On the September 12 broadcast of SBS "Unanswered Questions", the program tracked the realities of abortion businesses targeting pregnant women in advanced stages of pregnancy.
In June 2024, a vlog uploaded by a woman at 36 weeks of pregnancy, just one month before her due date, showing her undergoing an abortion procedure caused massive backlash. The case, criticized as fetal murder, was revealed through a police investigation to involve a woman in her 20s, surnamed Kwon, who underwent the procedure at an obstetrics and gynecology clinic in Incheon.
The director of the hospital claimed that the fetus was already stillborn and that an emergency cesarean section was performed to remove it. However, the operating surgeon, the anesthesiologist, and three nursing assistants who were in the operating room at the time all stated that they could neither check the condition of the fetus nor hear any crying.
Nevertheless, additional witness accounts emerged during the investigation stating that the hospital director, Yoon, placed the delivered infant in a black plastic bag and put it in a freezer. The fetus, left neglected in the freezer for over two weeks, was subsequently sent to a crematorium via a cremation agency.
Furthermore, a shocking truth was uncovered in a notebook found during the police search of Director Yoon's clinic. It recorded that 527 pregnant women had undergone abortion procedures over a two-year period, with amounts of money written next to each woman's name. Among them, 110 women were in advanced stages of pregnancy at 28 weeks or more, much like Kwon, and all of their fetuses were recorded as "stillborn."
Through reporting, the broadcast team was able to meet women who had been offered abortion procedures by Director Yoon. It was revealed that Yoon proposed abortions to these women for various reasons.
Many of the parents who proceeded with the procedures based on his suggestions heard the baby crying during the surgery, leaving them with lasting trauma.
Ultimately, the hospital director and the operating surgeon were arrested after a year. However, none of the hospital officials would provide answers regarding the incident.
The production team also met with Kwon, the woman at 36 weeks who was at the center of the controversy. She confessed, "I couldn't believe there was a baby inside my stomach. At the time, I smoked and drank a lot, so I thought giving birth itself wouldn't be good for the child. I saw a promotional post saying procedures were possible regardless of the gestational age and contacted them. They said the procedure could only happen after a deposit was made, and the amount demanded at the time was 9 million won. I didn't think the baby would come out alive."
Kwon also revealed that the person she contacted was not the hospital itself, but a broker who connected her with the clinic. The broker had reportedly told Kwon that the fetus would emerge stillborn.
Director Yoon had been running an obstetrics and gynecology clinic specializing in terminations since 2016. Because he was over 80 years old and unable to perform surgeries himself, he consistently contacted an anesthesiologist and a surgeon, Shim, who worked at a university hospital, to carry out the procedures. Consequently, the surgeries always took place during Shim's days off or after work.
It was also revealed that his clinic employed a consultation manager specializing in pregnancy terminations, as well as a cremation agency to handle the remains.
Reporting confirmed that many other clinics besides Yoon's were engaging in similar practices. A nurse who previously worked part-time at an abortion specialty clinic stated, "The babies were too big, so they were wrapped in black plastic bags, frozen in the freezer, and disposed of along with medical waste, though there were also professional collectors who came to pick them up."
In addition, there were multiple coordinators in charge of abortion procedures who received high incentive bonuses. It was also reported that separate websites existed to promote abortion clinics, with many hospitals paying money to advertise on them. The production team easily found price lists created by hospitals on these sites.
Through an undercover investigation, it was confirmed that for a 31-week advanced-stage pregnancy, the clinic demanded a surgery fee of 15 million won, citing ethical issues and the difficulty of the procedure. The clinic's consultation manager drew attention by stating that same-day surgery was the rule, adding, "You can just think of it as the baby not breathing the moment it comes out."
The broadcast explained that the undercover investigation was decided upon to expose the reality that termination procedures are carried out solely based on the conscience and ethical standards of the specialist, rather than medical judgment or the fetus's viability.
Some point out that pregnant women desperately seeking abortions are the starting point of the problem. In reality, it was confirmed that many of those undergoing procedures are teenage mothers who discovered their pregnancies late and had nowhere else to turn, obtaining the costs through illegal loans or part-time jobs.
One teenage informant expressed heartbreak, sharing that she looked into various ways to give birth, but concluded it was impossible to raise a child alone, leading her to decide on an abortion.
Kwon stated that she initially thought people who watched the video would comfort her, but after the controversy, she realized her actions were wrong and felt remorse. She said, "If I could go back two years ago, I wouldn't have had the surgery," adding that if even a single person had tried to persuade her or help her at the time, the outcome would have been different.
An expert expressed sympathy regarding Kwon, stating, "It seems she could not emotionally handle the various aspects of childbirth. Many women go all the way to full term due to pregnancy concealment and denial, and their judgment completely collapses in extreme traumatic situations. Psychiatrically, it is an emergency situation."
The prosecution indicted Kwon on charges of murder. However, the appellate court ruled that there was no intent to commit murder and acquitted her of the murder charge, prompting the prosecution to appeal.
An expert pointed out that the 36-week abortion vlog is, in one word, "the greatest harm caused by a legislative vacuum," noting that because the state did not establish clear standards, neither the fetus nor the woman was protected. Had a law been enacted, the 36-week-old fetus could not have been aborted.
Amid a seven-year legislative vacuum following the abolition of the abortion law without any subsequent alternatives being prepared, the political sphere has justified the inaction by stating, "It is an issue debate where social consensus is difficult to reach and hard to compromise on due to various conflicting interests."
However, a legal expert raised voices of criticism, saying, "Saying that social consensus is difficult is an abstract excuse. There is no process of deliberation at all. It is the responsibility of the state that deeper discussions are not being advanced."
An obstetrician and gynecologist also emphasized, "The very reality that women's health and fetal safety in our country are not protected by law and remain outside its boundaries is a deeply shameful reality. It must be improved somehow."
Finally, the broadcast stated that the program was produced with the hope that "the cruel termination of lives of babies born alive into the world will not be repeated, that pregnant women contemplating abortion will not be unilaterally blamed as irresponsible, and that the lives and safety of mothers and fetuses will not be traded as lawless tools for making money."
It also drew attention by emphasizing that social consensus on medical, ethical, and legal standards must no longer be delayed.
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.