Global Courant 2023-05-05 13:55:00
SEOUL — A South Korean lawmaker’s call for the abolition of “no kid zones” in certain restaurants and venues drew a divided public response on Friday.
Basic Income Party representative Yong Hye-in claimed Thursday that many privately owned restaurants and public venues have “no children” policies in place without reasonable grounds.
“Today, popular cafes and restaurants on Instagram and even public libraries have become ‘no kids zones’,” Ms. Yong said during a speech at the National Assembly in Seoul, carrying her 23-month-old son in her arms.
She added: “We need to get rid of these zones, starting with public places. There are so many cases where these public venues adopt the rules without reasonable grounds, including the National Library of Korea.
Only visitors 16 and older can use the National Library of Korea to protect its materials from theft or damage, according to the state library’s website. Visitors under the age of 16 must submit a separate application and obtain permission from the library to enter.
Ms Yong also pointed to Japan’s “fast-track” policy of giving children and their parents priority access to public museums, galleries and parks as a solution to Korea’s low birth rate.
“What we want is a society that embraces not only the fast and the competent, but also the slow and the inexperienced. To overcome one of the lowest fertility rates in the world, we need to rethink the society that rejects children and the elderly,” she said.
But Ms. Yong’s proposal drew public backlash from critics who said she missed the point of the “no kids zones” in the first place.
