Question Regarding Access to Original Adoption Files If They Are Transferred By NCRC To The National Archives.

Posted to Paperslip on October 13th, 2025 at 12:18 pm PST / 3:18 pm EST.
Thanks to a Paperslip Contributor for the link.
Translation via ChatGPT.

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Paperslip Note:

Please note that the translated article below is an old Chosun Ilbo article from June 24th, 2023. It addresses a topic unrelated to Korean Adoption and instead focuses on the National Archives. We have included it here to highlight potential issues concerning document access at the National Archives.

In light of the recent news that the NCRC may transfer all former Korean adoption agency files—currently stored at its temporary facility in Goyang, Gyeonggi-do—to the Seongnam branch of the National Archives, the question of whether Adoptees will retain access to their original adoption files is of critical importance.

The 2023 Chosun Ilbo article below was shared by a Paperslip contributor concerned that Adoptees' access to their original adoption documents may not be guaranteed if the NCRC proceeds with its apparent—but not yet finalized—plan to transfer all former Korean Adoption Agency files from NCRC’s Temporary Storage Facility in Goyang, Gyeonggi-do to the Seongnam branch of the National Archives.

It is Paperslip’s position that from the standpoint of file preservation, it is better for NCRC to transfer ALL former Korean Adoption Agency files in its possession to the Seongam branch of the National Archives, as it is seemingly planning to do. However, we also believe that NCRC should have done this in the first place, and not wasted 1.5 billion won in setting up its current, inadequate Temporary Storage Facility in Goyang, Gyeonggi-do, where ALL former Korean Adoption Agency files are now housed (as of this writing on October 13th, 2025). Adoptees have been saying for years that our adoption files would be best off at the National Archives. But NCRC ignored this and instead set up an inadequate Temporary Storage Facility, and wasted months of time and 1.5 billion won in moving 260,000 files from the 4 major Korean Adoption Agencies as well as around 4 domestic Korean Adoption Agencies to its current Temporary Storage Facility in Goyang, Gyeonggi-do. Now NCRC plans to move these files AGAIN just 3 months following the original transfer. Had NCRC transferred the files to the National Archives in the first place, a tremendous amount of wasted time and money could have been saved. As well, Adoptees are being strung along by this process, and the Korean Government well knows it can simply run down the clock on our birth family searches with these nebulous delays.

While the planned transfer of these records from NCRC’s temporary storage facility in Goyang, Gyeonggi-do to the Seongnam branch of the National Archives might seem like a move toward greater security, it also introduces new risks. Every physical relocation of these files creates yet another opportunity for loss, damage, or bureaucratic entanglement.

And we currently do not know what Adoptees’ access to their original adoption files will look like when and if NCRC transfers these files to the Seongam branch of the National Archives.

We do not yet know what will happen and will post updates as we learn more.

Please see related:

Hankook Ilbo Article:
"Spent 1.5 Billion Won..." Government to Relocate Adoption Records Archive Just 3 Months After Setup”.

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Chosun Ilbo Article (2023):
"Ruling Party on Denial of Access to Democratization Merit Records: 'Are You Telling Us to Conduct a Blind Review?'"

Translation via ChatGPT.

“Politics
National Assembly & Political Parties
Ruling Party Criticizes Denial of Access to Democratization Merit Records: "Are You Telling Us to Conduct a Blind Review?"

National Archives refuses Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs' request

829 names not disclosed due to privacy concerns

By Kim Hyung-won
Published June 24, 2023, 03:36

It has been confirmed that the Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs (MPVA) requested records from the National Archives regarding individuals eligible under the "Act on Honoring Meritorious Persons of Democratization" (Democratization Merits Act), which is being promoted by the opposition Democratic Party (DP), but the request was denied. The ruling People Power Party (PPP) criticized this, saying, “Are you telling us to conduct a blind review?”

The bill, proposed by DP lawmaker Woo Won-shik, includes not only participants of the April 19 Revolution and the May 18 Democratization Movement, but also 829 workers, farmers, and students who received government compensation for their involvement in various democratization activities. The controversy lies in the fact that among these individuals are figures associated with contentious incidents such as the Dong-Eui University incident in Busan. Separately, those involved in the April 19 and May 18 movements are already recognized as meritorious individuals.

On June 20, the MPVA reported to the National Assembly’s Political Affairs Committee that they had requested access to records related to the 829 individuals and the 145 related incidents under the Democratization Merits Act, but were informed by the National Archives that it was "not possible." The National Archives cited the Personal Information Protection Act, stating that the actions of the 829 individuals could not be disclosed. In line with this, the Supreme Court had previously ruled in 2020 that the government is not obligated to disclose the names and contributions of May 18 merit recipients.

The PPP particularly raised concerns about controversial incidents like the 1979 South Korean National Liberation Front (Namminjeon) case and the 1989 Dong-Eui University incident. In the latter case, students protesting against corruption in school admissions threw Molotov cocktails, resulting in the deaths of seven police officers. Nevertheless, 46 Dong-Eui University students were recognized as participants in the democratization movement and each received compensation averaging 25 million won (approx. $19,000 USD). Namminjeon is suspected of having attempted ties with North Korea.

The PPP argues that “national consensus must come first.” The MPVA added, “Compensation for state violence and designation as a person of national merit are two fundamentally different matters,” and stressed that “the individuals and their merits must be reviewed first.”

A DP official on the Political Affairs Committee countered, “This can be resolved by forming a review committee to objectively assess the individuals, but the PPP is opposing for the sake of opposition.”

Keywords:
Ministry of Patriots and Veterans Affairs
Democratization Merit
National Archives
People Power Party
Democratic Party”