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| Kim Dong-sung on "Bad Fathers" blog |
By Kim Se-jeong
Kim Dong-sung, a short track speed skater who won Olympic medals, was featured on a private blog that posts a list of "bad fathers" who failed to provide child support.
Founded by a group of activists, the blog, "Bad Fathers," became famous in January after a lower court in Suwon sided with the activists in a defamation case.
The athlete married in 2004 and was divorced in 2018. Reportedly, Kim's former wife has custody of their two children and he is required to pay 3 million won per month for child support.
Speaking to a local media outlet after Kim's profile was posted on the blog, his ex-wife said Kim has not been paying the money since January and the court's ruling in January motivated her to contact the bloggers.
"You're still a parent. Although you are not physically raising children, you have a responsibility to share the burden and Kim is failing to do this," the mother was quoted by the media outlet.
In response, Kim, estimated to owe 15 million won, apologized and said that he was experiencing a financial crunch because he earned less and was helping his older brother who fell sick.
The blog (https://badfather540837381.wordpress.com/blog/) is currently revealing identities of 198 fathers and 31 mothers with childcare support payments overdue.
The blog is drawing huge attention because the current law in Korea doesn't enforce court orders against those who neglect to make child support payments. To address the problem, the government launched the Child Support Agency, a separate body, in 2015 but the agency has been ineffective. Kim's ex-wife said she had sought assistance from the agency but to no avail.
The bloggers say they are also pushing for legislative changes to ensure single parents can receive support payments.
