Hundreds of South Korean women have spoken out against sexual abuse in recent months.
The campaign, which has seen thousands using the hashtag to share their experiences of sexual harassment, has spread across the globe. It was slow to take off in South Korea, but recently gained ground after a number of women came forward.
Wave of sexual harassment allegations has started from a televised interview with the public prosecutor, Seo Ji Hyeon. She accused a former South Korean ministry of justice official of groping her during a funeral in 2010. Exposure of representatives of higher bodies did not stop on that. The next victim of abuse of office was Kim Ji Eun, who made her allegations against Mr Ahn, South Korean politician. He was widely seen as a leading candidate to replace President Moon Jae In in the 2022 elections. Ms Kim, politician’s secretary, accused the 54-year-old of raping her four times over the course of eight months, from June 2017 to February this year, and said he had sexually harassed her on many occasions.
Another large-scale exposure was Lee Eun Eui’s interview with BBC. She talked about winning the lawsuit against the corporate giant Samsung Electro Mechanics. “I realized it was a fight that I had to do”,- she admits. This is one of the rare cases when justice could defeat and punish the perpetrator according to law.
In late February, the famous case of a veteran of Korean cinema Jo Ming Ki was investigated. A user on an online community posted that Jo Min Ki sexually harassed a female student for a few years while he was working as a professor at Cheongju University. Jo Min Ki initially denied the sexual harassment allegations when the reports first came out, but after several victims, including actress Song Ha Neul, came forward with testimonies, Will Entertainment terminated their agency with the actor. After undergoing investigation, the actor was reportedly found guilty and was stripped of his professorship.
Actor was found dead on March 9 at approximately 4 p.m. KST. Reports state that the actor was found in a storage room next to the basement parking garage of his apartment. He was discovered by his wife, who then called the police. Though emergency responders attempted to revive the actor as he was rushed to the emergency room, he was ultimately pronounced dead.
Internationally renowned South Korean director Kim Ki Duk and his regular actor Cho Jae Hyeon face multiple accusations of rape, assault and sexually predatory behavior from three women, all actors. One woman alleges that Kim and male actor Cho Jae-hyeon both raped her after Kim summoned her to his hotel room to “discuss a script”. She claimed that Kim tormented her on a nightly basis when they were filming in a remote village. Cho made an apology on February for earlier allegations of sexual abuse, and was removed from his college teaching post and TV medical drama The Cross. Whereas Kim, whose films have won prizes at Cannes, Berlin and Venice film festivals, responded to MBC (Munhwa Broadcasting Corporation) via text message, “I never tried to satisfy my personal desires using my status as a film director,” and claimed he only engaged in “consensual sexual relationships”.
One of South Korea’s most prominent theater directors apologized for sexually abusing actresses, part of a slowly building #MeToo movement in a deeply male-dominated society. “I feel so ashamed and crushed,” Lee Youn Taek, 65, a former artistic director of the National Theater of Korea, said at a news conference in Seoul. “I am ready to take all punishment, including legal responsibilities for my crimes.” Mr. Lee’s apology on Monday came five days after a Facebook post by a former actress set off a cascade of abuse accusations against him.
Other well-known persons of the country were also identified, which people did not expect to see in their list of abusers their subordinates and colleagues. Poems by Ko Un, once tipped for the Nobel Prize for Literature, will be erased from South Korean textbooks after he was accused of sexually harassing female literary hopefuls. Female film director Lee Hyun Ju, 36, retired from movies after being found guilty in December of sexually assaulting an actress.
The most recent such exposure was Comedian and reporter Kim Saeng Min, who has been trending recently because of his TV programs. With #MeToo movement growing stronger in Korea, A decided to reveal Kim Saeng Min and sent a 6-page letter to Dispatch that led to the investigation. In the letter, she claimed, “I am opening up my wounds again writing this letter”.
After allegations of sexual harassment, more than 20 advertisements in which the comedian took part were withdrawn from the broadcast. The defendant left the “Entertainment Relay ” show to which he devoted 21 years of his life.
Over the past 4 months, a lot of horrifying stories of victims were exposed, who were abused in their workplaces. thereby showing a bitter truth to Korean society. it is not surprising that such unheralded and victims who do not dare speak out much more. Since the gender inequality, the neglect of sexual minorities are notable feature of Korean Republic.
It is time for Korean women to stop being silent and protect their rights as women, as citizens. Country, society should know the names of sinful, authorized people, supporting their compatriots in their worst times.
Aruzhan Kuandyk
