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By Kang Hyun-kyung
Paternity tests are increasing, as a growing number of doubting fathers who suspect their wives of cheating secretly request clinics to perform a DNA test.
A DNA expert said that the results of DNA paternity tests are "quite stunning."
"About three in 10 paternity tests of married couples found that the men who requested the test were not the biological fathers of the children," Kim Woo-tae, the general manager of the Korea Gene Information Center (KGIC) in Seoul, said.
Kim introduced a couple of shocking test results.
"Years ago, we had a male visitor asking us to find if his DNA matched his four children. The test found that three were not his biological kids," Kim said.
"In another case, a man who provided money for parenting his son to his ex-wife for 14 years after divorce was found not to be the biological father of the child."
He said paternity test requests have sharply increased in recent years.
"We have approximately 200 to 300 paternity test requests every month. I believe TV dramas or movies have had some impact on the rise of paternity tests," said Kim.
A Supreme Court report found that in 2011 nearly 5,000 paternity suits were filed. These have continued to grow since 2002 when the number stood at some 2,600. In 2010, approximately 4,300 legal disputes surrounding paternity were submitted to courts across the nation.
A shifting trend was spotted in people's motives to get test results. The rise of paternity tests showed that some married couples believe their spouses are unfaithful.
In the past, women who raised children born out of wedlock or children having such a background tended to request hospitals to perform paternity tests amid legal fights over wealth.
Asking for anonymity, a source, who previously worked at a DNA testing division at a hospital in southern Seoul, said that most people she saw there requested paternity tests for this reason.
"I remember a case where the adult children of a wealthy man, who was then in coma, asked us to perform a paternity test to prove that their female step sibling, who was adopted, was not their father's biological daughter," the source said.
There are four institutions that have the necessary equipment and medical staff to perform paternity tests in Korea. The KGIC is one of them.
Nearly 200 hospitals or medical organizations receive paternity test requests. They collect samples needed for the tests, such as from hair or tooth brushes, and send them to one of the four.
Paternity tests cost between 250,000 and 300,000 won, depending on the hospital or institution. The relatively affordable price seems to be one reason behind the increase in paternity tests these days, experts said.
