'Sexual Assault Conviction' An Hee-jung Case Called 'Romance Between Men and Women'?…Controversy Over Secondary Victimization

Media Platform 'Eollukso'... Secondary Harm Post Shared
Posted on Former People Power Party Leader Lee Jun-seok's Question Page
Democratic Party Lawmaker Lee Seol-a Declares "I Will Withdraw"

The media platform 'Eollukso' is embroiled in controversy for sharing content on social networking services (SNS) that contains secondary victimization of the victim in the sexual violence case involving former Chungnam Governor Ahn Hee-jung. Critics argue that it is inciting further harm to the victim despite the guilty verdict being finalized.

The media platform 'Eollukso' is facing criticism for encouraging voting by sharing a question from an Eollukker (a user of Eollukso), which is being called 'secondary victimization' of the victim.
[Photo by Eollukso, captured from X (formerly Twitter)]

On the 11th, Eollukso posted on its official X (formerly Twitter) account a message encouraging voting, sharing a question from an Eollukker (Eollukso user) that read, "(Representative Lee Jun-seok) seemed to understand the Ahn Hee-jung case not as sexual harassment but as a romantic relationship between a man and a woman. I am curious about Representative Lee Jun-seok's implication."

The question was posted in the Eollukso's own segment called 'Social Interview (participatory interview),' where interviewees directly respond to questions left in comments by Eollukkers.

Eollukso shared part of a question left by an Eollukker for former Representative Lee Jun-seok after reading the book 'Time of Decline' by Moon Sang-chul, former secretary to former Governor Ahn. As of 3 p.m. on the 12th, the post had recorded over 250,000 views on X.

Netizens who saw the post reacted with comments such as "Turning sexual violence into gossip," "I will unsubscribe," and "I hope they delete it quickly and issue an apology." An X user A, who has been following Eollukso for a long time, criticized, "Eollukso defines sexual violence by power as sexual harassment and is participating in secondary victimization by involving Lee Jun-seok."

Lee Seol-ah, Chairperson of the Media Ethics Special Committee of the Democratic Party of Korea Gyeonggi Province, publicly announced her withdrawal from "Eollukso."
[Photo by Eollukso, captured from the 'Lee Seol-ah' page]

Lee Seol-ah, Chairperson of the Media Ethics Special Committee of the Democratic Party's Gyeonggi Provincial Party, wrote a post titled 'Protesting the secondary victimization SNS post and withdrawing' on the 11th and then left the account. In her post, she stated, "I deleted all posts on the account in protest against the situation where a case clearly identified as sexual assault by the court is belittled as just a romantic relationship and even promoted."

Meanwhile, the interviewee for this Eollukso social interview was former People Power Party leader Lee Jun-seok. The social interview period runs for ten days starting December 10, and the questions to be answered are decided by users' up/down votes. As of 3 p.m. on the 12th, the Top 10 questions include ▲posts related to the 'advance payment of child support' system ▲posts by victims of the Busan spinning kick incident ▲posts by small and medium manufacturing workers ▲suggestions related to the hospital app 'Ddokddak' ▲posts about new party formation ▲posts by Democratic Party lawmaker Park Kang-san ▲posts about military manpower shortages ▲questions opposing absorption and integration ▲posts related to drunk driving, among others.

The problematic question post currently has 13 'upvotes (likes)' and 12 'downvotes (dislikes),' placing it in the lower ranks among the social interview introduction pages.

Former Governor Ahn Hee-jung appears at 'Up to the 38th Parallel' gathering... Rumors of 'comeback' swirl

Photos of a group gathering of former Chungnam Governor Ahn Hee-jung and his supporters held over two days starting from the 2nd at a pension in Yangpyeong-gun, Gyeonggi Province. Former Governor Ahn is in the center of the front row.
[Photo by Facebook group '38seonkkaji Ahn Hee-jung!']

Meanwhile, on the Facebook group 'Up to the 38th Parallel Ahn Hee-jung!'?a fan club for former Governor Ahn?a photo was posted on the 2nd showing Ahn and supporters gathered at a pension in Yangpyeong-gun, Gyeonggi Province, sparking rumors of a 'comeback.' They held a meeting at the pension for two days starting on the 2nd. It is reported that on the 2nd, Ahn took a walk with supporters at Yongmunsa Temple, and the next day, they had a meal and tea at a restaurant.

'Up to the 38th Parallel Ahn Hee-jung!' is a fan club created during the 2017 Democratic Party presidential primary. The name symbolizes steadfast support for Ahn Hee-jung until the end, like the 38th parallel, the last bastion of South Korea. Currently, 1,441 members have joined the group. It is known that many political figures, including Democratic Party lawmaker Kim Jong-min, who was classified as part of the Ahn Hee-jung faction within the party, and Kim Taek-soo, former political deputy mayor of Daejeon and a former secretary in the participatory government, are members.

A person presumed to be the fan club administrator, A, posted on the Facebook group account, "Governor Ahn Hee-jung is no longer a criminal. We should not treat someone who has paid for all their crimes as a criminal anymore," adding, "Our meetings now begin again." On the 6th, a group photo believed to have been taken at the Yangpyeong pension with 19 supporters and former Governor Ahn was posted. The photo was tagged 'Waiting for May,' which seems to imply that they plan to hold another meeting in May next year.

Previously, former Governor Ahn was indicted in April 2018 on charges of sexual assault and forced molestation of his secretary, as well as molestation by abuse of authority. In September of the following year, the Supreme Court confirmed a prison sentence of 3 years and 6 months. He was released on August 4 last year after serving his full sentence at Yeoju Prison in Gyeonggi Province. He is currently involved in a civil lawsuit with the victim. According to the Public Official Election Act and the Act on the Effectiveness of Sentences, he is prohibited from running for election for 10 years after his release.