Private Sanctions or Justice Implementation... Milyang Perpetrator Identity Disclosure [What Do You Think]

Restaurant Demolition, Dismissals, Temporary Transfers Cause Major Fallout
Nail Shop False Accusation Victims Also Emerge
Gap Between Criminal-Justice System and Public Legal Sentiment
Private Sanctions Will Persist Without Reduction
Victims' 'Right to Be Forgotten' Must Also Be Considered

Protest held on December 11 of the same year in Gwanghwamun, Seoul, demanding reinvestigation of the 2004 Miryang middle school girl sexual assault case (Source: Korean Women's Associations United)

The identities of those involved in the ‘Miryang Middle School Girl Gang Rape’ case, which received a light punishment 20 years ago, are being reexamined in online spaces. The perpetrators' names, faces, workplaces, and even posts on their social media accounts have been disclosed, sparking nationwide outrage. So far, three perpetrators whose identities have been exposed were either dismissed from their companies or temporarily reassigned.

While some view this as the realization of justice that the criminal and judicial systems failed to achieve, there are calls for caution considering the risks of false accusations, guilt by association, violation of the victim’s right to be forgotten, and questions about the crime deterrent effect if the situation overheats.

The Miryang gang rape case involved 44 high school boys from the Miryang area who continuously sexually assaulted one middle school girl from Ulsan over the course of a year starting in December 2004. The Ulsan District Prosecutors’ Office indicted 10 perpetrators (7 detained, 3 not detained). Twenty were sent to juvenile detention centers. For the remaining perpetrators, the case was closed with a ‘no prosecution’ decision either because they reached a settlement with the victim or were not included in the complaint. None of the 44 perpetrators received criminal punishment. The majority escaped appropriate penalties, which fueled public outrage.

The gukbap restaurant in Cheongdo, Gyeongbuk, where perpetrator A worked, has been demolished. In the case of perpetrator B, it was revealed that he was working as a foreign car dealer, and the company notified him of his dismissal. The third perpetrator, C, whose identity was disclosed, has been temporarily reassigned at the large corporation where he is employed. Below are (from left) the apology letter posted by the restaurant where A worked, and the statement from B's company (Source: Online community).

Restaurant Demolition, Dismissals, Temporary Transfers... False Accusation Victims Also Occur

First, the pork soup restaurant in Cheongdo, Gyeongbuk, where perpetrator A worked, was demolished. The owner who employed the perpetrator issued an apology stating, “We are sorry for causing social unrest,” and closed the restaurant. In the case of perpetrator B, it was revealed that he worked as a foreign car dealer, and the company notified him of his dismissal. The third perpetrator, C, reportedly received a temporary transfer at the large corporation where he was employed.

However, there have also been cases of harm caused by false accusations. A nail salon in Miryang was mistakenly identified as being run by the girlfriend of a perpetrator, but this was not true. The nail salon owner said, “We have nothing to do with the case, but we suffered damage such as abusive comments in the salon’s reviews,” and filed a complaint with the police requesting punishment of the YouTuber who disclosed the identities for obstruction of business and other charges. There is also controversy over regional disparagement. This stems from some claims that there was a strong atmosphere of defending the perpetrators in Miryang at the time of the incident. Posts saying “You shouldn’t even marry a man from Miryang” are being circulated mainly on online communities.

More than 40 high school students arrested on charges of gang raping a middle school girl on December 7, 2004, sit at the Ulsan Nambu Police Station with their heads buried and bodies curled up.
(Photo by Yonhap News)

A Case with a Large Gap in Public Legal Sentiment... The Victim’s Right to Be Forgotten Must Also Be Considered

Experts point out that the problem starts with the repeated post-factum public trials demanding “appropriate punishment” as a justification for the limitations of the criminal and judicial system. Professor Lee Woong-hyuk of Konkuk University’s Department of Police Science said in a phone interview with this paper, “The police initially failed to protect the victim, and since the perpetrators were all sent to juvenile court, protective measures rather than criminal punishment were applied, which led to the collapse of criminal justice at the time. That wrong judgment is still causing repercussions 20 years later.” Profiler Bae Sang-hoon said, “Because the public system cannot provide public justice, people try to seek private remedies, but this should be seen as a social problem.”

Professor Lee Yun-ho, emeritus professor of Dongguk University’s Department of Police Administration, stated, “In the U.S., acts like doxxing perpetrators are so frequent that they are understood under the concept of ‘Public Shaming.’” He added, “This ultimately means there is a large gap between the criminal justice system and public legal sentiment, and if this gap is not narrowed, private sanctions like this will continue.” However, he also expressed concern, saying, “Private sanctions risk causing innocent victims due to misjudgments and also violate the victim’s right to be forgotten after suffering pain 20 years ago.”