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Concern is rising over the growing illegal online sale of "abortion drugs," the effects of which have not been proven.
With a law banning abortion ruled unconstitutional earlier this year, women's rights groups say the nation needs urgently to legalize the prescription and sale of abortion drugs so women can use safe and authorized medicine.
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| Calls are growing for the government to legalize the sale of abortion drugs. /Korea Times file |
But without revised rules yet, selling and buying abortion drugs such as Mifegyne, which is available in 69 countries, is still illegal here.
But ads for abortion pills can be found easily within a few clicks with a search online, using keywords like "abortion pill" or "Mifegyne."
Many sellers say they deal with abortion drugs from overseas and their products are approved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration (FDA) or other health institutes, but purchasers have no means to confirm that the drugs are genuine.
Last week the Seoul Northern District Court sentenced a Chinese man, 34, to 10 months in prison, suspended for two years, for selling Chinese abortion pills here by disguising them as Mifegne and other drugs made in the U.S.
The man brought more than 1,000 Chinese pills of two kinds to Korea in March, repackaged them and sold some to 12 people.
Such illegal distribution of abortion pills online is growing.
According to data submitted to Rep. Kim Kwang-soo of the Party for Democracy and Peace by the Ministry of Food and Drug Safety, 193 cases of illegal abortion drug sales were found in 2016. The figure jumped to 1,444 in 2017 and 2,197 in 2018, and 1,245 already as of the end of May this year.
Women's rights groups are urging the government to act swiftly to guarantee the safety of women who need abortion drugs.
"Approving abortion drugs is necessary to broaden women's choice and guarantee the right to a safe abortion, because banning the sale of the drugs makes women buy them on the black market without proper direction," activist Na Young of Safe Abortion said.
A pharmacists' association also claimed the drugs should be legalized so the government could control their safe purchase.
"Using abortion drugs purchased online, whether they are counterfeit or not, can only cause serious health effects, including heavy vaginal bleeding, bacterial infection or birth defects if the pregnancy is not ended," the Association of Pharmacists for Healthy Society said in a statement.
