"Doing nothing for 4 years, now this..." Controversy over 'secondary victimization' toward late Park Won-soon's accuser
82% of workplace sexual harassment victims "endured and moved on"
Experts say "Power-based sexual crimes carry heavy weight for victims"
Kim Jae-ryeon, lead attorney at Law Firm On·Sesang (second from right), is reporting on the progress at a press conference regarding the sexual harassment case by the Seoul mayor, held on the afternoon of the 13th at the Korean Women's Hotline in Eunpyeong-gu, Seoul. [Photo by Yonhap News]
[Asia Economy Reporter Heo Midam] As remarks blaming the victim for "why did you report only now" have continued toward the woman who accused the late former Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon of sexual violence, a controversy over secondary victimization has arisen.
These remarks cast doubt on the credibility of the sexual violence victim's appeal simply because the report was made late. However, many sexual violence victims have been found to be unable to actively respond when the perpetrator holds a superior position to the victim.
In particular, even when victims muster the courage to report sexual crimes, cases continue where the reporters suffer further harm, such as being fired from their workplaces. Experts pointed out that in cases of power-based sexual crimes like the sexual violence allegations against former Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon, it is difficult for victims to respond immediately.
On the 14th, Park Ji-hee, an announcer hosting a TBS current affairs program, mentioned the accuser of former Mayor Park on the 'Clean Zone Podcast' broadcast, saying, "I am very curious about what exactly happened during those four years and why suddenly now they have come forward to the world together with lawyer Kim Jae-ryeon." She continued, "While saying that the report should have been made from the beginning, I also want to ask why they couldn't report it at that time."
Following these remarks, various online communities and social networking services (SNS) were flooded with critical comments stating that announcer Park's remarks constitute 'secondary victimization' against the accuser.
As the controversy escalated, announcer Park appeared on the Lee Dong-hyung TV live broadcast on the 16th and explained, "I did not intend to blame the woman who appealed for help," adding, "My intention was that if I had visited and spoken out of sympathy, the time of suffering might have been shortened."
Earlier, the former secretary who accused former Mayor Park of sexual harassment held a press conference on the 13th, expressing the pain endured over more than four years of sexual harassment.
In a statement read by Kim Hye-jung, deputy director of the Korea Sexual Violence Counseling Center, the accuser said, "I was foolish. I deeply regret it. At that time, I should have screamed and cried out loudly." She added, "If I had done so, could I have avoided blaming myself now? I have regretted it countless times," conveying that she endured a long period of silence and suffered greatly alone.
Sexual crimes in the workplace are widespread, but reports by victims are few. This is because victims cannot properly disclose the facts due to their reports being distorted by power dynamics or facing dismissal.
According to the '2018 Sexual Harassment Survey Results' announced last year by the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family, 8.1% of approximately 10,000 respondents said they had experienced sexual harassment at work in the past three years. The most common places where sexual harassment occurred were company dinners (43.7%) and offices (36.8%).
However, the majority of victims did not actively respond to sexual harassment. In the same survey, 81.6% of sexual harassment victims answered that they "endured and let it go."
The reasons were ranked as "did not think it was a big problem" (49.7%) and "did not think raising the issue would solve anything" (31.8%). In other words, victims effectively gave up reporting because organizations did not show a proactive attitude toward resolving sexual crime issues.
Moreover, even when those who suffered sexual harassment bravely reported it, they faced retaliation such as exclusion from work or dismissal, which is problematic.
In January, a scandal erupted at the yoga wear company 'Andar' when employee Shin (35) was sexually harassed by a colleague during a company dinner.
Meanwhile, last year, a woman identified as C, working at a company in a provincial area, reported unwanted physical contact from a male superior during a company dinner to the Ministry of Employment and Labor. However, instead of disciplining the perpetrator, the employer fired Ms. C, citing damage to the company's image.
As a result, since victims who report suffer disadvantages rather than perpetrators, some victims decide to resign voluntarily. According to a survey conducted by the Seoul Women's Labor Association on workplace sexual harassment victims from 2013 to 2016, 7 out of 10 victims voluntarily left their jobs. Victims are unable to make proper reports and instead suffer further disadvantages.
Experts analyzed that in cases of power-based sexual crimes, it may be difficult to report immediately. Seo Seung-hee, director of the Korea Cyber Sexual Violence Response Center, pointed out, "In cases of 'power-based sexual crimes,' victims inevitably struggle with whether they should speak out about the incident for a long time. Especially when the perpetrator is a high-ranking public official or politician, who has a strong social support base and significant political power, the burden felt by the victim regarding the incident is inevitably heavier."
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