Gender-balanced cabinet
For starters, President names female veterans affairs minister
Former lieutenant-colonel Pi Woo-jin is making headlines after becoming the nation’s first female veterans affairs minister.
The appointment was a huge surprise not just because she is the first woman to serve in the post, but also because it had previously been filled by retired generals and others from top-ranking positions.
Her pioneering efforts to break the glass ceiling and eradicate the military’s outdated practices have regained the spotlight. The 61-year-old is the first Korean woman to pilot an Army helicopter. She fought the widespread discrimination and sexual harassment of women in the military. In 2006, she was discharged from service after having both of her breasts removed in a breast cancer operation. She claimed she was wrongfully discharged due to outdated regulations and fought her way back into the army.
The announcement Wednesday to name the first female chief of the Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs was made by Cho Hyun-ock, senior presidential secretary for personnel affairs. Cho is also the first woman to serve in this post. After naming Cho and other key appointments last week, President Moon Jae-in had lunch with them and took a coffee break on the grounds of Cheong Wa Dae. Their main topic of discussion was the inclusion of more women in the Cabinet.
Previous administrations had few female ministers and they were mostly restricted to areas like gender equality and family, or environment or culture. The Moon administration should considerably increase the number of female ministers and also give them the chance to head ministries that have formerly been led solely by men, such as foreign affairs, defense or justice.
It has become a global trend for new leaders to create gender-balanced cabinets. The new French President Emmanuel Macron unveiled his cabinet this week, naming women to 11 out of 22 posts. It was noteworthy that the young French leader appointed women to lead key ministries such as defense, labor and health. Upon taking office in 2015, Canadian Prime Minister Justin Trudeau formed Canada’s first gender-balanced cabinet by naming women to 15 of 31 posts.
Moon pledged to create a gender-balanced cabinet during his term, starting by naming women to 30 percent of minister posts. The appointment of a woman as veterans affairs minister shows Moon is serious about nurturing female leaders in government.
Having more female ministers, however, does not mean Korean women’s overall status and well-being have significantly improved. The Moon administration should also do its utmost to encourage women to break the glass ceiling in various sectors and help women balance their careers with motherhood.