"Is My Photo There Too?" Kopino Fathers Begin to Be Exposed... "Contact After 7 Years"

[Financial News] Some 'Kopino fathers'—men who had children with local Filipino women and then returned to Korea, cutting off all contact—are reportedly reaching out. This comes after Koo Bonchang, head of the civic group People Solving Child Support Issues (formerly Bad Fathers), began posting their faces on his personal social media.

Since the 22nd of last month, Koo has been posting photos of Kopino children and their Korean fathers on his social media one after another. He explained, "To find fathers who have blocked contact for years, you need their passport number or Korean phone number, but many intentionally hid this information while living together. Posting photos on social media is the last resort to find them."
It appears that this 'desperate last resort' of exposing faces has been effective with Kopino fathers. In a phone interview with this paper on the 3rd, Koo said, "After the photos were posted, the number of views on social media surged, and with media coverage, I heard from many Kopino moms that they suddenly received contact from the fathers."
Shortly after starting to reveal faces, on the 27th of last month, Koo wrote on social media, "Starting today, I have begun to receive messages from Kopino moms in the Philippines. Apparently, a father who ran away seven years ago suddenly reached out after news articles about 'finding fathers' were published. It seems that Kopino fathers, afraid of being exposed, have started to react."
He noted, "Usually, once a Kopino father leaves for Korea, he never contacts the family again. Now, Kopino moms are curious about why these men are suddenly reaching out." However, he also expressed concern: "They may only be contacting temporarily out of fear that their photos will be exposed in the media. They could send child support briefly and then cut off contact again." He questioned whether the fathers would continue to reach out and pay child support if the exposure stopped.

Since 2018, Koo has operated 'Bad Fathers,' a site that disclosed the identities of parents who failed to pay child support. However, he was prosecuted for defamation under the Act on Promotion of Information and Communications Network Utilization and Information Protection (ICNA) after revealing the identities of delinquent parents on the site. In January last year, he received a suspended sentence of a 1 million won fine. The site was shut down after the ruling.

This is why Koo now reveals the identities of Kopino fathers on his personal social media, not the official page of People Solving Child Support Issues. Publishing the personal information of Kopino fathers online could be considered defamation by stating facts or a violation of the ICNA. Koo stated, "I am in a dilemma, but even if it constitutes defamation, I will not back down," and continues to reveal identities on his social media.
For this reason, while working with People Solving Child Support Issues, Koo filed a petition with the Constitutional Court of Korea in February last year regarding defamation by stating facts. The National Petition to abolish the crime of defamation by stating facts also received support from about 50,000 people and was referred to the Legislation and Judiciary Committee in March. However, the review of the petition has been postponed until May next year.
Koo commented, "There are pros and cons regarding the abolition of defamation by stating facts. While I advocate for its abolition, I acknowledge that there are valid arguments for maintaining it." He added, "Such issues can be resolved through amendments. Reform of the law on defamation by stating facts is essential."
bng@fnnews.com Kim Hee-sun Reporter