South Korea apologises for a government-affiliated youth counselling manual that labels homosexuality as a form of “juvenile delinquency”, and says it will revise the document. The manual groups queerness under “delinquency-related issues” alongside topics such as sexual violence, theft and drug abuse, according to coverage of the guide.
Outlet reports describe the controversy as emerging after local media scrutiny earlier in the week, prompting criticism from human rights groups. The Korea Youth Counselling and Welfare Institute, reported as affiliated with the Ministry of Gender Equality, is identified as the body that published the guidance being targeted. Multiple outlets say the government’s apology is tied to the need to correct the manual’s classification and language.
While all accounts focus on the same underlying manual and the decision to amend it, outlets vary mainly in emphasis: some highlight the apology and the specific wording used in the guide, while others foreground condemnation by rights groups and the wider human-rights framing of the issue.
