Photo: Image from "Everyone's Marriage," a campaign for gay marriage. Credit: Everyone's Marriage.
Generally speaking, South Korea is a culturally conservative country that emphasizes family formation. A recent survey by Hankook Research 한국리서치 shows that while divorce and remarriage have become mainstream, same sex marriage remains a bridge too far for most Koreans.
In the survey, released June 21, the overwhelming majority of respondents said that they could accept divorce (86%), remarriage after the death of a spouse (92%), and remarriage after divorce (90%). There was also general approval for marriages to partners introduced through matchmaking companies (83%), international partners introduced by marriage brokers (75%), and partners met via dating apps (61%).
But approval for same sex-marriages was low, regardless of whether it involved two women (26%) or two men (25%). Controlling for gender and age, women in their 20s and 30s were only demographics to show 50% or greater approval of same sex marriage. Support was tepid even among the demographics that usually support same-sex marriage in other countries, such as liberal voters or men in their 20s.