“Four men took a drunk woman motel and they were not guilty.”
163 women’s organizations organized the Air Force Committee… Investigation into the’quasi rape case’ started
[이미지출처=연합뉴스]
[아시아경제 한승곤 기자] It has been steadily raised that the level of punishment for vicious criminals who commit crimes such as sexual assaults targeting only intoxicated women is significantly low. There is growing criticism that the punishment standards are limited and that they are not being punished properly. Meanwhile, as similar crimes continue to occur, it is pointed out that a strong punishment for the perpetrators is urgent through the revision of the relevant laws.
The current law stipulates the crime of’quasi rape’ as’sexual violence using mental and physical loss or inability to protest’. However, according to related precedents, it is pointed out that in the case of’temporarily drunk or falling asleep in alcohol’, which refers to a situation where a crime is committed, it is not judged as mental and physical loss, so a revision of the law is necessary at all.
There are also criticisms that the requirement of’inability to protest’ can be interpreted only in a limited way, such as’when assault or intimidation is extremely difficult.’ For this reason, there is an opinion among women that the crime of rape and quasi-rape should also be changed to the criterion for judging a person’s `consent’ as sexual violence.
In one case, the perpetrator committed sexual violence against a distracted woman, but was found not guilty. This is because there is a lack of objective evidence that the perpetrator committed a crime in this case, aiming for a state of intoxication, which refers to a state of loss of mind.
On May 5, 2017, a woman A, while playing in a club with her friends, suddenly lost her memory after drinking alcohol with a man. When I woke up, sexual violence had already occurred. Mr. A reported the damage to the police, and confirmed through closed circuit (CC) TV that four men took him to a motel with distracted and unable to walk.
However, the perpetrators of this incident were convicted. The 9th Criminal Office of the Seoul High Court sentenced the perpetrator to acquittal on May 7 last year, saying, “It is clear that the victim is unable to protest, but it is difficult to prove intentionality that the accused raped by using the state of intoxication.” The case is currently ahead of the Supreme Court appeal decision.
On the morning of July 7, last year, in front of the Supreme Court in Seocho-gu, Seoul, officials from the Joint Countermeasures Committee for a Just Judgment on the Quasi-Rape Case are holding a press conference calling for a strong punishment of organized sex crimes against intoxicated women. [이미지출처=연합뉴스]
In response to this situation, civic groups such as women’s circles held a press conference urging the perpetrators to punish severely and urged the revision of related laws. On July 7, last year, 163 organizations, including the Catholic Sexual Violence Counseling Center, held a press conference in front of the main gate of the Supreme Court in Seocho-gu, Seoul, and announced the launch of the’Joint Countermeasures Committee for Just Judgment on the Quasi-Rape Case’.
On this day, the Commission of Engineering urged the Supreme Court for a “just and common-sense judgment” on Mr. A’s case. They asked, “We hope that the victims should carefully examine the situation in which they were intoxicated and could not exercise any rights, without prejudice,” and “Strictly investigate and punish everyone who committed a crime using intoxication and helped to make the crime happen.”
Jeong Eun-ja, co-president of the National Sexual Violence Counseling Office, said at a press conference on the day, “(In case of quasi-rape), victims who have been drunk with alcohol or drugs cannot accurately remember the victim’s experience. Rather, it suffers from station charges.”
“The first and second trials in this case reinforced the false perception that’sexual violence against a drunk woman is not punishable.'” In addition, crimes continue to occur, and criticisms have continued that a cotton bat is a punishment.
Amidst this, similar crimes are still taking place. According to law enforcement officials on the 13th, Part 11 of the Seoul Eastern District Law Criminal Agreement (presiding judge Sohn Joo-cheol) found a drunk woman on the street, took him to a nearby building, and was handed over to trial for similar sexual assault (similar rape, etc.). Sentenced to four years in prison.
In addition, it was also ordered to complete 40 hours of sexual violence treatment programs, and to limit employment for children and adolescents-related organizations and welfare facilities for the disabled for five years.
The court ruled that “all the facts of the prosecution are judged guilty based on the evidence,” and said, “There are favorable sentencing factors, such as an agreement with the victim, but the sentence of imprisonment is inevitable due to the details of the crime and the criteria for the sentence.
Mr. B found Mr. C lying on the street while drunk on September 27 last year, took him to a nearby building and assaulted him, and is accused of similar sexual assault. There is also a suspicion of filming a part of Mr. C’s body with a smartphone video. In the process, Mr. C is reportedly bruised.
Mr. B is known to have appealed against the judgment of the first trial. However, there is also criticism that the punishment for rape punishment is four years in prison regardless of the reason for the sentence of the court.
“I committed a terrible crime, but I can’t understand it because it’s only 4 years in prison,” said Mr. Kim, a 30-year-old office worker.
According to the 2018 counseling statistics of the Korean Sexual Violence Counseling Center, sexual violence counseling through alcohol and drugs accounted for 17.6% of the total. According to the results of the prosecution’s disposition in 2019, the prosecution rate for rape cases was only 44.8%. This is why women are voicing that the related punishment regulations should be revised and severely punished, so that such crimes should be eliminated any longer.
At a press conference, the Korean Sexual Violence Counseling Center activist Cho Eun-hee said, “If you look at the counseling statistics of the counseling center (2018), sexual violence counseling through alcohol and drugs takes up 17.6% of the total, but the judiciary gives indulgences to the perpetrators. He pointed out that since several men took the victim who was unable to protest to the motel, the perpetrator’s intention was seen.”
Reporter Han Seung-gon [email protected]