Korean Public Interest Lawyers Group

GongGam (共感 - Cộng Cảm - Empathy), also known as the GongGam Human Rights Law Foundation is the first non-governmental organization in Korea with full-time lawyers devoted to protecting and promoting the human rights of minorities, the underprivileged and the most vulnerable people in society. It was founded in 2004 as an offshoot of the Beautiful Foundation, one of the most renowned charity organizations in Korea.[1] Since then GongGam has grown from four to nine lawyers who are recognized as experts in the newly developing area of public interest law. GongGam is financed by mostly grassroots donations from those who share its cause and vision.

GongGam Human Rights Law Foundation
공익인권법재단 공감
PurposePro Bono Legal Services
HeadquartersJongro-gu, Seoul, Korea
Websitehttp://kpil.org/
Formerly called
GongGam, Korean Public Interest Lawyers' Group (KPIL)

Activities

GongGam provides legal support and advice to other non-governmental and non-profit organizations on issues relation to the protection of human rights and the elimination of discrimination. The organization also provides legal education to NGOs and other public interest groups. GongGam advises and provides representation in strategic litigation that highlights structural injustices that lead to repeated violations of human rights and systemic discrimination against minorities and the under privileged. The organization works towards reforming Korea's legal system and promoting specific public interest laws in order to foster an environment that is more responsive to the needs of minorities and the underprivileged. Lastly, GongGam develops programs for public interest lawyering and coordinates pro bono activities.

Impact on Korean society

GongGam's approach to public interest law is perhaps the most comprehensive and effective as it focuses on five major areas, including strategic litigation, legal aid projects, mediating pro bono activities, development of public interest programs, and research.[2]

Women rights

2016: GongGam conducted a research on situation of migrant women's work environment in agriculture and the sexual violence against them. Most migrant women suffer from low wages and long working hours. More than half of them live in container boxes or vinyl houses offered as accommodation from their employers. Based on the research, GongGam held a conference to improve the housing condition of migrants, and it is pursuing legislative actions to amend the relevant law.

2015: GongGam represented four Filipino women who came to Korea on an entertainment (E-6-2) visa but ended up being sexually exploited in a foreigners-only club. In order to improve the process of protecting trafficked victims, GongGam advised the National Human Rights Commission of Korea on creating a 'Trafficking Victim Identification and Victim Protection Index'.[3]

Migrants and refugees

GongGam has been working closely with migrant workers and foreign brides. GongGam successfully represented a young Vietnamese woman who was tricked into marrying a Korean man. This man and his Korean wife could not have a child after many years of trying, thus they staged a fake divorce. Afterwards, the Korean man came to Vietnam and marry the Vietnamese woman via international marriage broker. The Vietnamese plaintiff had to deliver two babies, yet she was deprived of the rights to take care of them immediately after they were born. As a result of this litigation, the defendants had to pay plaintiff a compensation amount of 200 million KRW (approximately 180,000 USD).

People with disabilities

2016: GongGam participated in the public hearing about Article 24 of the Mental Health Act in the Constitutional Court. Within this act, the compulsory admission of a patient made only by the agreement between 2 relatives and 1 psychiatrist is problematic because the Act specifies no reasonable legal or medical grounds. In 2016, the Constitutional Court finally decided that Article 24 is unconstitutional.

Precarious workers

2016: With the rise of app services in recent years, there is a growing practice of companies using alternative arrangements such as independent contractors to meet their staffing needs. GongGam represented a worker who was paralyzed after he had an accident during his regular delivery and whose employer refused to pay for medical services because of his employment status. GongGam is now waiting for a decision from the Supreme Court.

2014: GongGam represented the family of an apartment security guard who committed suicide following repeated maltreatment by some of the residents. In Korea, maltreatment of security guards both from the residents and their very own management company is a very prevalent issue. GongGam is committed to educating fair employment practices to the society as well as the guards themselves.

References
  1. "The Beautiful Foundation". www.beautifulfund.org. Retrieved 2019-06-06.
  2. Goedde, Patricia. The making of public interest law in South Korea via the institutional discourses of Minbyeon, PSPD and Gonggam. p. 142.
  3. "South Korea – National Human Rights Commission of Korea Trafficking Victim Identification & Victim Protection Index".
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.