A South Korean politician was expelled from his party for his idea to “import virgins” to boost the birth rate.
A South Korean official has proposed the idea of “importing” virgins to increase the birth rate.
As a result, this politician was expelled from the party.
During a meeting with residents, Kim Hee-soo, governor of South Korea's Jindo Province, proposed importing girls from Sri Lanka and Vietnam. This announcement comes amid a crisis in the country – the fertility rate there, at 0.75 children per woman, is the lowest in the world. Because of this, South Korea's population of approximately 50 million people could halve within the next 60 years.
“We must respond to human extinction. If that's not possible, we must import young virgins from Sri Lanka and Vietnam to marry off to aging rural bachelors,” the politician declared.
Hee-soo's remarks were broadcast on national television and outraged many Koreans. For example, the mayor of the large city of Gwangju stated that there were many solutions to the birth rate problem, but that marriage to foreigners was not an option. Instead, he proposed developing industry. The Vietnamese Embassy in Seoul condemned Hee-soo's remarks, writing that they undermined the attitude toward “migrant women and members of minorities.”
Another South Korean province, Jeollanam-do, issued an official apology, calling Hee-soo's words “inappropriate” and “causing pain to the Vietnamese people and women.” Today, members of the Democratic Party of South Korea unanimously voted to expel Hee-soo.
