"I Still Survived by Luck" Can We End Misogynistic Crimes? ① [Gangnam Station Murder Case 4th Anniversary]

"Everyday Discrimination Faced Just for Being a Woman"
2030 Women Experience Highest Anxiety... Crime Is the Main Cause
"A Social Consensus Must Be Established to Punish Sexual Violence Offenders Without Exception"

On the afternoon of the 17th, marking the 4th anniversary of the Gangnam Station female murder case, memorial messages were posted in front of Exit 10 of Gangnam Station in Seoul.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy reporters Seunggon Han, interns Yeonju Kim, Seulgi Kim, Juhee Kang] [Editor's Note] The 'Gangnam Station Murder Case,' where a woman in her 20s was brutally killed by a man she did not know in a restroom near Gangnam Station in Seoul, marked its 4th anniversary on the 17th. Even after four years, crimes targeting women such as stalking, illegal filming, and the 'Nth Room' case continue unabated in our society. We examined the reality women face and possible solutions.

"Women who survived by chance began to shout for social change."

On the 17th, members of the civic group 'People Angry at the Nth Room' gathered at Exit 10 of Gangnam Station in the afternoon, stating, "The reason the Gangnam Station murder case is vividly remembered is that it was the moment many women began to fight from their own places."

They continued, "The critical voices against everyday discrimination just because one is a woman led to the 2018 'Me Too' movement and have become an unextinguishable flame in our hearts," raising their voices. They added, "Now is the time for the world to move in step with women's demands," urging, "We demand the strong punishment of all 260,000 perpetrators of the 'Nth Room' case."

They said, "Four years ago today, a person with dreams had to leave this world just because she was a woman before she could realize her dreams."

They added, "From Gangnam Station to the 'Nth Room,' the violence society inflicts on women bears a striking resemblance," urging, "Do not ignore the voices of women who want to live with dignity."

They also pointed out, "Courts that dismiss sexual violence as a natural expression of desire rather than a crime have tolerated and fostered the 'Nth Room.' As the hashtag campaign 'Nth Room grew up on verdicts' suggests, the Nth Room case is the result of courts favorable to sexual violence perpetrators, politics that trivialize women's issues by saying 'later,' and a society rife with discriminatory gender perceptions and stereotypes."

The group stated, "To end violence against women, a social consensus must be established that sexual violence crimes will definitely be punished," and "the interest of all citizens must be maintained until the end."

On the afternoon of the 17th, marking the 4th anniversary of the Gangnam Station female murder case, citizens are laying flowers in front of Exit 10 of Gangnam Station, Seoul.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

◆ Is the 'Gangnam Station Murder Case' a misogynistic crime?

In the early morning of May 17, 2016, at the unisex restroom near Exit 10 of Gangnam Station, a man in his 20s sent away six male restroom users and then followed and brutally murdered the seventh victim, a woman.

During the police investigation, the perpetrator reportedly stated, "I committed the crime because I was ignored by women in social life," which sparked public debate framing the case as a 'misogynistic crime.' Citizens continued to visit the site near Exit 10 of Gangnam Station, leaving chrysanthemum flowers and post-it notes in memory of the victim.

However, during the investigation, it was revealed that the man had been diagnosed with schizophrenia in 2008, hospitalized for one month, discharged, and then hospitalized again for six months each in 2010 and 2013, and from August 2015 to January of the following year. This led to counterarguments that the crime was an impulsive act due to schizophrenia.

Four years later, Asia Economy reporters asked a diverse group of women about the motive behind the crime. They unanimously emphasized that it was a misogynistic crime.

Post-it notes in memory of the Gangnam Station murder case. Photo taken in May 2016. [Image source=Yonhap News]

A (18) said, "I definitely think it was a misogynistic crime. The perpetrator killed the victim because she was a woman and seemed easy to target. He did nothing to the men who entered before her."

B (21) said, "The answer to whether it is a misogynistic crime lies in the perpetrator's intent. Mr. Kim, the perpetrator, said that two days before the crime, he got angry because a cigarette butt discarded by a woman fell on his shoe, and he decided to kill a woman. The fact that he lumped all women into one group as those who ignored him is itself a misogynistic crime," he pointed out.

He added, "The perpetrator did not commit murder despite several men passing by; he is the type who is weak to the strong and strong to the weak. Bowing to the strong and wielding a knife against the weak is a typical misogynistic crime."

C (28) shared the same view. She said, "I think it was a crime caused by misogyny. The perpetrator waited in a public restroom for a random 'woman' he did not know to enter and then killed her. This is clearly a hate crime targeting women."

D (28) said, "Broadly, I see it as hatred of the weak, and since women are weak from a male perspective, I think it is indeed a misogynistic crime."

Experts analyzed that the motive behind the crime reflects misogynistic crime.

At the time of the incident, psychiatrist Cheon-seok Seo, director of the Mind Research Institute, wrote on his Facebook, "The fact that he (the suspect) committed the crime because 'women ignored me' has a social context, and that is 'misogyny,'" adding, "Even if it is his delusion, that delusion reflects the social context of misogyny."

He pointed out, "If our society treated men and women equally and if women ignoring men was not particularly more upsetting to men than men ignoring men, he would not have said such things."

He explained, "The psychological phenomenon of misogyny, which has clearly increased recently in our society, (if he had psychotic delusions) took root in his delusions. If misogyny did not exist, he would not have had such delusions and would have had different ones."

2018 Seoul Gender Statistics: Safety of Women in Seoul through Statistics. Graphic provided by Seoul City

◆ Highest anxiety among women in their 20s and 30s... social safety anxiety continues to rise

According to the '2018 Seoul Gender Sensitivity Statistics: Women's Safety in Seoul Seen Through Statistics' (Seoul Metropolitan Government/2019), one in two women living in Seoul (50.3%) perceive society as 'unsafe.'

Especially, 71.9% of women responded that fear of becoming a crime victim was their greatest anxiety. Gender sensitivity statistics show that social safety anxiety among women living in Seoul increased by 11.5 percentage points over six years from 2010. Compared to a 4.9 percentage point increase in men's social safety anxiety (37.9%) over the same period, the gap is more than double.

Women's social safety anxiety was higher the younger they were. Women in their 20s (63.0%), 30s (59.2%), and 50s (48%) showed the highest levels of social safety anxiety in that order.

Social safety anxiety among women in their 20s was 30.5 percentage points higher than men, and the most frequently cited cause of anxiety was crime occurrence (71.9%).

2018 Seoul Gender Statistics: Safety of Women in Seoul through Statistics. Graphic provided by Seoul City

Especially, in 2017, the year following the 'Gangnam Station Murder Case,' the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency's statistics on violent crime (murder, robbery, arson, sexual violence, etc.) showed that among 7,330 victims, 90% (6,594) were women.

In 2017, there were 3,082 crimes in the Seoul subway system, of which sexual crimes (1,811 cases) accounted for 58.8%, about 2.7 times more than theft (678 cases).

Among sexual crimes in the Seoul subway, 60.4% were molestation, and 39.6% were illegal filming. Especially, Lines 2 (27.9%) and 9 (26.0%), which have high passenger traffic, had higher rates of sexual crimes compared to other lines.

The same survey showed that 93.5% of sexual violence victims were women. By age, 50% of female victims were aged 19-30, followed by 21.2% under 19, and 11.9% aged 31-40.

Also, over three years (2015-2017), occurrences of murder (down 10%), robbery (down 38.8%), and arson (down 28.6%) decreased, while sexual violence crimes continued to increase (up 27.8%).

However, the prosecution rate for sexual violence cases is relatively low compared to other violent crimes. According to data from the Seoul High Prosecutors' Office on average prosecution rates by violent crime type over the past three years (2015-2017), robbery had the highest rate at 53.7%, followed by murder at 44.3%, arson at 33.8%, and sexual violence at 31.7%.

On the afternoon of the 17th, marking the 4th anniversary of the Gangnam Station female murder case, a foreigner is looking at a memorial message in front of Exit 10 of Gangnam Station in Seoul. [Image source=Yonhap News]

◆ "Grieve briefly, stay angry for a long time"

The Gangnam Station murder case sparked anger among countless women. Women gathered at Gangnam Station, saying they are the victims and, literally, women who survived by chance.

The anxiety that one could die anytime, anywhere yesterday, today, or tomorrow turned the heart of Gangnam Station into a memorial space.

"In 2016, I was a first-year high school student, and after hearing about this case, my life changed 180 degrees."

The high school student at the time of the 'Gangnam Station Murder Case' explained that her life was completely transformed by the incident.

In an interview with Asia Economy, she said, "I was accustomed to social oppression against women, such as 'women should be careful at night' and 'don't wear revealing clothes,' and I was gradually adapting to such adult advice. But after watching the news, I was shocked as if I had been hit on the head."

She added, "The only thing the victim and I have in common is 'being a woman,' but just because of that one thing, I thought I could die instead of her, and if I had been there instead of the victim, it wouldn't be strange if I died. It was a terrifying thought."

She continued, "I cried a lot while reading the book '1004 Post-its.' How can the world be like this? The victim had no connection to the perpetrator and did nothing wrong to him. Just because she was a woman. At 23, such a young age. When I was 17, 23 seemed fully adult, but now at 21, 23 still feels very young," she lamented.

She raised her voice, saying, "It was heartbreaking that a life was lost without fully unfolding. And I realized this problem is not just about the individual criminal but about a society that perceives women as socially weak, ignores, and hates them."

"Grieve briefly, stay angry for a long time." She said she cannot explain her 21 years of life without this phrase. She said, "The Gangnam Station murder case was the starting point of my feminism. It was the existence that made me realize and awaken. I am sorry and thankful."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.