[Anchor]

There are quite a few single-parent families raising children alone after divorce.

With soaring prices, the burden of child support has become increasingly heavy.

Today (Feb. 21), the government decided on 195 sanctions against 157 individuals who did not pay child support to their ex-spouses.

The most common sanction is an overseas travel ban, with 132 cases, followed by 59 cases of driver's license suspension and 4 cases of public disclosure.

The average overdue child support amounts to 58 million won, with some reaching as high as 320 million won.

Is this because the level of sanctions is relatively weak?

Currently, seven out of ten single-parent families still do not receive child support.

Starting in July, the government plans to provide some child support to single-parent families in advance and recover it from the debtors later.

Will this be effective? Reporter Joo Hyun-ji has the story.

[Report]

This woman in her 50s has been raising her daughter alone since her divorce 15 years ago.

Her ex-spouse has not provided any child support and has been out of contact.

After a long 10-year lawsuit, she received only 10 million won, and still has not received the remaining 50 million won.

[Single parent: "Financially, everything is difficult. I took out loans as much as I could. I have been working non-stop for over ten years."]

The government imposes sanctions on those who fail to pay child support every two months, but many continue to evade their obligations.

Due to the low level of penalties, single-parent families find it hard to expect practical help.

As a result, the government has decided to provide 200,000 won in child support every month starting in July.

This is limited to those with a median income of 150% or less and will continue until their child turns 18.

The child support provided in advance will later be forcibly recovered from the debtor by the government.

[Shin Young-sook/Deputy Minister of Gender Equality and Family: "This ensures the survival rights of children who have not received child support. It can also strengthen the responsibility of raising children."]

However, overdue child support before the implementation of this system will not be applied retroactively.

There are concerns that the beneficiaries are limited, and the monthly 200,000 won per child is insufficient given today's prices.

[Koo Bon-chang/Representative of People Solving Child Support Issues: "(Before July) there are no measures for overdue child support. The number of affected children is 1 million, but less than 2% will benefit from this advance payment system."]

Civic groups are calling for stronger measures, such as criminal penalties, against those who fail to pay child support.

This is KBS News, Joo Hyun-ji.\r
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