Concept Note
Eugenics and Forced Sterilization: State Violence Denying the Existence of Persons with Disabilities
Background
What Does Peace Mean to Persons with Disabilities?
The thematic session titled Disability begins with the fundamental questions: “What is peace?” and “What is a peaceful life for persons with disabilities?” Can we truly say that persons with disabilities living in the present-day Republic of Korea are living in peace? Can we claim that they lead peaceful lives merely because no wars or conflicts occur?
Peace (noun)
1. calm and quiet
2. (a period of) freedom from war or violence, esp. when people live and work together without violent disagreements
However, as opposed to the definition in the dictionary, peace is not simply the absence of armed conflict represented by war. Rather, peace is the state free from all forms of violence directed toward specific groups or individuals. War is a representative form of violence that disrupts peace and constitutes merely one extreme form of state violence perpetrated by governments. Throughout human history, in addition to persons with disabilities having suffered during the specific circumstances associated with war, they have also undergone various other forms of violence inflicted by the state, to the extent of having their very existence denied.
Eugenics and Forced Sterilization, People Denied Existence
Eugenics divides people into those deemed worthy of life and those who are not, subsequently preventing reproduction or survival of the latter. Victims of state policies based on eugenics—such as Germany’s Law for the Prevention of Progeny with Hereditary Diseases (Gesetz zur Verhütung erbkranken Nachwuchses), Japan’s Eugenic Protection Law, and the Republic of Korea’s Mother and Child Health Act— and persons with disabilities continue to live among us today.
In South Korea, fifty years have passed since tragic incidents of forced sterilization performed on persons with disabilities occurred, including Hansen’s disease patients and women confined in Jeongsimwon social welfare facility in Boryeong city in South Chungcheong Province, justified by Article 9 (Procedure for Sterilization Surgery and Filing of Lawsuits) of the Mother and Child Health Act enacted in 1975. It has also been twenty-five years since revelations emerged regarding forced sterilizations of about one hundred persons with intellectual disabilities at the Eunseong Nursing Home in Dong-gu district in Gwangju city, as part of a family planning project in 1983. Still, investigation and research into eugenics, as well as truth-finding and compensation for victims of forced sterilization based on eugenics have not yet been undertaken in South Korea.
Moreover, the current Mother and Child Health Act still explicitly includes eugenic objectives aimed at promoting the birth of healthy children. Article 8 of this law states that, in addition to cases when the mother’s health is at risk, abortion can also be performed in cases involving genetic mental or physical impairments of the individual or their spouse, infectious diseases, pregnancy resulting from rape or quasi-rape, and pregnancy between blood relatives or in-laws who are legally prohibited from marrying. Effectively, this provision legitimizes the abortion of fetuses with disabilities, a clause that persists despite demands from disability organizations for its repeal. Even today, in the 21st century, persons with disabilities continue to have their existence denied from before their birth.
Objectives
Examining Japan’s Response to State-Imposed Forced Sterilization: Focusing on Activities Addressing Victims of the Eugenic Protection Law
Japan’s Eugenic Protection Law, which was enforced from 1948 to 1996 under the pretext of preventing the birth of inferior offspring and modelled after Nazi Germany’s Law for the Prevention of Progeny with Hereditary Diseases mandated abortions and forced sterilizations targeting individuals with hereditary diseases, intellectual disabilities, and the like. Among the 24,993 individuals who underwent sterilization procedures, 16,475 were forcibly sterilized. The youngest victim was only nine years old, and there were 2,714 documented cases involving individuals in their teens or younger. In July of last year, the Supreme Court of Japan ruled that forced sterilizations imposed upon persons with disabilities for over fifty years under the former Eugenic Protection Law were violations of the Constitution. Consequently, persons with disabilities who had undergone sterilization procedures between the 1950s and 1970s filed lawsuits seeking compensation from the government, and the Supreme Court recognized the state’s liability for damages. Furthermore, in October 2024, the National Diet of Japan passed a bill to provide compensation for victims of forced sterilization.
Identifying the Reality and Future Tasks in South Korea: Centered on the Concluding Observations of the UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD)
According to the UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities’ second and third concluding observations issued in September 2023, the Committee expressed the following concerns and recommendations to the Government of the Republic of Korea:
“The Committee is concerned that, despite legal provisions prohibiting forced sterilization procedures on women with disabilities, this practice continues. Moreover, the Committee is concerned about the lack of information regarding any investigations conducted by the state party regarding this matter.”
“The Committee thus urges the state party to take measures to end forced sterilization and non consensual termination of pregnancies of women and girls with disabilities, especially those residing in institutions. Additionally, the Committee recommends establishing mechanisms to identify, investigate, and track all cases that continue to occur despite explicit prohibition, to ensure full reparations for such cases and to protect women with disabilities from forced sterilization.” Ten years earlier, during the CRPD’s previous review of the Government of the Republic of Korea, the Committee had already expressed concerns over the lack of information on forced sterilization practices at the government level.
Accordingly, the Committee had recommended that measures be taken to eliminate forced sterilization and called for investigations into such cases. However, the CRPD’s combined second and third country report of the Republic of Korea revealed once again that there was no investigation into forced sterilization cases and that measures to prevent forced sterilization had not been implemented.
References
Kim, J., et al. (2024). Eugenics Within Us: The History of the Fit and Unfit, Their Discrimination and Exclusion. Dolbegae Publishing.
United Nations Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. (2023). Final opinion on the second and third national reports to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
Main Agenda
1. Exploring future measures based on Japan’s responses to cases of forced sterilization
2. Highlighting domestic cases of state-perpetrated forced sterilization of persons with disabilities
3. Seeking ways to guarantee the reproductive and other rights of persons with disabilities in accordance with the CRPD
Concept Note
Eugenics and Forced Sterilization: State Violence Denying the Existence of Persons with Disabilities
Background
What Does Peace Mean to Persons with Disabilities?
The thematic session titled Disability begins with the fundamental questions: “What is peace?” and “What is a peaceful life for persons with disabilities?” Can we truly say that persons with disabilities living in the present-day Republic of Korea are living in peace? Can we claim that they lead peaceful lives merely because no wars or conflicts occur?
Peace (noun)
1. calm and quiet
2. (a period of) freedom from war or violence, esp. when people live and work together without violent disagreements
However, as opposed to the definition in the dictionary, peace is not simply the absence of armed conflict represented by war. Rather, peace is the state free from all forms of violence directed toward specific groups or individuals. War is a representative form of violence that disrupts peace and constitutes merely one extreme form of state violence perpetrated by governments. Throughout human history, in addition to persons with disabilities having suffered during the specific circumstances associated with war, they have also undergone various other forms of violence inflicted by the state, to the extent of having their very existence denied.
Eugenics and Forced Sterilization, People Denied Existence
Eugenics divides people into those deemed worthy of life and those who are not, subsequently preventing reproduction or survival of the latter. Victims of state policies based on eugenics—such as Germany’s Law for the Prevention of Progeny with Hereditary Diseases (Gesetz zur Verhütung erbkranken Nachwuchses), Japan’s Eugenic Protection Law, and the Republic of Korea’s Mother and Child Health Act— and persons with disabilities continue to live among us today.
In South Korea, fifty years have passed since tragic incidents of forced sterilization performed on persons with disabilities occurred, including Hansen’s disease patients and women confined in Jeongsimwon social welfare facility in Boryeong city in South Chungcheong Province, justified by Article 9 (Procedure for Sterilization Surgery and Filing of Lawsuits) of the Mother and Child Health Act enacted in 1975. It has also been twenty-five years since revelations emerged regarding forced sterilizations of about one hundred persons with intellectual disabilities at the Eunseong Nursing Home in Dong-gu district in Gwangju city, as part of a family planning project in 1983. Still, investigation and research into eugenics, as well as truth-finding and compensation for victims of forced sterilization based on eugenics have not yet been undertaken in South Korea.
Moreover, the current Mother and Child Health Act still explicitly includes eugenic objectives aimed at promoting the birth of healthy children. Article 8 of this law states that, in addition to cases when the mother’s health is at risk, abortion can also be performed in cases involving genetic mental or physical impairments of the individual or their spouse, infectious diseases, pregnancy resulting from rape or quasi-rape, and pregnancy between blood relatives or in-laws who are legally prohibited from marrying. Effectively, this provision legitimizes the abortion of fetuses with disabilities, a clause that persists despite demands from disability organizations for its repeal. Even today, in the 21st century, persons with disabilities continue to have their existence denied from before their birth.
Objectives
Examining Japan’s Response to State-Imposed Forced Sterilization: Focusing on Activities Addressing Victims of the Eugenic Protection Law
Japan’s Eugenic Protection Law, which was enforced from 1948 to 1996 under the pretext of preventing the birth of inferior offspring and modelled after Nazi Germany’s Law for the Prevention of Progeny with Hereditary Diseases mandated abortions and forced sterilizations targeting individuals with hereditary diseases, intellectual disabilities, and the like. Among the 24,993 individuals who underwent sterilization procedures, 16,475 were forcibly sterilized. The youngest victim was only nine years old, and there were 2,714 documented cases involving individuals in their teens or younger. In July of last year, the Supreme Court of Japan ruled that forced sterilizations imposed upon persons with disabilities for over fifty years under the former Eugenic Protection Law were violations of the Constitution. Consequently, persons with disabilities who had undergone sterilization procedures between the 1950s and 1970s filed lawsuits seeking compensation from the government, and the Supreme Court recognized the state’s liability for damages. Furthermore, in October 2024, the National Diet of Japan passed a bill to provide compensation for victims of forced sterilization.
Identifying the Reality and Future Tasks in South Korea: Centered on the Concluding Observations of the UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities (CRPD)
According to the UN Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities’ second and third concluding observations issued in September 2023, the Committee expressed the following concerns and recommendations to the Government of the Republic of Korea:
“The Committee is concerned that, despite legal provisions prohibiting forced sterilization procedures on women with disabilities, this practice continues. Moreover, the Committee is concerned about the lack of information regarding any investigations conducted by the state party regarding this matter.”
“The Committee thus urges the state party to take measures to end forced sterilization and non consensual termination of pregnancies of women and girls with disabilities, especially those residing in institutions. Additionally, the Committee recommends establishing mechanisms to identify, investigate, and track all cases that continue to occur despite explicit prohibition, to ensure full reparations for such cases and to protect women with disabilities from forced sterilization.” Ten years earlier, during the CRPD’s previous review of the Government of the Republic of Korea, the Committee had already expressed concerns over the lack of information on forced sterilization practices at the government level.
Accordingly, the Committee had recommended that measures be taken to eliminate forced sterilization and called for investigations into such cases. However, the CRPD’s combined second and third country report of the Republic of Korea revealed once again that there was no investigation into forced sterilization cases and that measures to prevent forced sterilization had not been implemented.
References
Kim, J., et al. (2024). Eugenics Within Us: The History of the Fit and Unfit, Their Discrimination and Exclusion. Dolbegae Publishing.
United Nations Committee on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities. (2023). Final opinion on the second and third national reports to the United Nations Convention on the Rights of Persons with Disabilities.
Main Agenda
1. Exploring future measures based on Japan’s responses to cases of forced sterilization
2. Highlighting domestic cases of state-perpetrated forced sterilization of persons with disabilities
3. Seeking ways to guarantee the reproductive and other rights of persons with disabilities in accordance with the CRPD