• Date: Wednesday, March 12, 2025
• Location: Outside the National Center for the Rights of the Child
• Organizer: Montaigne International Adoption Association (MOAA)
• Supporting Organizations: Unwed Mothers Initiative for Archiving and Advocacy, Children's Rights Solidarity, Find parents for adoptees (FpF) Korea, Naneun Bumoda Hyeophoe (roughly translated as "I Am a Parent Association"), The Citizens' Association Against Corruption, Bethell Teacher Memorial Association
• Our Demand: Matthieu Sung Tan (birth name Sung Tan Jang), a Korean adoptee raised in France, is dying from a genetic disease. The National Center for the Rights of the Child must disclose his birth parents’ information!

On March 12, the Unwed Mothers Initiative for Archiving and Advocacy took part in a rally organized by the Montaigne International Adoption Association (MOAA) in front of the National Center for the Rights of the Child. The demonstration called for the recognition and protection of adoptees’ rights to access information about their birth parents.

Everyone has a right to know their origins. Adoptees should not be an exception. Matthieu Sung Tan, a Korean adoptee raised in France, is currently battling a rare genetic disease that poses a serious threat to his life and may also affect his children due to hereditary risks.

Despite the urgency of the situation, the National Center for the Rights of the Child continues to withhold critical information from adoptees. In doing so, the Center applies an interpretation of the law that extends beyond the statute's language.

According to Article 36, Paragraph 3 of the Act on Special Cases Concerning Adoption:

“Where natural parents die or cannot give consent due to other grounds, if the information on adoption is required for a medical treatment of the adopted person or if exceptional circumstances arise, such information may be disclosed irrespective of whether the consent of the natural parents is obtained [...]”
 (see “The Act on Special Cases Concerning Adoption,” Statutes of the Republic of Korea)

However, the Center interprets the phrase “where natural parents die” to include “circumstances equivalent to death,” a condition that does not appear in the original text. This added interpretation has been used as a basis to continue denying adoptees access to essential birth information, even in cases involving urgent medical needs.

Thousands of Korean children were 'scooped' abroad for adoption under the premise of offering them a better chance at life. Yet Article 1 of the Act on Special Cases Concerning Adoption clearly states that “[the] purpose of this Act is to [contribute] to the promotion of the rights, interests and welfare of the children to be adopted.” Access to birth information is not a privilege, but a fundamental human right. An institution that fails to uphold such fundamental rights cannot rightfully call itself the National Center for the Rights of the Child.

▲ Photo: Rally demanding "Adoptees' Right to Know Birth Parents' Information" held in front of the National Center for the Rights of the Child (March 12, 2025)

▶ Related News:

Yonhap News: "[Life] Adoptee sent overseas by the state is dying... Does it make sense for the government to stand by?"
Yonhap News: "{Life] My husband adopted from Korea is in danger... Please help our family!"
Pressian [Exclusive]: Adoptee with rare disease denied birth parents’ information for treatment
Daehan Maeil Shinbo (Korea Daily News): Voices for Adoptee Rights Echo Across Korean Society
Economy Talk: [Field Report] On-the-scene coverage of the rally demanding overseas adoptees' rights
NGO Global News: The National Center for the Rights of the Child must disclose information about Matthieu Sung Tan’s birth parents!