Park Won-soon, Ahn Hee-jung, and Oh Keo-don... Unending Sexual Misconduct Among Public Officials, Is There No Solution?

Lawsuit Against Mayor Park for Violation of Special Act on Sexual Violence and Forced Molestation
74.5% of Victims Responded They 'Just Endured It'
Experts Say "Fundamental Solutions Needed for Hierarchical Sexual Violence in Public Service"

Kim Hye-jung, Deputy Director of the Korea Sexual Violence Relief Center, is holding a placard with the phrase "We stand in solidarity with the victims" at a press conference on the sexual harassment case by the Seoul mayor, held on the 13th at the Korea Women's Hotline in Eunpyeong-gu, Seoul. Photo by Moon Ho-nam munonam@

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Suwan] Amid revelations that the late Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon continuously sexually harassed an employee who worked as his secretary for four years, criticism is growing as sexual misconduct cases within the civil service increase every year.

Concerns are emerging that it will be difficult to improve the male-dominated organizational structure and vertical hierarchical culture entrenched within the civil service. As sexual crime cases involving public officials, who should set an example, continue, citizens are criticizing the public sector's lack of gender sensitivity and pointing out that there is insufficient active response to sexual misconduct incidents.

The accuser who reported former Mayor Park to the police on charges including sexual harassment held a press conference on the 13th at the office of 'Korean Women's Hotline' in Eunpyeong-gu, Seoul, announcing the circumstances that led to counseling former secretary A and the process of filing the complaint.

The complainant claims that sexual harassment and sexual misconduct through abuse of power continued for four years. Kim Jaeryeon, the legal representative of A, stated, "Sexual harassment and sexual misconduct persisted throughout the four years the victim worked as a secretary, and continued even after being transferred to another department."

Regarding how A came to serve as a secretary, Kim said, "The victim was appointed as a public official and was working at an institution other than Seoul City Hall when contacted by Seoul City Hall, interviewed, and then worked as a secretary for about four years. The victim never applied for the mayor’s secretary position."

Kim added, "The crimes occurred in the mayor’s office and the bedroom within the office. The victim was told, 'Let's take a selfie together,' and the mayor pressed his body against the victim or, upon seeing bruises on the victim’s knees, said he would 'kiss them better' and pressed his lips to the victim’s knees."

Former Chungnam Governor Ahn Hee-jung, who was prosecuted for sexually assaulting his executive secretary by abusing his position, has been sentenced to 3 years and 6 months in prison. The Supreme Court's 2nd Division (Presiding Justice Kim Sang-hwan) upheld the original verdict in the appeal trial last September, in which Ahn was charged with sexual intercourse with a supervised person, sexual harassment by force at work, and forcible molestation.
/Photo by Yonhap News

Sexual crimes by public officials abusing their power are not new. Former Chungnam Governor Ahn Hee-jung and former Busan Mayor Oh Keo-don also committed crimes by abusing their authority as local government heads.

As a result, Ahn was sentenced to three years and six months in prison by the Supreme Court last September for sexually assaulting his secretary. Oh resigned on April 23 after being accused of forcibly molesting his secretary.

Meanwhile, the number of disciplinary actions against Seoul city officials for sexual misconduct has been increasing annually. According to the disciplinary status of public officials submitted by Seoul City to Assemblyman So Byung-hoon (Democratic Party), a member of the National Assembly’s Public Administration and Security Committee, 57 officials were disciplined in 2016, 79 in 2017, and 46 by August 2018, showing an increasing trend each year.

Among these, 17 cases were related to sexual misconduct, accounting for 9.3% of all disciplinary actions. Notably, sexual misconduct disciplinary cases surged from 3 in 2016 to 5 in 2017, and 9 by August 2018.

Victims tend to hesitate to report due to fear of secondary damage. According to an online survey conducted by the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family in 2018 as part of a 'Special Inspection on Sexual Harassment and Sexual Violence Prevention in the Public Sector,' 6.8% of 232,000 public institution workers reported experiencing direct sexual harassment or sexual violence in the past three years. Among victims, 67.3% said they did not speak out and 'just let it go.'

In the same year, an online survey of 262,000 local government officials by the Ministry found that 1 in 10 (11.1%) reported having experienced sexual harassment or violence. Among them, 74.5% said they 'just endured it' afterward.

The main reason for not seeking help was "fear of breaking the atmosphere or being seen as the only abnormal person."

Especially since the civil service is a vertical hierarchical society, many victims do not report incidents, so the actual number of cases is presumed to be higher than statistics indicate.

Photo by Asia Economy DB

The problem is that inadequate responses by related institutions after victims report incidents only exacerbate the harm. Before filing a complaint against Mayor Park, victim A reportedly informed her workplace of the harassment, but the institution responded with statements such as "The mayor wouldn’t do that," "Consider it a mistake," and "Secretarial work is both an assisting role and labor."

Kim Ji-eun, who accused former Governor Ahn of sexual assault, also reported the incident but did not receive help.

As a result, citizens are voicing criticism, saying, "Measures are needed to eradicate repeated sexual crimes by public officials." A 20-something office worker said, "Not only the Park Won-soon case but sexual crimes within the civil service continue to occur, yet no effective measures have been established. This shows how lightly our society regards sexual crimes. Measures must be put in place so victims can more easily come forward."

A added, "The civil service is very closed and vertical, so I think there is a lack of gender sensitivity regarding sexual crimes. If this is not corrected now, female public officials and female citizens will lose all trust."

Criticism of the lack of gender sensitivity also comes from within the civil service. Public official B (27) said, "Pouring drinks, personal questions, and subtle physical contact in karaoke rooms are common in the civil service. Because of the hierarchical order, it’s not easy to refuse."

He continued, "The problem is that perpetrators don’t realize this is wrong. This shows how low gender sensitivity is within the public official community. Also, following the sexual harassment scandal involving former Mayor Park, guidelines on the four major types of violence, including sexual violence and prostitution, were issued. However, temporary education when incidents occur is just a band-aid solution and cannot eradicate sexual crimes within the civil service."

This indicates that current sexual violence prevention policies for public officials are ineffective.

Experts suggest that fundamental solutions, not superficial responses, are needed when hierarchical sexual violence occurs in the public sector.

Attorney Lee Eun-ui, who represents female victims of sexual violence, said, "Victims hesitate to report due to fear of secondary harm, but secondary harm is a real issue. When hierarchical sexual violence occurs, there has been secondary harm toward victims during the process. Regardless of whether the complainant’s claims are true, society must consider this and come up with alternatives."

She added, "People want immediate answers at the problem’s onset, but the process and procedures are more important. Instead of superficial responses, measures to prevent recurrence must be developed. For fundamental problem-solving, related institutions should invest budgets and form task forces to maintain continuous attention. Specifically, if the perpetrator is the head of the organization, there should be an institution that can inspect and handle the case."