From JoongAng Daily:
Since when did the night in South Korea become so dangerous? Drunken women have to fear for their lives.
On October 2nd, just past 11pm, a woman was led into a room by a man and she did not leave that room alive. Last seen leaving inebriated, the woman was taken to the room without arousing much suspicion. In the same week on the 6th, another intoxicated woman was raped and murdered. She was spotted resting on the doorstep of a convicted rapist.
Detective Lee: The criminal had a record of sexual offence, and he went on to rape, murder and abandon the body.
Another woman was raped after being spotted lying unconscious in a bathroom near Gundae University. The man confessed to have pretended to be the girl’s boyfriend. The common thread to these vicious crimes is that they took place late at night in between the public transport operating hours against vulnerable women under the influence of alcohol.
At 5 in the morning, the streets of Hongdae are still crowded with many shops still open, with minutes to go before the subway opens. Disproportionate numbers of sexual violence have been reported during this time. Outside the clubs there are still quite a number of people, a sizable amount females.
A 21 year-old woman was clearly under the influence of alcohol. While she was looking for her friend she was approached by several men, some even trying to dance with her. Men continued to approach her even as the interview was underway.
K: I came together with a few other girls but I lost track of them and now I am scared. Foreigners keep trying to talk to me… I am scared.
She took shelter in a well-lit area as she waited for her parents to come and pick her up. Once intoxicated, women are easy target for sexual violence or robbery.
If one must go out late at night to drink, it is important to be on the look-out for each other, and contently keep track by calling each other with mobile phones. Taking note of a taxi number is also important. As many police officers point out, a night out in South Korea has become a dangerous affair.
Reported by Bong Ji-wook, Yu Jaeyon.
Comments from JoongAng Daily:
beverly9:
Luring men like that, and then calling it rape is like Mrs. Kim driving on the road.
[Mrs Kim: A title used for married women, now associated with bad female drivers]
한심한:
Calling rape ‘bad self-control’ by woman.. Where is this logic coming from? Do women rape men who are lying drunk on the street? Man and woman are both human. Trying to determine who is at fault…. ‘bad self-control’ cannot justify ‘rape’ under any circumstance.
아잉좋아염:
Being careful is never a bad idea, no need to exite the perverts.
johnson123:
What woman would be dumb enough to leave her body to ‘public morality’? One’s body ought to be protected by oneself first and foremost. Our social morality is not TOO high, just to let you know. There is no knight on horseback. Very few men would not turn into a beast when encountered at night. I am not stopping people from dating or going out. I am just issuing a warning here.
kauwazaki:
Perhaps I should not be saying this.. but WHY!! In articles like these, it’s always the ‘orcs’ making a big fuss, not the ‘elves.’ [Orc: Refers to ugly women, Elf: refers to beautiful, and often white women].
송동현:
So many of these stories break into the news cycle these days…. I won’t say sexual violence is not on the rise compared to before… but so many media and news outlets focus on this type of story… So they contribute to the threatening idea of the dangerous society… It’s not as bad as people make it out to be… It’s just the news media that gives over-exposure to this type of news…
mkjillkjk:
In conclusion, sluts who cannot look after themselves and asking for it are at fault here. Cry wolf all you want, but those guys won’t waste a minute thinking it over. They will thank you for it and if you resist they will slit your throat.
요즈머:
Regarding porn, sexual violence… it is not. We are the only country that outlaws pornography. Europe, America, Japan, none. They even have porno theaters. Prostitution is sometime legal as well. Prostitution is legal in Singapore but the people there are really clean. The most important thing is culture and the public consciousness. Drinking all night is really stupid regardless of the fear of rape. We ought to clean up our act.
sonagisu:
Why feel so victimised when these women hear our sincere concerns? There’s a public campaign for safety check-ups during public holidays, is that supposed to make you feel bad? Likewise, campaigning for public safety and telling them to dress not to slutty somehow offends your feminine sensibility? The only reasonable answer to this response is that women unconsciously think they are at fault too.
조은사람:
What you don’t hear in the media is far greater. I heard in the military that this guy just had enough money for motel and picked up any drunken woman. After the college entrance exam day, it is at a peak.
kauwazaki:
In articles like this, the ones who have the most exaggerated response are ‘ugly women’… That’s because no one bothers to rape them. From there springs their sense of victimhood and strong moral outrage…. No worries ugly ones, no man will ever touch you.
bictwins:
What;; Drinking all night and passing out on the street is a good thing then? ha ha, it’s a ridiculous country;; Come home early at night, wise words from our ancestors,,
현중:
I will drink myself into oblivion and leave myself open on the street, so leave me be… is that the idea they are trying to defend here? So leave your door open at night and blame a robber if he enters your house, how is that any different?
리플레이:
Let’s both agree here. Those who has never drunk before, you may cast a stone to drunken women… Drunken woman should not wander around the street but go home straight. No one will look after your body…
ajtwlsdhfl:
Drink all we want and enjoy all our freedom~~~~~~~ Commit a crime or enjoy your luck, do what you want, tsk. I pity their lives…… I will not stop women from drinking. Passing out on the street does not cause any harm so lay off you guys. Why so serious?
김시호22:
Blaming woman for this? They have every right to go out and drink late. Use your common sense: women who want to drink or men who wait to rape women?
catsi:
All the comments go too far. Drinking late into the night is a mistake but treating women passed out on the street like a piece of meat should be faulted too!
10일:
Honestly, people may be rational animals but how could we do anything about our animal instinct? We may not have evolved enough yet, and punishing for rape is still premature. We should apply laws against sexual crime only when we can fully be rational.
