• Headline: "Unwed Mothers on the Rise, CAPOK Counseling Division Reports"
• Source: Dong-A Ilbo
• Date of Publication: November 21, 1972
• Summary: 

Efforts to assist unwed mothers—young women who face a lifetime of hardship for a single mistake—while providing care and protection for their children are being stressed as a pressing social need. Statistics from the counseling division of the Korean Christian Adoption Program (CAPOK), located at 382-14 Hapjeong-dong, Mapo-gu, Seoul, reveal a steady rise in the number of unwed mothers seeking help. Counseling cases increased from 15 in 1967 to 27 in 1968, 73 in 1969, 235 in 1970, and 349 in 1971. As of July this year, 236 cases have been recorded, with the total expected to surpass 400 by the end of the year. 

The ages of these unwed mothers are as follows: 15-20 years (48 cases), 20-24 years (169 cases), 25-29 years (74 cases), 30-34 years (31 cases), 35-39 years (17 cases), 40-44 years (11 cases), and 50 years and older (1 case). A surprising number of these women have attained higher education, including some who studied abroad, suggesting little direct link between educational background and unwed motherhood. 

The counseling division arranges for unwed mothers to be admitted to city hospitals or, when needed, to the Salvation Army Yŏjagwan (home for unwed mothers) in Cheonyeon-dong, Seodaemun-gu, Seoul. For those who choose to relinquish their children, the division facilitates domestic adoptions. Adoption placements have risen steadily: 27 in 1968, 73 in 1969, 178 in 1970, 194 in 1971, and 98 so far this year (as of July). 

While CAPOK and three or four other private organizations currently handle unwed mother counseling and adoption services, the financial burden remains heavy. Each case, from counseling to adoption placement, costs an average of 70,000 to 80,000 KRW, leaving these private groups struggling to keep up, calling for government backing to support these efforts.

• Archiving Note:  

The Korean Christian Adoption Program (CAPOK) formally initiated counseling services for unwed mothers in 1969, although some sources suggest these efforts began in 1968. Over the following years, there was a marked increase in both the number of unwed mothers receiving counseling and the adoption of their children. This trend suggests that counseling services were closely tied to the facilitation of adoptions, raising critical questions about the role of such interventions in encouraging the relinquishment of children rather than supporting unwed mothers in retaining custody.

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