In a significant move on Thursday, October 2, 2025, South Korea’s President offered a heartfelt apology for the nation’s historically mismanaged foreign adoption programs. These programs, which often involved widespread abuses and fraudulent practices, are now officially acknowledged as a state responsibility, a first-time admission following months of investigations by the country’s truth commission.
President Lee Jae Myung conveyed his “heartfelt apology and words of comfort” via a Facebook post, addressing South Koreans adopted overseas, as well as their adoptive and biological families, acknowledging the profound impact of these historical issues.
President Lee highlighted that investigations by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission, alongside recent court judgments, have unequivocally confirmed instances of human rights abuses within international adoption processes. He emphasized the government’s failure to adequately oversee and regulate these cases.
Further details regarding these specific abuses were not provided at the time of his statement.
Expressing deep sorrow, Mr. Lee spoke of the “anxiety, pain, and confusion” endured by South Korean children adopted into foreign countries. He urged government officials to develop comprehensive systems aimed at protecting adoptees’ human rights and facilitating their search for biological parents.
For years, South Korea has been under increasing scrutiny to confront the extensive fraud and abuse that marred its adoption initiatives, particularly during the peak periods of the 1970s and 1980s when thousands of Korean children were adopted globally each year.
Numerous adoptees have recounted discovering that their official records were deliberately altered to falsely present them as abandoned, while others were tragically separated from their families through negligence or even outright abduction.
A pivotal report released in March by the Truth and Reconciliation Commission unequivocally assigned responsibility to the government for promoting adoption programs primarily as a means to cut welfare expenses. This comprehensive report emerged from an almost three-year investigation into grievances lodged by 367 adoptees residing in Europe, the United States, and Australia.
These findings resonate strongly with a 2024 investigation conducted by the Associated Press, in partnership with Frontline (PBS). That investigation meticulously documented how South Korean authorities, along with Western nations and various adoption agencies, collaborated to facilitate the overseas adoption of approximately 200,000 Korean children, often under dubious or unethical circumstances, despite long-standing concerns.
Following considerable delays, South Korea finally ratified the Hague Adoption Convention in July. This crucial international treaty is designed to establish rigorous standards and protections for intercountry adoptions.
The provisions of this treaty officially came into force within South Korea on Wednesday.