Korean kids are unhappy but new legislation is on the way

Children sing in a festival celebrating Children's Day held at Children's Grand Park in Gwangjin District, eastern Seoul, on Thursday. [YONHAP]

On the 100th anniversary of Children's Day Thursday, a survey showed that one in five children and teens in Korea are unhappy, and school is the biggest reason.

According to a poll conducted by the Ministry of Health and Welfare and the National Center for the Rights of the Child revealed on Thursday, 81.4 percent of the respondents said they were “somewhat happy” or “very happy.” The rest, 18.6 percent, answered they are “not very happy” or “not happy at all.”

Of the children and adolescents who said they were “not happy,” the most commonly-answered reason (33.9 percent) was due to academic problems like grades, followed by uncertainty about the future at 27.5 percent.

Other reasons included financial difficulties of the family (7.6 percent), an unhappy family (6.4 percent), troubled relationships with friends (6.4 percent) and dissatisfaction about physical appearance (5.9 percent).

The survey has been conducted every year since 2011 to raise awareness of children's rights. The latest survey was held from July 16 to October 29 last year online on a total of 1,270 children and adolescents from fourth grade of elementary school to high school seniors under the age of 18.

One question asked the factors hampering the children's right to play, and 47 percent cited adult interference. That was followed by a lack of time to play (27.4 percent), lack of awareness of the importance of the right to play (13 percent), lack of play space (6.3 percent), and lack of information such as how to play (4 percent).

The Ministry of Health and Welfare announced Thursday it plans to draft a Basic Act on Children this year and push for its enactment next year. It will acknowledge that children have rights and guarantee the right to play.

Currently in Korea, children's rights are individually stipulated in various education-related laws.

While current laws see children as objects requiring protection, childcare and education, a new basic act on children would specifically define the different rights of children, including the right to play.

The bill will also include the responsibility of the state to create a healthy growth environment for children, as well as the responsibility of companies to prevent the creation of harmful environments.

The enactment of a basic act on children is a recommendation of the United Nations Convention on the Rights of the Child.

BY SEO JI-EUN [seo.jieun1@joongang.co.kr]