Woman Sues South Korea After Reuniting with Daughter Abducted 44 Years Ago

After decades of searching, Han Tae-soon was reunited with her daughter, Kyung-ha, now Laurie Bender, who was abducted as a child and adopted illegally in the U.S. Han's lawsuit against the South Korean government highlights systemic issues within its adoption program, which has faced long-standing allegations of illegal practices and human rights violations.

After decades of searching, Han Tae-soon finally found her daughter, Kyung-ha, who had been abducted when she was just six years old. The last memory Ms. Han has of her daughter is from May 1975 in their home in Seoul. As she left for the market, she asked Kyung-ha if she wanted to come, but the girl decided to stay and play with her friends. When Ms. Han returned, her daughter was gone.

For 44 years, Han Tae-soon sought to find her daughter, enduring numerous false leads and emotional turmoil. When they were finally reunited, Kyung-ha, now known as Laurie Bender, was an almost unrecognizable middle-aged woman living in the U.S. Ms. Han alleges that her daughter was kidnapped and subsequently placed into an orphanage before being sent abroad for illegal adoption.

Now at 71, Ms. Han has taken her fight to court, suing the South Korean government for its negligence in regulating adoptions. Her landmark case is among many emerging complaints regarding South Korea's controversial overseas adoption program, which has faced allegations of kidnapping, fraud, and human trafficking. Since its inception, approximately 170,000 to 200,000 children have been adopted internationally, more than any other nation.

A recent inquiry concluded that successive South Korean administrations had committed human rights violations by failing to supervise the adoption system that facilitated these transgressions. Experts believe this could lead to more lawsuits like Ms. Han’s, with hers set to be heard next month.

The government has expressed sympathy over emotional pain experienced by families but has yet to accept responsibility. "I spent 44 years ruining my body and mind searching for [my daughter]. But in all that time, has anyone ever apologized to me? No one. Not once," Ms. Han lamented, emphasizing her determination for accountability.

Following their reunion in 2019, where Ms. Han recognized her daughter by touching her hair, both women are now working to navigate their relationship and the language barrier. Despite regular effort on Ms. Han’s part to improve her English, the distance between their lives remains challenging.

“Even though I have found my daughter, it doesn't feel like I've truly found her,” Ms. Han expressed distressingly. “My entire life has been ruined… no amount of money will ever make up for what I've lost."

The legacy of South Korea's adoption practices, which were initiated as a response to post-war poverty, is under scrutiny. Critics have argued that government complicity allowed illegal practices to flourish, turning adoption into a system that has irreparably impacted lives. As adoptees like Kyung-ha and birth parents like Ms. Han strive for closure and justice, the government faces a reckoning over its past.