"Exclusion Upon Return to Hospital"... Police Launch Investigation into Threats Against Returning Medical Residents

The police have launched an investigation into online posts that threatened retaliation against returning medical residents and medical students.

A doctor's gown is placed in a medical school practice room in downtown Seoul. Photo by Yonhap News

The Cyber Investigation Unit of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency announced on July 11 that it had received a request from the Ministry of Education to investigate threatening messages posted on 'MediStaff,' a community for doctors and medical students, and has begun efforts to identify the author.

On MediStaff, threatening posts such as "I want to XX Gamgyul" and "If I return, I'll XX you all" were uploaded. "Gamgyul" is slang used to mock medical residents who have returned to hospitals or medical students who remained at medical schools during the conflict between the medical community and the government.

Previously, on June 30, the police sent the CEO and a staff administrator of MediStaff to the prosecution without detention on charges of aiding and abetting the continued posting of "medical community blacklist" articles and similar content on the platform.

A police official stated, "We will conduct a strict investigation in accordance with the law and principles regarding illegal acts such as defamation and threats that interfere with the career choices of medical students and residents."

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