Dating & Violence

[Anchor Lead]

Yesterday we reported on the rising violence associated with dating. Dating violence has become a serious social issue in this country, and it’s even sometimes deadly. Many Western countries have very strict laws dealing with this kind of violence, and in Korea there are calls for tougher laws as well.

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In January a woman reported to police that she had been attacked by her boyfriend. The police let the abusive boyfriend go after questioning, and he later sought out his girlfriend to mercilessly assault her for reporting him. The woman fell into a coma and eventually died. Under the current law, the police cannot issue restraining orders for cases of date violence, which occur between current or former romantic partners. Korea's Act on the Prevention on Domestic Violence authorizes the police to use their discretion in isolating the assailants, but the law applies only to legal family members. The Korean police have added a code for "date violence" in its crime reporting system and are now able to issue written warnings. Nevertheless, there are calls for more aggressive countermeasures. The United Kingdom has the so-called "Clare's Law" which allows a romantic partner's criminal records to be searched. The United States also actively enforces the Violence Against Women Act with mandatory arrest programs and protection orders.

[Soundbite] Prof. Byeon Sin-won(Korean Institute for Gender Equality Promotion and Education) : "Attackers should be restrained and punished by law. They should be punished so they can be rehabilitated."

A special bill to punish date violence was tabled in February of 2016, but it was automatically scrapped when the 19th National Assembly came to an end.