ABSTRACT
On November 8, 2007, a small group of protesters gathered outside the Central Government Complex in downtown Seoul to protest the recently revised “Anti-Discrimination Bill.” The bill, which had been introduced by President Roh Moo Hyun as one of his election promises, had been intended to strengthen the National Rights Commission Act, “which bars discrimination on the basis of most categories, including sexual orientation, by requiring the president and other levels of government to develop plans to eliminate discrimination” (Sŏngsosuja Ch’abyŏl Pandae Mujigae Haengdong 2008). Instead, in response to pressure from conservative Christian groups and the Korean business community, “sexual orientation,” along with six other items, including “military status,” “nationality,” “language,” “ideology,” “family type,” “criminal record,” and “educational background,” were excluded from the revised bill and protection against discrimination.
