"Thinking About It Hurts My Heart"... Middle School Student's Suicide Note Resurfaces Amid 'Hakpok'

In 2011, a middle school student in Daegu who could no longer endure school violence and made an extreme choice, their living image and a part of their will were posted on a community. Photo by Clien capture

[Asia Economy Reporter Hana Na] Amid recent revelations of school violence allegations involving athletes, actors, and singers, the contents of a suicide note left by a middle school student who took their own life due to past school violence are gaining renewed attention.

On the 22nd, an online community posted a message titled "The suicide note of a middle school student that always comes to mind when seeing school violence cases," along with footage captured by elevator CCTV just hours before the deceased made the fatal decision.

The note read, "Instead of ending the days of being beaten every day, the thought that I won’t be able to see my family already brings tears to my eyes. I pray that you will be happy even without me. Mom, Dad, I love you!"

This note was left by the late Kwon Seung-min, a middle school student who died by suicide in 2011 due to school violence. At the time, Kwon, a second-year middle school student, was subjected to habitual bullying including water torture, physical assault, and extortion by classmates. He left a four-page suicide note in the living room of his home, explaining that he tried to seek help from his parents and teachers but did not report the abuse out of fear of retaliation.

The community poster said, "Sometimes I wonder if the punishment for the perpetrators is too harsh, but recalling this student's suicide note and the scene from the CCTV helps me regain my resolve," adding, "Victims and their families have to live in pain for their entire lives, so shouldn’t the perpetrators suffer the same?"

This case, known as the "Daegu Middle School Student Incident," sparked public outrage when the full suicide note and the last moments captured on CCTV were made public. Following this incident, the School Violence Prevention Act was revised in February the following year, and in June, the School Violence Police Officer (SPO) system was introduced as part of a government-wide initiative to eradicate school violence.

However, even after 10 years, school violence continues. According to the "School Violence Survey" released last month by the Ministry of Education and 17 metropolitan and provincial education offices, the proportion of cyberbullying increased from 8.9% in 2019 to 12.3% last year. Additionally, responses indicating that the location of the violence was "outside school" rose from 25.1% in 2019 to 35.7% last year.

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