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| An Hee-jung, former governor of South Chungcheong Province, enters the Seoul Western District Court for a hearing on rape charges filed by his former secretary, Friday, as women's rights activists chant "Send the offender to jail, and victim back to her life" behind him. / Yonhap |
By Lee Suh-yoon
About 100 women came to the Seoul Western District Court, Friday, when a hearing was scheduled for one of the nation's most infamous #MeToo allegations against former South Chungcheong Province Governor An Hee-jung.
They showed up in droves to show their support for the victim, An's former secretary Kim Ji-eun, who earlier in March accused him of raping her four times between June 2017 and February 2018.
Courtroom attendance has become a new form of #MeToo and #WithYou activism here.
The women came to attend the trial as a show of solidarity with the victim, according to Kim Da-seul, an organizer of the event and a member of the Korea Women's Hot Line, a rights group that helps victims of sexual violence.
Since only 40 could enter the courtroom, many waited outside. An official at the court confirmed 60 people signed up to be on the waiting list for any vacancies created during the court proceedings.
The joint court attendances are organized online, through social media posts notifying potential participants of the time and place of ongoing #MeToo-related trials. Like in most web-organized events, most participants come as individuals.
"This is my first time. I heard about this solidarity courtroom attendance through Instagram," said Kim, a 22-year-old university student attending An's trial. "I'm here because I believe perpetrators should be sent to jail, and the victims should be able to return to their normal lives."
The participants said they grieved for the victim's situation – sometimes on a personal level.
"I was a victim of sexual harassment at work, and dating violence from my partner. So I spent most of my 20s at the police stations," said Lee, 32, who came to court to support Kim Ji-eun. "I know what it feels like to be labeled as some kind of seductress rather than a victim, as the media is currently doing in their portrayal of her."
Direct attendance in the courtroom can also function as a form of citizen monitoring of #MeToo-related media reports, she said.
"I think one of the reasons so many women showed up today is because of their frustration with one-sided media reports that take the perpetrator's side," Lee said. "When you witness the actual trial with your own eyes and ears, you can really see how some of these articles intentionally leave out important details to create a misleading story."
Son Kyung-Yi, 49, a gender education specialist who also attended the trial, said court attendance can provide meaningful support for victims.
"In my years of experience helping sexual violence victims, there was always greater attendance from the perpetrator's side at trial, which pressures both the victim and the presiding judge," Son said. "So just being there to psychologically support the victim and directly witness court proceedings can really help the victim."
An has denied the rape allegations, saying the sexual relationship took place with the former secretary's consent.
In response, Kim Ji-eun tearfully asserted in court that she never showed any signs of attraction for An.
"The defendant's side labeled me with terms like secretary wife, trying to make the incident look like some sort of affair, but I have never felt any romantic attraction to the defendant," Kim said.
The prosecution sought a four-year jail term for An. The final verdict will come out on August 14.
