"Family, they say..." Holding the leash, spinning, and hanging from the car... Unending animal abuse [Kim Suwan's Animal Report]

"Spin it like Jwibulnori" Pohang Dog Abuse Controversy
Photo of Dog Dragged While Tied to Car... Citizens 'Angry'
Expert: "Lack of Understanding of Life"

As the population of pet owners continues to grow steadily, abuse toward animals remains ongoing, becoming a social issue. The photo is unrelated to specific expressions in the article. Photo by EPA Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Suwan] Recently, incidents of cruel abuse of pets have been continuously occurring, causing public outrage. In particular, some pet owners have committed harsh acts such as throwing animals without any sense of responsibility, making it a serious social problem. Experts pointed out that awareness regarding understanding and consideration for life still remains at a low level.

Animal abuse crimes have been steadily increasing. According to data released by Rep. Lee Eunju of the Justice Party in October last year, violations of the Animal Protection Act increased by 1147% from 2010 to 2019. This means that animal-related crimes have increased more than 13 times over the past decade.

There are even those who abuse their own pets without any sense of responsibility. Recently, in Pohang, Gyeongbuk, two people were caught on camera abusing a dog by holding its leash and spinning it in the air multiple times like playing with a fire wheel, prompting the police to launch an investigation.

According to the Pohang Northern Police Station on the 5th, at around 11:30 PM on the 28th of last month, the identities of two suspects accused of abusing a dog by spinning it in an alley in Duho-dong, Buk-gu, were confirmed and they were summoned for questioning.

Both suspects are women in their early 20s; one is the dog's owner and the other is a friend of the owner. During the police investigation, the dog's owner admitted to the crime and reportedly stated, "I saw the news with the video of the dog being spun, but I was too scared to turn myself in."

On the night of the 28th last month, a woman was spinning a dog like playing Jwibulnori in an alley in Buk-gu, Pohang-si, Gyeongbuk. Photo by Instagram video capture

This incident became known after a netizen posted the video on social media (SNS). On the 29th of last month, Ms. A posted a short video on her Instagram account with the caption, "You may be angry, but I hope you watch the video until the end. I hope the culprit is caught."

At the beginning of the video, the two people are walking, and the person holding the dog's leash suddenly lifts the dog and spins it three times in the air. Afterwards, faint whimpering sounds of the dog lying on the ground are captured in the video.

Ms. A explained that the video was filmed by an acquaintance and was taken around 11 PM on the 28th in an alley in Duho-dong, Buk-gu, Pohang. She added, "Although not shown in the video, a person who witnessed the animal abuse but neglected to intervene laughed while passing by the car as the dog was being spun," and "In the end, both people treated the dog that way."

She expressed her outrage, saying, "It's a precious life, but to them, it's just a toy," and "It makes me so angry and furious that such people are raising and adopting dogs."

Relatedly, on the 31st of last month, a national petition titled "Investigate and severely punish those who tie dogs to a leash and spin them in the air, and prohibit them from ever raising pets again" was posted on the Blue House's public petition board. As of 11 AM on the 8th, the petition had received 30,188 signatures.

A photo suspected to show a dog being carried while running in severe cold weather was released on the internet. Photo by Care, an animal rights organization, Facebook capture.

Moreover, a photo suspected of showing a dog tied to a car and dragged along sparked public outrage.

The animal rights organization "CARE" posted on its official Facebook account on the 4th, "Did someone drag a dog in freezing weather?" along with a photo and report. According to the report, a dog was tied with a rope and a long metal leash lying in front of a car parked near an elementary school in Okcheon, Chungbuk.

CARE stated, "All four paws appear to be crushed. It is judged that the dog is already dead," and "After making an emergency report to the local police station and requesting an on-site inspection, we were informed that the vehicle and the dog had disappeared. The car owner was identified, and an investigation is underway, but the owner is claiming ignorance about the dog being tied."

Citizens who heard the news commented, "Animal abuse will never end unless the law changes," "I don't understand why they do such things to innocent lives," and "It seems intentional. Please punish them severely," raising voices of criticism.

As such, forms of animal abuse are becoming increasingly cruel. Despite the brutal abuse of animals, punishments remain lenient, and related cases continue to occur. Although the Animal Protection Act has been amended, meaningful rulings have not been issued.

According to Article 8 of the Animal Protection Act, those who abuse or kill animals can face up to three years in prison or a fine of up to 30 million won, but strong punishments are rare. Except for habitual offenders, most receive penalties lighter than the statutory sentences.

Experts pointed out the need to raise awareness that animal abuse is a serious social crime and to improve related systems.

Lee Wonbok, head of the Korea Animal Protection Union, said, "In our country, awareness regarding understanding and consideration for life is still at a low level," and "Although there are laws that allow imprisonment and fines for animal abusers, actual punishments rarely follow." He added, "Judicial authorities need to recognize the seriousness of animal abuse and issue meaningful rulings," emphasizing, "Related education should also be conducted to raise awareness."

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