student of the
female zen master Dae Haing. Chongwol Sunim will discuss intercountry adoption from a Buddhist
perspective, touching upon essential human rights issues. He has prior spoken to young adoptees
and also been involved with family searches. Chongwol Sunim is currently the head of Hyundae
Bulkyo Media Center in Seoul.
Wednesday, April 12, from 7:30-9:00 p.m. at Shinchon TOZ
IN SUN PARK, PH.D.
ASK is pleased to invite you for an evening of discussion with one of the leading experts in the field of
child welfare and social services in Korea. In Sun Park holds a Ph.D. in Social Work and has worked
in the field of child welfare for the past 30 years, actively questioning current policies and critically
thinking about the subject. A former professor of social work at Ewha Woman’s University, Dr. Park
now operates her own research facility in Seoul, the HaeSong Child Welfare Research Center. She is
also the editor of People Who Search, a book that details her research on adult adoptees and
includes adoptee writing.
Click here to read Dr. Park’s recent paper, Looking After Our Child With Our Hands
Click here to read a 1998 interview with Dr. Park in the Korean Quarterly.
Sunday, March 19, 4:00-5:30 at Koroot
Guest speaker: Yang Seung Ju, Director of Family Policy, Ministry of Gender Equality and Family
This month, we are pleased to welcome Yang Seung Ju, who became the MOGEF’s Director of Family
Policy last year. In December, Ms. Yang spoke at a hearing held by Congresswoman Jang Hyang
Sook, at which ASK members were also participants. She received her master’s and doctoral
degrees in Agricultural Economics from Korea University and has been involved in fostering women’s
development in Korea.
There will be an informal discussion with Ms. Yang and time for your questions. This Forum will have
Korean to English interpretation.
Wednesday, December 21 at 8:00 - 9:30 pm
ASK December Monthly Forum
Professor Helen Noh, Ph.D. of Soongsil University
We are looking forward to an evening forum with Helen Noh, Professor of Social Work from Soongsil
University. Helen Noh regularly covers the subject of international adoption in her undergraduate
social work courses. In the past year, there have been a couple of documentary specials on the issue
of adoption, and Professor Noh was interviewed in both of them. We expect to have an informal
discussion with Professor Noh.
Sunday, October 30, 2005 4:00 - 5:30 at KoRoot
October Monthly ASK Forum
Yoo, Kyung Hee of Womenlink will share with us about the current women's movement in Korea, the
status of abolishing the hojuje (family registry system), and other issues.
Ms. Yoo has been active in the organization Womenlink since 1992. Before becoming a representative
of Womenlink this year, she was involved in regional activism, co-op and counseling activities. She is
also currently the association representative of the Solidarity Network, a network of Korean NGOs and
the director of the Korea Women’s Associations United, a network of women’s organizations. She is
also serving on policy advisory commissions for the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, the
Ministry of Justice, and the Korean National Police Agency. She’s very interested in issues of single
parent families and most of her activities have related to issues of gender, family and the human
rights of women.
Wednesday, August 31, 2005 7:30
Dr. Peter Selman visits Korea
ASK will meet with ICA expert from University of Newcastle.
The “quiet migration” in the new millennium:
trends in intercountry adoption 1998-2003
Paper presented at the 8th Global Conference
Manila, August 10-12 August 2005
May 29th, 2005 ASK Forum 4:00-5:30 at Koroot
ASK is very happy to present Han, Sang Soon, Director of Aeranwon home for
single mothers since 1990. Prior to her involvement at Aeranwon, she worked with Korean Christian
Adoption Association that later merged with Holt Children's Services for 7 years. Ms. Han received her
bachelor's and master's degrees in social work from Ewha Womens University.
Lee, Young Sook -Planned Parenthood Federation of Korea
Mrs. Lee presented us with a lot of information about several topics that included sex education in the
schools, teenage pregnancy and the few options they're presented with, and what her organization
PPFK does.
February 20, 2005
Park, Youngsook - Korean Foster Care Association
ASK was very happy to have the opportunity to listen to Mrs. Youngsook Park. Mrs. Park is the
President and founder of the Korean Foster Care Association. She is also the director of public
diplomacy at the Australian Embassy in Seoul. Her many civic involvements include serving on the
boards of the Kyunggi Province Social Welfare Committee, the Korean Consumers Union and the
Korean Volunteers Forum. Last year, Mrs. Park was appointed by the Prime Minister as the Korean
Child Government Policy Coordinator.
January 23, 2005
Kwok, Sa Jin
Kwok Sa Jin is an activist from the U.S. who has lived in Korea since 2000. He has worked with
various human rights organizations throughout East Asia, including Durebang Women's Services in
Uijeongbu. He represented Korea at the first Amerasian Solidarity Summit in Angeles City in 2003, in
addition to participating in the Okinawan Amerasian Leadership Summit of 2004.
Kwok Sa Jin gave us a presentation about Amerasians in Korea. His presentation challenged some
of the established notions about US military occupation, racism in Korea, and international adoption.
December 5, 2004
Hong Seung-jun, founder of http://cafe.daum.net/AntiBabyExport
Mr. Hong is an adoptive father and the creator of a net-based cybercafe called Anti-baby Export at
http://cafe.daum.net/AntiBabyExport . Currently, the cafe has over 300 members. Along with his
"openly" adopted 5 year old daughter, he has two sons 25 and 15 years old. He believes that adoption
out of Korea needs to be discontinued, and the way he is working towards this end is to raise public
awareness and demand better policies and solutions. He also believes that it's important to work with
adoptees.
He will also be joined by the operator of the Anti-baby Export cafe, Im Hye-Young. She is a 3rd year
student at Yonsei.
October 24, 2004
Crossing Chasms is a video documentary about Jennifer Arndt, a Korean adoptee, who returns to her
birth country seeking answers to the complex questions surrounding her adoption. In her search to
define her identity, she walks through her past to understand the present. On this journey she meets
other Korean adoptees who share their experiences as she tries to track down her own biological
family. Through her own story and the testimonies of seven other adoptees, we learn about the
complex issues facing Korean adoptees through their own voices.
speak at the December forum in 2005.
