Constitutional Court rules against ban on disclosing sex of fetus

Physicians are prohibited to inform the parent of the baby’s gender before 32 weeks into pregnancy. [SCREEN CAPTURE]

The current law banning physicians from informing parents of a fetus’s sex before 32 weeks of pregnancy was ruled to be unconstitutional by the Constitutional Court on Wednesday.

In a six-to-three decision, the court ruled it was unconstitutional to conceal the gender, as it infringes on the parent's right to know.

[WHY] Why are Koreans not told their baby’s sex?

“Restricting doctors from informing [parents] of the fetus’s sex is an inadequate means for the legislative aim of protecting the fetus’s life,” the court said. “It also overly constraints the parent’s right to have access to information about the fetus’s sex, which contradicts the rule of minimizing damage during infringement.”

According to the second clause of the Medical Service Act's Article 20, medical professionals are prohibited from informing the pregnant woman, her family members, or any other people of the sex of the fetus before 32 weeks of pregnancy.

The regulation was first implemented to resolve sex imbalance by preventing abortions of female fetuses, caused by a strong preference for sons in the widespread Confucian belief that males carry on family lineage in Korea.

The initial law banned doctors from informing parents of the baby’s sex during the whole pregnancy period.

A pregnancy is considered full-term at 39 weeks.

However, the Constitutional Court overturned the ban in 2008. It enacted an alternative bill the following year, saying that the expectant parents may be informed after the woman is 32 weeks into pregnancy.

Physicians will have their medical license suspended for a year, alongside being sentenced to imprisonment up to two years or be fined up to 10 million won ($7,485) if they reveal the fetus's sex to the parents.

Many claim that the scope of parents’ right to know should be expanded following the recent diminishing preference for sons.

The plaintiffs submitted complaints for constitutional adjudication, citing that the current medical law violates the parents’ right to access information about the fetus, the pursuit of happiness and doctors' freedom to perform their duties.

BY CHOI SEO-IN [kim.jiye@joongang.co.kr]