Decided to stop paying parenting allowance on the 20th of each month
Ministry of Welfare, New Payment Guidelines, Difficult in the Future
Need to improve “stop immediately in case of child abuse death”
On the 7th, a memorial message written by citizens is placed in the graveyard of Jung In-yang, who died 16 months after birth due to the abuse of her adoptive parents at the High Family Andersen Park Cemetery in Yangpyeong-gun, Gyeonggi Province. News 1
Even after Jung In-i’s death, child allowance was paid to the adoptive parents, but it was confirmed that the childcare allowance was stopped due to preemptive measures by local governments.
According to Yangcheon-gu, Seoul on the 8th, Yangcheon-gu urgently stopped paying child-rearing allowances, which were scheduled to be held in the hands of adoptive parents on October 20 last year after Jung In’s death (October 13). According to the Adoption Practice Manual, the time to stop paying parenting allowances is only specified as’if the adoptive parents are unable to take care of the child, such as the child being abused’. As in the case of Jung In-i, even if child abuse reports are repeated, if emergency quarantine measures are not taken, the child-rearing allowance will continue to be deposited in the foster parents’ bankbook.
Even if a child dies from abuse, he or she may receive additional benefits if the death report is delayed. According to data submitted by the Ministry of Health and Welfare to Democratic Party lawmaker Shin Hyun-young, there were 11 cases in which child-rearing allowances were improperly paid to adoptive parents of deceased children. The amount was 3323,000 won, of which 2023,000 won has not yet been redeemed.
Yangcheon-gu, however, stopped paying the allowance by authoritatively interpreting the purpose of the Special Adoption Act, which says, ‘Pay allowances to families raising children’. An official in Yangcheon-gu said, “From October 1 of last year, as the local government took over the investigation of child abuse, we learned that Jung In-i reported child abuse on October 13, when he died.” It was concluded that it is difficult to continue paying the allowance under suspicious circumstances.”
On the 8th, at the High Family Andersen Park Cemetery in Yangpyeong-gun, Gyeonggi-do, there are photographs and flowers brought by citizens in memory of Jung In Yang, who died 16 months after birth due to the abuse of her adoptive parents. yunhap news
However, in the future, even if a child dies due to child abuse, it is highly likely that the payment of childcare allowance will be difficult to stop immediately. Ministry of Welfare This is because if a child dies, the relevant guidelines will be amended to stop payment of allowances from the month following death. In this case, just as the adoptive parents received the child allowance on October 25 last year after the death of Jung In-i, they will be able to receive the child support allowance. The Ministry of Health, “In order to resolve the abolition that the timing of the suspension of childcare allowances depends on the interpretation of the local government, the adoption practice manual has been specifically modified.”
It is pointed out that local governments in charge of welfare practices need a careful approach when establishing guidelines. Although it is good for the purpose of specifically setting the timing of the suspension of payments, parenting allowances should not be given to adoptive parents who killed their children through abuse. There was also an opinion that if the cause of death is suspected to be child abuse, it is necessary to stop payment first, and to add a statement that it will be paid retroactively when a conclusion is made.
“As the current adoption system is based on adopting and raising children, the related benefits should be stopped from the moment a child dies due to child abuse,” said Noh Hye-ryeon, a professor of social welfare at Soongsil University. Rep. Shin Hyun-young also said, “If a child dies from child abuse, it is a reasonable decision to stop payment.”
Oh Jihye reporter [email protected]
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