요즘은 Covid-19 Pandemic으로 온나라와 세계가 비상시국이다. 국가지도자들로서는 한명의 국민이라도 더 보호하기위해 있는지혜 없는 지혜를 짜내서, Coronavirus와 싸우고 있는 모습들, 특히 서구의 대통령, 또는 수상들이 매일아침, 관중 또는 기자들이 아무도 없는 마이크앞에 혼자서서, 국민들에게 밤사이에 일어난 재앙의 치료및 결과를 발표하면서, SNS를 통해 천리밖에서 질문하는 기자들에게 즉석 답변을 해주는 것으로 하루의 일상을 시작하는 광경을 보면서, 요즘 같으면 대통령, 총리 하기 힘들겠다라는 생각도 해본다.
어제는 미국의 확진환자수가 중국을 넘어, 세계에서 제일 많이 발생했다는 슬프고 무서운 보도가 있었다.
한국도 예외는 아닌것으로 통계가 보여주고 있다. 그러나 다행스럽게도 사망자수는 확진자 수에 비해서 현저히 적게 나타나고 있다는 뉴스다. 이자료를 보면서, 한국은 북미나 유럽에서 처럼 걷잡을수 없이 늘어나는 확진자수를 현저히 줄일수 있었는데, 아마추어급도 안되는 자들이 서투른 초기방역조치 실패로 한때는 중국다음으로 많은 환자가 발생하여, 150개국이 넘는 나라로 부터 왕따를 당했었다. 물론 지금은 전세계가 거의 비슷하게 서로 격리조치를 취하기에 Routine정도로 생각하고 있지만, 처음에 한국에만 각나라들이 이러한 조치를 취할때는, 챙피해서 쥐구멍이라도 찾고 싶은 심정이었음은 누구나 느꼈을 것이다.
지금은 미국에 Test Kits를 보조해줄 정도로 확진자 발견기술에 많은 진전을 보이고 있음은 불행중 다행이다. 전세계가 취하고있는 공공모임을 금하고, 개인간의 간격도 2미터이상을 유지하라는 Mandatary가 대세고, 한국도 그렇게 "긴급행정명령"까지 내려 시행하고 있다는 총리의 발표를 본적있다.
오늘 아침뉴스에, 영국의 Boris Johnson총리가 Coronavirus 양성으로 판명되여 Self-isolating시작했다는 슬픈 뉴스다. 그만큼 전염병은 상대를 공격할때 직급의 높고낮음, 부자와 가난한자, 건강한자와 환자를 구별하지 않고 무차별 공격하고 있다는 무서운 증거를 보여준것으로 이해된다.
한국의 방역대책은 여전히 노란자켓입은 사람들의 명령이 제대로 현장에서 철저히 이행되지않고, 구멍이 숭숭 뚤려 있다는 뉴스보도에 경악을 금치 못한다.
행정명령이 가장 적나라하게 집행되는 곳은 교회라는 뉴스다. 일부 기독교인들은 이에 크게 반발하고 있다. 편파적인 명령집행이라는 것이다. 정부청사에서 공무원들이 식당에 모여 자축파티를 하고, 정부행사로 치러진 천안함폭침모임에서도, 그들이 발표한 2미터 거리는 지켜지지 않았었다. 명령만 내릴줄 알뿐, 실행은 남의 일쯤으로 가볍게 여기는(?), 건방진 자들의 행태의 일면이다.
특히 한심한것은 강남의 Night Club들에서는 젊은 남녀들이, 현란한 조명속에서 구데기처럼 서로엉겨붙어 춤추고 알코홀을 들이마시고, 그속에서 환각제를 복용하지 않았을 것이라는 확신은 전연 없었다. 분명히 그지역을 단속하는 경찰조직이 있었을텐데.... 그들의 눈과 귀에는 보이지 않았었나 보다. 그곳은 특수한(?) 신분의 자녀들이 모여서 광란을 하기에 Coronavirus방역대책중의 하나인, 2미터 간격적용이 불가한 곳이었을까? 이고질적인 사회적 불평등이, 법위에 아직도 군림하고 있는데, G20 국가군에 속해 있다고 자랑스럽게 말할수 있을까?
일년전 6월달에는 똑 같은 강남지역에서 똑같은 현대판 소돔과 고모라의 참상이 있었다.
K-pop의 대명사였던 "Big Bang"의 주전멤버였던, '승리'가 불법으로 그의 비지니스 활성화를 위해 매춘행위를 했고, 또 같은 강남지역에서 독점적으로, 공동대표로 운영하던 나이트 클럽, Burning Sun에 배임혐의로 경찰의 조사를 받았었다. 그의 Band멤버들도 섹스비디오를 은밀하게 나누어 보면서, 여자들을 강간하는 내용의 대화를 자랑스럽게 주고받은 범죄 혐의도 적발 됐었다.
젊은 여성들의 인기를 끌고 있었던 구룹의 유명가수들이 하나씩 하나씩 경찰의 소환을 받아, 마약복용과 강간 혐의를 조사받기위해 경찰서로 가는 와중에도, 둘러싼 여성팬들을 못본채 밀쳐내면서, 의기양양하게 경찰서를 향해 걸어갔었다.
한국사회의 내노라하는 사람들이 주로 거주하고 있는 강남에서, 최근에 봤을때 매우 충격적일수 있는 많은 사진들이 보도된것이다. BBC보도에 따르면, 강남의 휘황찬란한 나이트클럽에서, 힘센 남자들이 강압적으로 여성들에게 마약을 복용케한후 강간하고, 또 아직 미성년 여성들이 성적자극을 주는 폼으로 사진을 찍어 유포하여 돈을 챙겼다는 정황을 들었다는 것이다.
불과 일년이 채 지나기도전에, 더욱히 Coronavirus 방역대책으로 온나라가 벌집쑤신듯 방방 뛰고 있는판에, 노란자켓을 입은 세균총리의 긴급행정명령을 어기고, 구데기처럼 엉겨붙어 광란의 환희속에서 미쳐 날뛰고 있는데도, 공권력은 그곳에는 존재치 않고 있다니.... 이게 대한민국의 현실이다. 이들을 단속처벌하는것보다, 건전한 종교집회를 막는게, 현정부에게는 더 급했었나본데....이게 정상적으로 굴러가는 나라인가?
이해못할 일이 하나 더있다. 한국에는 아직까지 노란자켓입고 명령만 내리든, 대통령을 포함한 고관대작들이 아직까지 Coronavirus에 건재하다는 사실이다. 이게 정말로 진실이기를 바라는 마음 한점의심없이 감사하게 생각한다. 과연 그럴까? 각나라의 수상, 왕족, 장관들이 많이 양성확진자로 판명되여 Self-Isolating하고 있는데... 어제는 노란자켓입고 설쳐대던 한노인이 병원에 입원 했다고 보도가 나왔었는데, 이유는 과로때문이라고 했는데, 과연 과로때문이었을까? 그들중 한명도 Covid-19 확진여부검사를 받았다는 뉴스도 없다. 이를 믿어야 하나? 선거때까지는 그냥 건강한척 해야만 하는 그들이 어느면에서는 측은해 보인다.
http://lifemeansgo.blogspot.com/2020/03/blog-post_25.html
Earlier this year, the meticulously managed world of K-pop was rocked by scandal.
Seungri, a singer in one of the world's most famous boy bands, Big Bang, was questioned by police over allegations he was procuring prostitutes for his business and had embezzled funds at Burning Sun, a nightclub he part-owned in the exclusive Gangnam district of Seoul, South Korea.
Several of his celebrity K-pop friends were also caught sharing sex videos and bragging in a chat room about raping women. One by one, Korean heartthrobs more used to being mobbed by fans found themselves fending off reporters as they made their way to the police station to face questions from drug-taking to rape.
But in recent months an even more shocking picture has emerged of Gangnam, where South Korea's high society live, work and play. The BBC has heard allegations that in its glitzy nightclubs, women have been drugged to order by powerful men and raped, and that underage girls are being sexually exploited for profit.
The BBC has sought the voices of those caught up in Seoul's sex scandal. We have heard from club-goers and club employees as well as victims, including underage girls who say they were recruited to have sex with paying customers. They all say the abuse of women in the clubs is pervasive and often violent.
We have been told that elite clients, known as VIPs - and the richest VVIPs - were prepared to pay tens of thousands of dollars to have women who were enjoying a night out drugged and taken to a nearby hotel room, the abuse routinely captured on camera.
As one club-goer put it to us: "These men are hunters and they pay to get in the game. So you need prey. It's foolish to think you won't get shot in this place."
A warning: this article contains details of alleged sexual assaults which you may find upsetting.
A woman is lying naked on a red sofa with three men staring down at her. I press play, and the men approach her. One laughs as he lifts up a limb and it falls. Her body is limp and she does not respond. The two minute video is too upsetting to describe in detail.
She appears to be sexually assaulted by all three men. Repeatedly.
The video was allegedly shared in a chat room between employees - I cannot verify its contents. But this clip is now part of a police investigation into activities at several clubs in Gangnam.
Gangnam has often been described as the Beverly Hills of Seoul. Flashy and fashion-conscious, it's a symbol of prosperity and status. At night, it's the neon playground of the very rich and those eager for a taste of the celebrity lifestyle.
The cost of a night out appears almost irrelevant. One wealthy, connected club-goer told us he spent up to $17,000 (£13,300) on just one evening. A viral social media clip shows a man spinning on the dance floor, throwing bank notes into the air like confetti. The décor is loud and ostentatious. The dress code is, of course, designer chic and for many of the more prestigious nightclubs, gaining entry requires being on an approved list.
DJs are celebrities in their own right, conducting crowds of dancers crammed around the turntables. Beautiful women serve thousand-dollar bottles of champagne to revellers who appear ready to party until dawn.
Kim - not her real name - used to be a regular on the Gangnam scene. She liked to dance and she had a few favourite DJs. One evening last December she was invited to a nightclub for drinks.
Among the group was an Asian businessman who she claims took an interest in her and began serving her whisky.
"When he was pouring the drink, I couldn't see him," she says. "He had his back against me. So I drank around three to four glasses. Every time I did so, he kept giving me water to drink."
At some point, she claims, she blacked out and woke up in a hotel room with the man looking down on her.
"He forced me to lie down but I didn't want to, so I kept getting up. When I got up, he would grab my neck and force me down on the bed over and over. I thought someone could die like this by having their neck broken.
"I started crying and yelling. Then, he got on top of me and used both of his hands to block my mouth and started pressing down hard. He kept saying 'relax, relax'."
She told us she feared for her life. "I couldn't resist his power and I was in so much pain that I could die, so I just gave up and lay there like a dead body."
Kim says she had been drugged in the club and was raped. Afterwards she threw up, then begged to go home.
"I was grabbing my clothes and other things to leave when he took his phone to take a photo with his face and my face in it. I said what are you doing and 'no, no'. But he grabbed my arm and wouldn't let me go. So I thought it'd be best to just take this photo and leave otherwise I could get into some real harm.
"So he just took the photo and I left."
Kim went to the police the next day. They found no trace of drugs in her blood, but prosecutors tell us that is not unusual. The most common drug used to incapacitate a victim is thought to be GHB, or Gamma-Hydroxybutyrate a strong sedative that is undetectable in the body after a few hours.
"Thankfully I was awake when it happened and I can fully describe what I dealt with," she told us.
But she said she had found other women online who also believe they were drugged and raped after visiting Gangnam clubs, but have no clear memory of what happened.
The businessman was found and questioned but he has strongly protested his innocence. In a statement to the BBC he said she did not black out. He said he did not rape, sexually assault or physically assault her at all and that CCTV footage shows her willingly leaving the club with him and walking to the hotel.
The investigation continues.
Seungri - real name Lee Seung-hyun - has resigned from show business, denying that he ever procured prostitutes but saying the scandal "has become so big".
The continuing controversy has led to the resignation of the head of a major South Korean entertainment company - Yang Hyun-suk, chief producer of YG Entertainment, which was behind the viral hit Gangnam Style. He denied wrongdoing, but said he could no longer withstand "humiliating" allegations of his involvement in a drug scandal and was stepping down to fight them.
The allegations have encouraged others to speak out. People we spoke to who were an integral part of Seoul's club scene have described a culture of exploitation, where the procuring of women for sexual gratification had become almost routine for some wealthy clients.
The clubs employ hosts known as "MDs" to cater to guests' desires. It's a murky role - one female MD told us it entailed building relationships with "pretty girls" to bring them into the clubs. They would entice them with the offer of free entry and free drinks.
MDs would have a number of beautiful women on their call lists. Many would encourage them to drink with their clients and the MDs would then take around 13-15% of the drinks sale. With the right clients, some of them would make around $20,000 a month. As one MD put it: "To secure high-paying clients, MDs need to be able to supply hot girls."
We have heard repeated allegations that at some point and at the request of clients, the women's drinks were being spiked, rendering them unconscious. However one senior club executive told the BBC that the suggestion GHB had been sold or distributed to customers and sexual assault encouraged was ridiculous.
A former host at a famous Gangnam nightclub said one VVIP - the elite guests - was "well-known for his crazy appetite for unconscious women".
"He ordered me to bring two totally drunk or unconscious women to him," he told us. Specifically, he said, the client's request was: "Bring me zombies."
He claimed to have witnessed several attempted sexual assaults: "I saw a few people every week that didn't seem like they were drunk, but gone in a different way. You can tell with your eyes the difference between who is drunk on alcohol and who is gone from something else."
Lee - not his real name - worked as an MD and said these women were "just people who came to the club".
I wanted to ensure I understood what he was telling me. So I put the question to him clearly: "Ordinary women going into the club for a nice night out, could face being drugged and raped? Is that what you saw?"
"Yes," came the reply.
After procuring the women, he said, the clients "would usually take them to the hotel above the club or there are a lot of hotels near here, or motels".
We cannot name any of these workers, because they fear reprisals. Likewise a regular club-goer told us that he had been in the VIP room at a Seoul nightclub when a waiter brought in unconscious women.
"I don't know if someone drugged her but I had a woman who was clearly hallucinating and unconscious. I wondered if she was mentally ill, especially since she was drooling and her body was limp. I worried - what if she dies here?"
He denies being involved in drugging or attacking women and said he had challenged the host.
"I told the waiter that she is too drunk, and he said: 'She's not drunk. She won't remember a thing so you can do whatever you want.'
"Sexy, beautiful women are the prey. These men are the hunters. And they pay to get in the game. So you need prey, and the MDs are the ones who release the prey."
Shin Ji-ye from the Green Party addressed the last mass rally on International Women's Day in March and claimed this abuse had taken place over "decades".
"In so many clubs," she said, "we have heard the screaming testimonies of women being raped and assaulted."
But there is anger that it was only when celebrities were arrested and police collusion was suspected that action was taken. There is fear that the voices of female victims have been ignored for too long.
Police have arrested 354 people in the last three months in connection with what has become known as The Burning Sun Scandal. Of them, 87 were arrested for brokering sex, secretly filming sex and rape. In 20 cases women had been drugged.
But campaigners say the total number of female victims may be much higher. Lawyer Cha Mee-kyung says such "hidden crimes" happen but "are not reflected in justice system statistics".
There are also claims that some police officers turned a blind eye to reports about the nightclubs.
President Moon Jae-in has ordered an investigation into alleged police corruption and said there was "evidence suggesting that the prosecutors and police purposely conducted incomplete investigations, and actively prevented the truth from being revealed". The Gangnam station chief has been removed from his position after a special inquiry.
Reporting a rape can be hard for victims. Many women in South Korea are reluctant to come forward. They fear the stigma. They believe they will be judged by an extremely patriarchal society.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-48702763
어제는 미국의 확진환자수가 중국을 넘어, 세계에서 제일 많이 발생했다는 슬프고 무서운 보도가 있었다.
한국도 예외는 아닌것으로 통계가 보여주고 있다. 그러나 다행스럽게도 사망자수는 확진자 수에 비해서 현저히 적게 나타나고 있다는 뉴스다. 이자료를 보면서, 한국은 북미나 유럽에서 처럼 걷잡을수 없이 늘어나는 확진자수를 현저히 줄일수 있었는데, 아마추어급도 안되는 자들이 서투른 초기방역조치 실패로 한때는 중국다음으로 많은 환자가 발생하여, 150개국이 넘는 나라로 부터 왕따를 당했었다. 물론 지금은 전세계가 거의 비슷하게 서로 격리조치를 취하기에 Routine정도로 생각하고 있지만, 처음에 한국에만 각나라들이 이러한 조치를 취할때는, 챙피해서 쥐구멍이라도 찾고 싶은 심정이었음은 누구나 느꼈을 것이다.
지금은 미국에 Test Kits를 보조해줄 정도로 확진자 발견기술에 많은 진전을 보이고 있음은 불행중 다행이다. 전세계가 취하고있는 공공모임을 금하고, 개인간의 간격도 2미터이상을 유지하라는 Mandatary가 대세고, 한국도 그렇게 "긴급행정명령"까지 내려 시행하고 있다는 총리의 발표를 본적있다.
오늘 아침뉴스에, 영국의 Boris Johnson총리가 Coronavirus 양성으로 판명되여 Self-isolating시작했다는 슬픈 뉴스다. 그만큼 전염병은 상대를 공격할때 직급의 높고낮음, 부자와 가난한자, 건강한자와 환자를 구별하지 않고 무차별 공격하고 있다는 무서운 증거를 보여준것으로 이해된다.
한국의 방역대책은 여전히 노란자켓입은 사람들의 명령이 제대로 현장에서 철저히 이행되지않고, 구멍이 숭숭 뚤려 있다는 뉴스보도에 경악을 금치 못한다.
행정명령이 가장 적나라하게 집행되는 곳은 교회라는 뉴스다. 일부 기독교인들은 이에 크게 반발하고 있다. 편파적인 명령집행이라는 것이다. 정부청사에서 공무원들이 식당에 모여 자축파티를 하고, 정부행사로 치러진 천안함폭침모임에서도, 그들이 발표한 2미터 거리는 지켜지지 않았었다. 명령만 내릴줄 알뿐, 실행은 남의 일쯤으로 가볍게 여기는(?), 건방진 자들의 행태의 일면이다.
특히 한심한것은 강남의 Night Club들에서는 젊은 남녀들이, 현란한 조명속에서 구데기처럼 서로엉겨붙어 춤추고 알코홀을 들이마시고, 그속에서 환각제를 복용하지 않았을 것이라는 확신은 전연 없었다. 분명히 그지역을 단속하는 경찰조직이 있었을텐데.... 그들의 눈과 귀에는 보이지 않았었나 보다. 그곳은 특수한(?) 신분의 자녀들이 모여서 광란을 하기에 Coronavirus방역대책중의 하나인, 2미터 간격적용이 불가한 곳이었을까? 이고질적인 사회적 불평등이, 법위에 아직도 군림하고 있는데, G20 국가군에 속해 있다고 자랑스럽게 말할수 있을까?
일년전 6월달에는 똑 같은 강남지역에서 똑같은 현대판 소돔과 고모라의 참상이 있었다.
K-pop의 대명사였던 "Big Bang"의 주전멤버였던, '승리'가 불법으로 그의 비지니스 활성화를 위해 매춘행위를 했고, 또 같은 강남지역에서 독점적으로, 공동대표로 운영하던 나이트 클럽, Burning Sun에 배임혐의로 경찰의 조사를 받았었다. 그의 Band멤버들도 섹스비디오를 은밀하게 나누어 보면서, 여자들을 강간하는 내용의 대화를 자랑스럽게 주고받은 범죄 혐의도 적발 됐었다.
젊은 여성들의 인기를 끌고 있었던 구룹의 유명가수들이 하나씩 하나씩 경찰의 소환을 받아, 마약복용과 강간 혐의를 조사받기위해 경찰서로 가는 와중에도, 둘러싼 여성팬들을 못본채 밀쳐내면서, 의기양양하게 경찰서를 향해 걸어갔었다.
한국사회의 내노라하는 사람들이 주로 거주하고 있는 강남에서, 최근에 봤을때 매우 충격적일수 있는 많은 사진들이 보도된것이다. BBC보도에 따르면, 강남의 휘황찬란한 나이트클럽에서, 힘센 남자들이 강압적으로 여성들에게 마약을 복용케한후 강간하고, 또 아직 미성년 여성들이 성적자극을 주는 폼으로 사진을 찍어 유포하여 돈을 챙겼다는 정황을 들었다는 것이다.
불과 일년이 채 지나기도전에, 더욱히 Coronavirus 방역대책으로 온나라가 벌집쑤신듯 방방 뛰고 있는판에, 노란자켓을 입은 세균총리의 긴급행정명령을 어기고, 구데기처럼 엉겨붙어 광란의 환희속에서 미쳐 날뛰고 있는데도, 공권력은 그곳에는 존재치 않고 있다니.... 이게 대한민국의 현실이다. 이들을 단속처벌하는것보다, 건전한 종교집회를 막는게, 현정부에게는 더 급했었나본데....이게 정상적으로 굴러가는 나라인가?
이해못할 일이 하나 더있다. 한국에는 아직까지 노란자켓입고 명령만 내리든, 대통령을 포함한 고관대작들이 아직까지 Coronavirus에 건재하다는 사실이다. 이게 정말로 진실이기를 바라는 마음 한점의심없이 감사하게 생각한다. 과연 그럴까? 각나라의 수상, 왕족, 장관들이 많이 양성확진자로 판명되여 Self-Isolating하고 있는데... 어제는 노란자켓입고 설쳐대던 한노인이 병원에 입원 했다고 보도가 나왔었는데, 이유는 과로때문이라고 했는데, 과연 과로때문이었을까? 그들중 한명도 Covid-19 확진여부검사를 받았다는 뉴스도 없다. 이를 믿어야 하나? 선거때까지는 그냥 건강한척 해야만 하는 그들이 어느면에서는 측은해 보인다.
http://lifemeansgo.blogspot.com/2020/03/blog-post_25.html
Seungri, a singer in one of the world's most famous boy bands, Big Bang, was questioned by police over allegations he was procuring prostitutes for his business and had embezzled funds at Burning Sun, a nightclub he part-owned in the exclusive Gangnam district of Seoul, South Korea.
Several of his celebrity K-pop friends were also caught sharing sex videos and bragging in a chat room about raping women. One by one, Korean heartthrobs more used to being mobbed by fans found themselves fending off reporters as they made their way to the police station to face questions from drug-taking to rape.
But in recent months an even more shocking picture has emerged of Gangnam, where South Korea's high society live, work and play. The BBC has heard allegations that in its glitzy nightclubs, women have been drugged to order by powerful men and raped, and that underage girls are being sexually exploited for profit.
The BBC has sought the voices of those caught up in Seoul's sex scandal. We have heard from club-goers and club employees as well as victims, including underage girls who say they were recruited to have sex with paying customers. They all say the abuse of women in the clubs is pervasive and often violent.
We have been told that elite clients, known as VIPs - and the richest VVIPs - were prepared to pay tens of thousands of dollars to have women who were enjoying a night out drugged and taken to a nearby hotel room, the abuse routinely captured on camera.
As one club-goer put it to us: "These men are hunters and they pay to get in the game. So you need prey. It's foolish to think you won't get shot in this place."
A warning: this article contains details of alleged sexual assaults which you may find upsetting.
'He kept giving me water'
We were shown a harrowing video which allegedly depicts a sexual assault. The still image in front of me gives me an idea of the horror which will follow.A woman is lying naked on a red sofa with three men staring down at her. I press play, and the men approach her. One laughs as he lifts up a limb and it falls. Her body is limp and she does not respond. The two minute video is too upsetting to describe in detail.
She appears to be sexually assaulted by all three men. Repeatedly.
The video was allegedly shared in a chat room between employees - I cannot verify its contents. But this clip is now part of a police investigation into activities at several clubs in Gangnam.
Gangnam has often been described as the Beverly Hills of Seoul. Flashy and fashion-conscious, it's a symbol of prosperity and status. At night, it's the neon playground of the very rich and those eager for a taste of the celebrity lifestyle.
The cost of a night out appears almost irrelevant. One wealthy, connected club-goer told us he spent up to $17,000 (£13,300) on just one evening. A viral social media clip shows a man spinning on the dance floor, throwing bank notes into the air like confetti. The décor is loud and ostentatious. The dress code is, of course, designer chic and for many of the more prestigious nightclubs, gaining entry requires being on an approved list.
DJs are celebrities in their own right, conducting crowds of dancers crammed around the turntables. Beautiful women serve thousand-dollar bottles of champagne to revellers who appear ready to party until dawn.
Kim - not her real name - used to be a regular on the Gangnam scene. She liked to dance and she had a few favourite DJs. One evening last December she was invited to a nightclub for drinks.
Among the group was an Asian businessman who she claims took an interest in her and began serving her whisky.
"When he was pouring the drink, I couldn't see him," she says. "He had his back against me. So I drank around three to four glasses. Every time I did so, he kept giving me water to drink."
At some point, she claims, she blacked out and woke up in a hotel room with the man looking down on her.
"He forced me to lie down but I didn't want to, so I kept getting up. When I got up, he would grab my neck and force me down on the bed over and over. I thought someone could die like this by having their neck broken.
"I started crying and yelling. Then, he got on top of me and used both of his hands to block my mouth and started pressing down hard. He kept saying 'relax, relax'."
She told us she feared for her life. "I couldn't resist his power and I was in so much pain that I could die, so I just gave up and lay there like a dead body."
Kim says she had been drugged in the club and was raped. Afterwards she threw up, then begged to go home.
"I was grabbing my clothes and other things to leave when he took his phone to take a photo with his face and my face in it. I said what are you doing and 'no, no'. But he grabbed my arm and wouldn't let me go. So I thought it'd be best to just take this photo and leave otherwise I could get into some real harm.
"So he just took the photo and I left."
Kim went to the police the next day. They found no trace of drugs in her blood, but prosecutors tell us that is not unusual. The most common drug used to incapacitate a victim is thought to be GHB, or Gamma-Hydroxybutyrate a strong sedative that is undetectable in the body after a few hours.
"Thankfully I was awake when it happened and I can fully describe what I dealt with," she told us.
But she said she had found other women online who also believe they were drugged and raped after visiting Gangnam clubs, but have no clear memory of what happened.
The businessman was found and questioned but he has strongly protested his innocence. In a statement to the BBC he said she did not black out. He said he did not rape, sexually assault or physically assault her at all and that CCTV footage shows her willingly leaving the club with him and walking to the hotel.
The investigation continues.
'Bring me zombies'
Over the past few months, police have questioned nearly 4,000 people, focusing on allegations of drugs, prostitution, sexual assault and illicit filming linked to the club scene which have outraged the public. Those questioned include several male celebrities from the K-pop scene.Seungri - real name Lee Seung-hyun - has resigned from show business, denying that he ever procured prostitutes but saying the scandal "has become so big".
The continuing controversy has led to the resignation of the head of a major South Korean entertainment company - Yang Hyun-suk, chief producer of YG Entertainment, which was behind the viral hit Gangnam Style. He denied wrongdoing, but said he could no longer withstand "humiliating" allegations of his involvement in a drug scandal and was stepping down to fight them.
The allegations have encouraged others to speak out. People we spoke to who were an integral part of Seoul's club scene have described a culture of exploitation, where the procuring of women for sexual gratification had become almost routine for some wealthy clients.
The clubs employ hosts known as "MDs" to cater to guests' desires. It's a murky role - one female MD told us it entailed building relationships with "pretty girls" to bring them into the clubs. They would entice them with the offer of free entry and free drinks.
MDs would have a number of beautiful women on their call lists. Many would encourage them to drink with their clients and the MDs would then take around 13-15% of the drinks sale. With the right clients, some of them would make around $20,000 a month. As one MD put it: "To secure high-paying clients, MDs need to be able to supply hot girls."
We have heard repeated allegations that at some point and at the request of clients, the women's drinks were being spiked, rendering them unconscious. However one senior club executive told the BBC that the suggestion GHB had been sold or distributed to customers and sexual assault encouraged was ridiculous.
A former host at a famous Gangnam nightclub said one VVIP - the elite guests - was "well-known for his crazy appetite for unconscious women".
"He ordered me to bring two totally drunk or unconscious women to him," he told us. Specifically, he said, the client's request was: "Bring me zombies."
He claimed to have witnessed several attempted sexual assaults: "I saw a few people every week that didn't seem like they were drunk, but gone in a different way. You can tell with your eyes the difference between who is drunk on alcohol and who is gone from something else."
Lee - not his real name - worked as an MD and said these women were "just people who came to the club".
I wanted to ensure I understood what he was telling me. So I put the question to him clearly: "Ordinary women going into the club for a nice night out, could face being drugged and raped? Is that what you saw?"
"Yes," came the reply.
After procuring the women, he said, the clients "would usually take them to the hotel above the club or there are a lot of hotels near here, or motels".
We cannot name any of these workers, because they fear reprisals. Likewise a regular club-goer told us that he had been in the VIP room at a Seoul nightclub when a waiter brought in unconscious women.
"I don't know if someone drugged her but I had a woman who was clearly hallucinating and unconscious. I wondered if she was mentally ill, especially since she was drooling and her body was limp. I worried - what if she dies here?"
He denies being involved in drugging or attacking women and said he had challenged the host.
"I told the waiter that she is too drunk, and he said: 'She's not drunk. She won't remember a thing so you can do whatever you want.'
"Sexy, beautiful women are the prey. These men are the hunters. And they pay to get in the game. So you need prey, and the MDs are the ones who release the prey."
A pastor undercover
Joo Won-gyu is a church pastor who has become one of the most vocal campaigners against sexual violence in Gangnam.
Shin Ji-ye from the Green Party addressed the last mass rally on International Women's Day in March and claimed this abuse had taken place over "decades".
"In so many clubs," she said, "we have heard the screaming testimonies of women being raped and assaulted."
But there is anger that it was only when celebrities were arrested and police collusion was suspected that action was taken. There is fear that the voices of female victims have been ignored for too long.
Police have arrested 354 people in the last three months in connection with what has become known as The Burning Sun Scandal. Of them, 87 were arrested for brokering sex, secretly filming sex and rape. In 20 cases women had been drugged.
But campaigners say the total number of female victims may be much higher. Lawyer Cha Mee-kyung says such "hidden crimes" happen but "are not reflected in justice system statistics".
There are also claims that some police officers turned a blind eye to reports about the nightclubs.
President Moon Jae-in has ordered an investigation into alleged police corruption and said there was "evidence suggesting that the prosecutors and police purposely conducted incomplete investigations, and actively prevented the truth from being revealed". The Gangnam station chief has been removed from his position after a special inquiry.
Reporting a rape can be hard for victims. Many women in South Korea are reluctant to come forward. They fear the stigma. They believe they will be judged by an extremely patriarchal society.
https://www.bbc.com/news/world-asia-48702763
No comments:
Post a Comment