By Dahee Kim,
A South Korean gay couple who won a landmark court ruling recognizing the legal rights of same-sex couples vowed to keep pushing for the legalization of same-sex marriage in the country in a recent interview with Kyodo News.
The Seoul High Court on Feb. 21 ruled in favor of plaintiff So Sung Uk, who demanded the same spousal coverage as heterosexual couples from the state health insurance program.
While the National Health Insurance Service has appealed to the Supreme Court, So and his partner Kim Yong Min were hopeful that their fight would help advance the cause of legalizing same-sex marriage.
So and Kim, who held a wedding ceremony in 2019 despite the lack of legal recognition, said they did not think about moving to countries that have introduced same-sex marriage, preferring instead to change their own society.
"I realized that there were difficult times even in those countries that already went through such a positive change, which made me decide to bring the change myself to our society," So said.
So filed a lawsuit against the NHIS in February 2021 after it said he could not qualify as a dependent of his male spouse, and therefore has to pay insurance premiums.
The NHIS had first granted So's coverage under his partner's employer-based health insurance program as a dependent in February 2020, but it later reversed the decision, saying that coverage cannot be applied to same-sex couples.
"The decision was suddenly reversed after we talked (about being granted coverage) to local media. I thought it was just nonsense," Kim said, adding that taking legal action was an obvious choice.
The couple regarded the reversal by the NHIS of its decision as discrimination, noting that it grants spousal coverage to those in common-law marriages.
But in January last year, the Seoul Administrative Court decided against them, saying that there is no legal ground yet to expand the scope of common-law partners to same-sex couples, and that the issue should be dealt with through legislation in parliament.
"I felt so sad about the fact that (the administrative court) held the parliament responsible for the issue. It just seemed like a cop-out," said Kim.
When the high court then overruled the decision, Kim said, he felt especially emotional as it clearly stated that the couple's union is "fundamentally identical" to those of heterosexual partners.
The high court drew similarities between those in same-sex relationships and common-law marriages, saying they are both based on emotional and economic needs as well as duties to support and be faithful to each other.
It added that disqualifying So as a dependent amounted to discrimination based on sexual orientation. But it did not recognize So's union with Kim as a common-law marriage.
So said he regrets this aspect of the ruling but wants to shine a light on other parts.
"I really liked the part where the court said, 'Everyone may be a minority in a sense...and belonging to a minority group cannot be incorrect or wrong in itself'," said So.
"Not just us but other sexual minorities around us were all very touched by that part," he added.
According to a survey conducted by Gallup Korea, the percentage of South Korean respondents who agree with legalizing same-sex marriage has been steadily increasing, standing at 35 percent in 2019, 38 percent in 2021 and 39 percent in 2022.
"Apart from the statistics, I can just feel (the change) in my daily life," said Kim, recalling how everything went smoothly when he and his partner were preparing for their wedding.
Kim shared his dream toward the end of the interview.
"On the day that legalization of the same-sex marriage becomes effective, I will be the first one to stand in line to register our marriage," Kim said.
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