South Korean court recognizes misogyny as hate crime

Photo: Ed Jones Agence France-Presse Although South Korea is a leading technology power and a major exporter of pop culture, it remains a conservative society with a poor record on women's rights.

Claire Lee – Agence France-Presse in Seoul

Posted at 1:52 p.m.

• Asia

A South Korean court has recognized misogyny as a motive for a hate crime, its spokesman told AFP on Thursday, a decision welcomed by women's rights activists.

The verdict follows a complaint from a convenience store employee who was assaulted by a man shouting “feminists deserve to be beaten” because she had short hair.

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The victim lost hearing in her left ear and has been unemployed since then, according to activists supporting her.

The Changwon District Court on Tuesday sentenced the attacker to three years in prison, adding a clause explicitly stating that the crime was motivated by misogyny. The verdict cannot be appealed, a court spokesman told AFP.

The attacker, in his 20s, committed a crime “based on baseless hatred and prejudice against women, which constitutes a motive for the offence,” the court ruled.

The victim’s lawyer welcomed the decision, saying it paved the way for a safer country for women.

“So far, I have not personally seen any case where a court has explicitly identified misogyny as a motive for a crime,” Lee Gyeong-ha, the victim’s lawyer, told AFP.

“Many attackers claim not to hate women, but feminists. The ruling is significant because it makes clear that saying things like “feminists deserve to be beaten” is also rooted in misogyny, the lawyer said.

Although South Korea is a leading tech power and a major exporter of pop culture, it remains a conservative society with a poor record on women’s rights.

During the 2021 Tokyo Games, three-time Olympic champion An San was bullied online and offline because she had short hair, which signified her feminist status.

Some critics went so far as to demand that she return her medals and apologize.

Women's activists in South Gyeongsang Province, where the crime took place, called the ruling “historic.”

“Misogynistic crimes that have not been adequately punished by the courts have reinforced gender stereotypes and hampered gender equality,” Lee Gyeong-ork of the Gyeongnam Women's Association told AFP.

But the court's verdict “established a framework to legally punish misogynistic criminals,” she added.