Survivor of the Itaewon Disaster Broken by 'Malicious Comments'

Portals Must Also Establish Comment Filtering Measures to Protect Disaster Survivors
Severe Criticism and Defamation Against Victims Can Lead to Punishment

The afternoon of the 28th of last month at the Itaewon disaster site in Seoul. Photo by Yonhap News.

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Hyun-joo] It has been revealed that there were malicious comments blaming visits to Itaewon and other factors behind the extreme choice made by a survivor of the October 29 tragedy. As a result, voices are growing louder calling for harsher penalties on malicious comments to protect the survivors and bereaved families of the disaster.

According to the police on the 15th, Mr. A was found dead at around 11 p.m. on the 12th at a lodging facility in Mapo-gu, Seoul. The on-site investigation found no signs of criminal suspicion, and no suicide note was discovered.

Mr. A, who had been trying to recover his daily life by attending school a week after the tragedy, had been under considerable stress due to malicious comments. The family of Mr. A told MBC News on the 14th, "He got very angry seeing comments that seemed to insult the deceased friends, such as 'Didn’t you get hurt and die because you went out to see celebrities?' He felt a great deal of guilt for being the only one who survived, but after reading those comments, he just collapsed there." The malicious comments became an even greater wound to Mr. A, who had been feeling psychological pressure from being the only survivor at the disaster site.

Professor Lim Myung-ho of Dankook University’s Department of Psychology expressed concern that more severe forms of malicious comments have been appearing as difficult times continue due to COVID-19 and economic recession. He explained, "When social disasters occur, negative emotions such as discrimination and hatred can be projected online. Perpetrators often do not realize the extent of the harm their malicious comments, written as jokes or for attention, can cause to victims."

He also emphasized the need to establish strong punitive measures against malicious comments. "It takes time to enact laws to prevent damage caused by malicious comments, and many victims can emerge during that period. Portals should also devise measures such as filtering to block malicious comments," he stressed.

Professor Lim advised survivors and bereaved families of the tragedy to seek help through psychological counseling with experts.

Posting defamatory or false information targeting the victims of the Halloween tragedy online can lead to punishment under the Information and Communications Network Act for defamation. The police have stated they will respond strictly to acts such as defaming the victims or leaking personal information online.

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