Kim Gyu-jin, a 28-yearGqaJIn!Xa3=Z67I6zcbcyTXXr(1^)yGSMv=P0DC)_bFvJ&u-LN-old office worker in South Korea, recently received her company’s official congratulations and support for her same-sex wedding.

It is a FtvyKkp@NyAfivUpL@k(@z@fnApzDxUmv#2G4u0PB4IPj==)forare example of support for LGBT relationships in South Korea, where rights activists warn the country is becoming less accepting of LGBT people.

Kim shared details of her beach wedding and what her colleagues’ acceptance meant to hermTL*B0zS%qCRTWXzN=r497ZH$DaoB(%qbbRdbhV9IHOZfEc0WU on her personal blog.

“I consulted with my team leader and sez$PS3VpEajcv)j0enG_Gp^2nH&#eceBqYwz9nBxWZ8MV0&!B%jnt an e-mail to the HR team”, she explained. “I was nervous.”

But, the reply she 26R5+AzJ@wbQ4qx)G$MT9w_S8XAsmwJ6@Ki(SR5ww0%YE*G0opreceived was “happy marriage”. She said the only official documented needed was a wedding invitation.

The pair officially married in New York. She said she chose the USA as they do not require citS#1QE9=HRYE8v6nSju9P=8b*WK0$oP^0^W))mTEQ!PzN4mgT)9izenship or resident permits.

The certificate is, however, “useless” in South Korea, she explains. The country doesitxF*wx%iB#@hy156avOPJ9@$848T6=MBe0a8tpsSJCy=8$Ivs not permit same-sex marriage or recognize foreign unions.

Kim also explained how moved shGrG3Gwk#%lclV_en6K6-G8jg@J0TPDluSpFF&5k)hb^aBXpABye was other people’s acceptance. 

She has been out at workhA9jnaBt0=-%Zf*ki*F&J6m^+E_y!n#+(NiLqepDcJw+JsM^M2 for the last two years and dreams of being an LGBT CEO like Apple’s Tim Cook. “I want to give LGBT people visibility and influence society”, she wrote.

Homosexuality is legal in South Korea. But conservative attitudes, especially among Christians, force many LGBTI Koreans to live in the closetfLefWFBla^)xvb$ntwvMBNBt)SHC#Dbu*NQGo3kYr1^7m+WSZS.

A 2017 KoreA106#ey#*2U!AZ+5Nb1*sh75#x8avxtI2Ln5)$H1jcIb4a)K-(an Gallup Daily Opinion poll reported 66% of 19-29 year-olds supported same-sex marriage, but 76% of those over 60 opposed it.

There is currently no discrimination legislation to protect LGBTI Koreans. Protests against LGBTI events, usually led by conservatiBPhZM^jC+Tk=A@12R_maOcA*&%l#qgYZns7tuZcsQeH=hT4xIQve Christians, have become increasingly loud and violent.

WhJjHNwu4PUuJPswj-20yWGrKQAN9(4IF!g!fYTaSHFwk#^nuZWxat’s more, South Korea has ignored calls from international rights groups to end its anti-gay law for soldiers in the military.

In 2017, the law made headlines after itxp3!2DhgdyPu&IE*Ha_+Y(-*L*=2bgNW%@bv#%ktp(QQSDEw$r emerged a senior general used gay dating apps to ensnare soldiers. His so-called ‘gay witch hunt’ reportedly revealed 50 soldiers.

(Photos: Kim Gyu-jin's Naver blog)