Opinion In South Korea, a painful reckoning with a history of ‘baby exporting’

On March 25, 2025, the TRC concluded that past governments were responsible for human rights violations in overseas adoptions from the 1960s to the 1990s. This marked the first official acknowledgement of the South Korean government’s negligence and held it accountable for violating the fundamental human rights of adoptees by sending numerous children overseas without proper legislative frameworks or adherence to administrative procedures.

Today, South Korea faces a severe demographic crisis, with a total fertility rate (TFR) of mere 0.75 in 2024, the lowest in the world. Yet, it also created the world’s largest diaspora of adoptees. One may wonder why the government engaged in such a practice, even when the TFR fell below the replacement level of 2.1 in 1983. The answer lies in the government’s view of overseas adoption as a tool to “cleanse” society of its so-called “impurities” — namely, unwanted mixed-race babies and children born out of wedlock. As demand for Korean children grew abroad, adoption transformed into a lucrative industry, often at the expense of human rights.

Rise of South Korea’s Overseas Adoption Industry

After the Korean War, the South Korean government sent around 200,000 Korean children to Western nations. The largest recipients of Korean adoptees between 1953 and 2004 were the United States (104,319 children), France (11,090), Sweden (8,953), Denmark (8,571), and Norway (6,080).

Most of the adoptions were facilitated by South Korea’s largest adoption agency, Holt International Children’s Services. The agency was established by the American missionaries Harry and Bertha Holt, who adopted and transported eight Korean orphans to the USA via a chartered plane in 1955. Their actions influenced many Americans to adopt Korean children, prompting the South Korean government to ease regulations for foreign adoptions. This policy shift led to a surge in overseas adoptions, often referred to as “baby exports” – a term used to describe South Korea’s extensive practice of sending children abroad for adoption.

Initially, South Korea’s emphasis on ethnic homogeneity encouraged the overseas adoption of mixed-race children. Most of these children were born to American soldiers and Korean sex workers, who were often abandoned due to social stigma. Moreover, former President Rhee Syngman reportedly referred to mixed-race children as “garbage” and suggested getting rid of them even by “dumping [them] into the ocean.” This hostility toward mixed-race children persisted under President Park Chung-hee, who implemented mechanisms to facilitate their adoption abroad. By doing so, the government was able to allocate more resources to national defense while limiting social welfare spending.

As the number of mixed-race children dwindled, South Korea turned to single mothers from impoverished and working-class backgrounds to supply babies for adoption. By the 1970s, the adoption had become fully-fledged, with the number of adoptions increasing sevenfold — from 6,166 in the 1960s to 46,035 in the 1970s.

In 1988, the Seoul Olympics drew international criticism, with reports exposing the commercialisation of adoptions, where agencies charged foreign parents thousands of dollars. The government granted private agencies full control over adoptions, allowing them to manipulate identities and set adoption fees. For example, Holt International estimated adoption costs at $22,500 for children, with additional expenses bringing to total to $27,565 – $30,075 — including agency registration, travel, medical, legal, and translation fees. International adoptive parents had to pay approximately $4000 to adopt a Korean baby, whereas domestic adoptions had little to no cost. Additionally, an American magazine reported that the Korean government earned $15 – $20 million annually from this practice.

Dark Side of the Overseas Adoption

Despite efforts to limit overseas adoption following international criticism, the practice continued. Adoptees later uncovered falsified records and unethical practices. Mia Lee Sorensen, a South Korean adoptee sent to Denmark in 1987, reunited with her birth parents in 2022. Her parents were told that their daughter had died at birth. Like Mia, many adoptees have discovered discrepancies in their adoption stories. In numerous cases, children were kidnapped off the streets and sent abroad, while parents were told that they had died. For instance, Calabretta, a South Korean adoptee sent to the USA, discovered his adoption was based on lies — his parents were told he had died, while he was told they had abandoned him.

Hospital and maternity homes also maintained connections with adoption agencies. In the 1980s, a maternity home named Ae Ran Won only admitted single and pregnant women who had agreed in advance to give up their unborn children for adoption. Some maternity homes did not admit single mothers who wished to keep their babies after delivery.

The high demand for Korean babies turned overseas adoption into a profiteering business, at times resembling child trafficking. For example, in 1978, a Belgian Consul to Korea raised concerns with South Korea’s Ministry of Health and Social Affairs about the illegal sale of Korean children. The Belgian government underscored the involvement of brokers in unlawful adoptions, citing a Lebanese woman who collaborated with Holt Children’s Services to sell Korean orphans in Belgium for $800-$1,200 per child.

Unveiling the truth: What’s next?

The TRC has recommended “an official state apology, ratification of the Hague Convention on Protection of Children and Co-operation in Respect of Intercountry Adoption, and additional corrective measures.” While the TRC report is not legally binding, it serves as crucial evidence in potential lawsuits against the South Korea government for compensation, marking a turning point in the global scrutiny of international adoption practices.

The investigation revealed widespread identity falsification and illegal adoptions, based on 367 complaints filed in 2022 by adoptees sent aboard between 1964 and 1999. The findings have already sparked global repercussions, with Norway and Denmark launching investigations, while the US still remains silent.

Although there’s still a long way to go for adoptees, the findings at least validate long-standing concerns over fraud and deception in Korea’s adoption system.

The writer is a Research Assistant at the Council for Strategic and Defence Research (CSDR) and a PhD Scholar in Korean Studies at Jawaharlal Nehru University (JNU), New Delhi