Call '031-120' for Welfare Crisis...Gyeonggi Province Opens Call Center

Gyeonggi Province will officially open the '120 Emergency Welfare Consultation Call Center' on the 5th, allowing residents facing welfare crises, such as the 'Three Mothers of Suwon' case, to receive emergency consultation, welfare support linkage, and post-care management with a single phone call.

As the consultation reception number changes from the temporary hotline (010-4419-7722) launched on the 25th, the temporary hotline will operate until 9 a.m. on the 5th to prevent resident confusion.

Anyone experiencing hardship due to financial difficulties, or their neighbors, can call '031-120' and press 1 (Welfare) according to the voice guidance to receive emergency welfare consultation.

Six public officials from the health and welfare sectors are assigned to the emergency welfare consultation call center, which operates from 8 a.m. to 10 p.m. regardless of weekdays or weekends.

The center will operate normally during the Chuseok holiday period.

From 10 p.m. to 8 a.m. the next day, only consultation reservations are available, and health and welfare officials will contact callers by reservation number upon arriving at work.

The province has established a coordination system with relevant departments and municipalities to take swift action after initial consultation, and the counselor will manage cases until their closure.

Meanwhile, as of 1 p.m. on the 1st, the temporary hotline (010-4419-7722) launched on the 25th received a total of 177 cases (110 calls, 67 text messages).

Of these, 94 were welfare-related consultation inquiries excluding general civil complaints.

Among these, 10 cases have been closed, 73 are under support review after professional consultation, and 11 are ongoing consultations.

Looking at major cases, D, a resident of City A, sought help saying he has been hiding and wandering across the country for over 20 years to escape illegal loan shark debt he never even used.

D has lived without a single bank account for over 5 years, and without assets or a job due to chronic illness, he barely survives paying health insurance premiums with others' help.

Currently registered as a City A resident, his actual residence is Gwangju Metropolitan City.

He recently received notice from City A that if he does not transfer his address, his resident registration will be cancelled.

He wants to apply for basic livelihood security at the neighborhood administrative office, but is too afraid of the illegal lender to visit, saying he frequently thinks it would be easier to die than to live.

After consultation, Gyeonggi Province forwarded the case details to Gwangju's Administrative Welfare Center and requested cooperation.

Gwangju City plans to proceed with consultation with D, and the province is awaiting results.

Gyeonggi Province Governor Kim Dong-yeon said, "I too have experienced times of hardship when I felt cornered at a dead end in life and felt despair," and "Welfare is not charity but a right. Please do not hesitate at all and contact the hotline. I sincerely request this with earnest feelings,"