Seoul, Oct 3: South Korean President Lee Jae Myung has issued a formal apology for the country’s foreign adoption programs, acknowledging that they were poorly managed and involved abuses and fraud. This apology comes months after the Truth and Reconciliation Commission confirmed state responsibility for such practices for the first time.
In a Facebook post on Thursday, President Lee expressed his “heartfelt apology and words of comfort” on behalf of the country to South Koreans adopted abroad and their adoptive and birth families. He acknowledged that the government failed to play its role in cases where human rights abuses occurred during international adoptions. He also stated that he “feels heavy-hearted” when considering the “anxiety, pain, and confusion” that South Korean adoptees would have suffered when they were sent abroad as children.
The Truth and Reconciliation Commission’s findings, along with recent court rulings, have confirmed some cases of human rights abuses in the course of international adoptions. The commission concluded that the government bore responsibility for facilitating adoption programs that were driven by efforts to reduce welfare costs. The report followed a nearly three-year investigation into complaints from 367 adoptees in Europe, the United States, and Australia.
In response to these findings, South Korea ratified the Hague Adoption Convention in July 2025, an international treaty meant to safeguard international adoptions. The treaty officially took effect in South Korea on October 1, 2025.
President Lee has called for the formulation of systems to safeguard the human rights of adoptees and support their efforts to find their birth parents.