We are against the distorted and reduced Anti-Discrimination Bill (2007) of Republic of Korea

We express deep concern over the final draft of the Anti-Discrimination Bill (2007), which is expected to be passed in the National Assembly soon. Seven forms of discrimination -- sexual orientation, educational status, family type and status, medical history, national origin, language, and criminal and detention record -- which were included in the original draft were left out of the final draft. Should the final draft be passed in such a distorted form, the supposedly Anti-Discrimination legislation would leave social minorities, especially sexual minorities, more vulnerable to discrimination.

We do not want our Korean LGBT friends to be discriminated on the grounds of their sexual orientation. We want the Republic of Korea to be a country where the human rights of minorities are protected effectively.

We urge the South Korean government to reinstate the seven categories of discrimination. Also, to enhance the protection of the rights of transgendered people, we urge the government to include "gender identity" as a separate category. Above all, we urge the government to enact an Anti-Discrimination that is true to the spirit of justice and equality before the law.