Ex-diplomat sentenced to prison for sexual assault

By You Soo-sun

A former South Korean diplomat received a three-year prison sentence for sexually assaulting minors in Chile, where he was stationed. Gwangju District Court, Friday, gave what many see as an unprecedented verdict for government officials here. Critics view this as a warning to diplomats, as numerous sexual offenses by diplomats have been revealed over the past few years.

The ruling against the 51-year-old diplomat, identified by his surname Park, received much attention as his molesting of a minor was caught on video by a local television program in Chile. In September 2016, he was indicted on charges of hugging and molesting a 12-year-old female student and for sending an obscene text message in October the same year. He was indicted without restraint in May 2017.

According to a local news agency here, the court decision was affected by the fact he assaulted the victim repeatedly.and also failed to settle with the victim. The court also said Park “disgraced Korean government officials and damaged the country’s reputation.”

The local news agency also reported that while the prosecution had sought a four-year sentence for Park, the court eased the sentence as “the sexual assault was not severe” and he “did not have a prior criminal record.”

Some believe the verdict was unusually harsh despite his former post as a government official. Moreover, Kim consistently acknowledged his responsibility for his misdeed throughout the trial. Many take this to be a sign of the court sending a warning to embassy officials and diplomats, who have been embroiled in many such cases in recent years.

Most recently, a sexual assault case was revealed in Ethiopia. Its diplomat, Kim Moon-hwan, was accused of assaulting a female employee working at the Korean embassy there. He now faces criminal prosecution.