Title: National Solidarity against Sexual Exploitation of Women – March Activities Update

Every year, March 8th marks International Women’s Day. In Korea, this day is commemorated by holding the Korean Women’s Rally, and this year marked the 39th rally. The National Solidarity also joined the preparation team for the Korean Women’s Rally and operated a booth on the day of the event.

At the booth, we distributed badges containing the slogan of The Survivor Network Moongchi, “Our Existence is Action,” along with messages advocating for the amendment of ‘the law on punishment of acts of engaging in prostitution’. Additionally, attendees could leave messages regarding reflective contemplation on prostitution on a cherry blossom tree installed at the booth. This tree is currently installed at the Boda office, a subsidiary institution of the National Solidarity, conveying the power of solidarity to women visiting the counseling center.

Above all, March 22nd marks the 20th anniversary of the enactment of laws on prostitution(Two laws: The law on punishment of acts of engaging in prostitution and the law on protection of the prostituted) in Korea. On this day, the National Solidarity, under the auspices of the Coalition for the Amendment of Law on punishment, held a press conference in front of the National Assembly with the slogan, “Preparation is over! Let’s go! Amend the law on punishment!” Currently, our law on punishment penalizes all actors in prostitution including those who procure or advertise, and exempts those who are selling sex ‘involuntarily’. So law penalizing prostituted women silences the voices of these victims. The National Solidarity will continue to work diligently to expedite the amendment of this law.