Hawon Jung

Could South Korean women be conscripted? The country's military is becoming desperate for troops, and may eventually force women to serve.

The story was co-published by
@fullerproject.org (no paywall)
www.fullerproject.org/south-north-...

Korea’s Demographic Crisis Has Come for Its Military The country’s military is becoming desperate for troops—and may eventually force women to serve.

Should South Korea draft women? The question has gained more urgency as the pool of male conscripts shrinks due to low birthrates and threats from the nuclear-armed North persist. My latest for @foreignpolicy.com on one of the most divisive issues in South Korea.
foreignpolicy.com/2026/02/24/s...

Korea’s Demographic Crisis Has Come for Its Military The country’s military is becoming desperate for troops—and may eventually force women to serve.

In South Korea, the question of whether to draft women has gained greater urgency amid dramatic troop shortages. Published in collaboration with the Fuller Project.

A South Korean court on Thursday sentenced former President Yoon Suk Yeol to life imprisonment after finding him guilty of leading an insurrection when he briefly imposed martial law in 2024.

Here’s what to know: nyti.ms/46jedjI

Well-researched and fascinating look at feminism & the gender divide in South Korea. Honestly if US men keep acting like they have I see the US going this way too. It seems like SK men have had it good for a long time & are stubbornly refusing to give up their controlling power in relationships

South Korea’s ‘Willfully Unmarried’ Movement The country has the lowest birth rate in the world, and young women’s rejection of traditional partnerships may hold lessons for the US

South Korea’s “marriage strike” reflects women seeking autonomy amid widening gender divides. Could this be a possible preview for the U.S., where birth rates are 1.6 and Gen Z women face pressure to marry?

South Korea’s ‘Willfully Unmarried’ Movement The country has the lowest birth rate in the world, and young women’s rejection of traditional partnerships may hold lessons for the US

South Korea has the world’s lowest birth rate, coinciding with a widening gender gap in views of not only politics but also marriage and childbirth. I wrote about young women’s attitudes and what the trend might mean for the U.S., for @newlinesmag.bsky.social. newlinesmag.com/reportage/so...

Korea's search for 'gender discrimination against men' - The Korea Times Korea faces a serious social problem. President Lee Jae Myung has repeatedly urged officials to get to the bottom of the issue and take action. A m...

My latest on the South Korean government’s quest to find “reverse discrimination against men” — an ironic focus in a country with one of the worst women’s rights records in the industrialized world.

www.koreatimes.co.kr/opinion/colu...

South Korea’s manosphere problem - The Korea Times On July 7, anonymous bomb threats sent to two women’s universities in South Korea forced hundreds of students to evacuate as police scoured campuse...

From hoax bomb threats targeting girls-only schools and women's universities to online misogyny that is no longer confined to the internet, I wrote about a growing -- and largely overlooked -- danger posed by South Korea’s “manosphere.” My latest column:
www.koreatimes.co.kr/opinion/colu...

So thrilled to share that the Portuguese translation of FLOWERS OF FIRE has just been released in Brazil. Huge thanks to everyone who made this edition possible. I hope the stories of those fighting for gender equality in South Korea will reach & inspire many readers in Brazil.

Korea’s school lunches go viral but workers making them suffer in silence - The Korea Times “Best lunch I’ve seen yet!” one user wrote under a TikTok video with 2.8 million views, the comment drawing nearly 1,000 likes. “I would eat this e...

South Korea’s school lunches have gone viral on social media as a model for the world. But the women workers behind "the world's best school meals" endure grueling conditions, often at the cost of their health and - in some cases - their lives. My latest column: www.koreatimes.co.kr/opinion/colu...

South Korea’s deadly indifference to violence against women - The Korea Times A nursing home worker asked the police for help three times, saying her former colleague was stalking her. But prosecutors refused to issue a restraining order, deeming his stalking “not repetitive en...

Four women in South Korea were stabbed - three fatally and two at their workplaces - by partners or stalkers in just 6 days in late July, underscoring the country’s long-overlooked but widespread problem of femicide & intimate partner violence. My latest column: www.koreatimes.co.kr/opinion/2025...

Gender equality ministry deserves better - The Korea Times When hundreds of thousands of South Koreans flooded the streets last winter to demand the ouster of then-President Yoon Suk Yeol, young women were undeniably the driving force behind the mass protests...

South Korea's gender equality minister nominee withdrew her nomination last week amid allegations of abuse of power & criticisms over her troubling stance on key gender equality policies. I wrote about what's at stake & why the embattled ministy deserves better. www.koreatimes.co.kr/opinion/2025...

South Korean Women Are Powerful—and Powerless Korean women have helped topple governments but still have trouble gaining political office.

Despite the prominent role played by women in pro-democracy demonstrations in South Korea, there are barely any women in positions of political power, writes Hawon Jung. Published in collaboration with @fullerproject.org‬.

South Korean Women Are Powerful—and Powerless Korean women have helped topple governments but still have trouble gaining political office.

"We’ll watch how...politicians will respond to our voices with our eyes wide open, our fists clenched, and our light sticks & flags ready." My latest on the role of women in public defiance against Yoon & the challenges they face in S.Korea's male-dominated politics foreignpolicy.com/2025/05/30/s...

"I believe in the value of life, freedom, and peace, which should never be undermined. (Yoon's ouster) amounts to safeguarding universal values," Han said, joining 413 other S.Korean writers who issued brief statements urging the Constitutional Court to impeach Yoon & formally remove him from power.

Han Kang and other writers urge immediate impeachment of President Yoon Suk Yeol Nobel laureate: 'Removal is about safeguarding universal values' With the Constitutional Court’s decision on President Yoon Suk Yeol's impeachment taking longer than anticipated, Korean literary figur...

Nobel Prize laureate Han Kang urged South Korea's top court to finalize the impeachment of President Yoon Suk-Yeol in order to "safeguard universal values." The court's deliberation on Yoon's fate has dragged on for months, deepening the country's political chaos. www.koreaherald.com/article/1044...

Young Women Are Leading the “Light Stick Revolution” to Oust South Korea’s Antifeminist President Yoon Suk Yeol rose to power by courting antifeminists. Now young women are going to be his downfall.

Yoon rose to power in 2022 on an antifeminist platform & his ouster, if confimed, should mark "the return of gender equality politics," the statement said, voicing hopes that “the hands holding the (K-pop) light stick will hold the (speaker’s) gavel" one day. fyi: www.thenation.com/article/worl...

내란 극복과 민주주의 회복을 위한 3.8 여성 1만인 선언 <내란 극복과 민주주의 회복을 위한 3.8 여성 1만인 선언> 2025년 3.8 여성의 날을 맞이한 우리는 12.3 내란을 극복하고 더 나은 민주주의를 만들어가는 이 광장에서 민주공화국의 당당한 여성이자 시민으로서 선언한다. 우리는 누구인가? 우리는 민주주의를 위해 광장을 지키는 여성들이다. 우리는 나와 내 삶을 둘러싼 공동체가 위기에 처할 때마다 가장 먼...

After young women played a key role in mass protests to bring down South Korea's Yoon following his martial law debacle, a group of 173 activists/scholars called for more gender equality in S.Korea's notoriously male-dominated politics in a joint statement. Over 7,000 women co-signed it in 3 days.

A great article explaining the frustration of young women in Korea against the tide of anti feminism, who are coming out in droves to the anti-Yoon protests

Young Women Are Leading the “Light Stick Revolution” to Oust South Korea’s Antifeminist President Yoon Suk Yeol rose to power by courting antifeminists. Now young women are going to be his downfall.

Hawon Jung, a leading voice on feminism in South Korea, delivers another must-read. Her latest article explores the suppression of women and minorities under Yoon’s presidency, culminating in women becoming the largest group calling for his impeachment.

www.thenation.com/article/worl...

Thank you!

Young Women Are Leading the “Light Stick Revolution” to Oust South Korea’s Antifeminist President Yoon Suk Yeol rose to power by courting antifeminists. Now young women are going to be his downfall.

"So many women, including myself, have been waiting for a moment like this for a long time." My latest for @thenation.com about why & how young women are leading protests to oust South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol after his botched martial law declaration.
www.thenation.com/article/worl...