By Kang Shin-who
Staff reporter
Two alcohol-related deaths of college students are raising fresh concerns over the rather old but die-hard binge drinking culture on university campuses.
A student fell to his death off a building after drinking alcohol during a festival at Kookmin University campus in Seoul, Tuesday night, according to the police Friday.
The alcohol-related death came just weeks after a female student in Chungju City died after being forced to drink alcohol by her seniors during an initiation.
Sungbuk Police Station told The Korea Times Friday that the 21-year-old Kookmin student was found unconscious at around 9 p.m. at the main gate of the school and was hurried to the hospital but was declared dead upon arrival. An autopsy will be performed.
"It will take more than two weeks to determine the exact cause of the death from the National Institute of Scientific Investigation," said a police officer. "We are still investigating the incident by questioning friends of the student."
Police are assuming that the student lost his footing after drinking and fell from a school building.
The university is now under fire as one of graduates wrote a post on his twitter criticizing the school for trying to cover up the incident. The university officials were not immediately available for comment.
Three weeks ago, the female student died after allegedly being forced to drink. The student, who attended Chungju National University in North Chungcheong Province, was coerced by her seniors although she wept and refused to do so.
Senior students of the victim knelt down in front of the hospital where the funeral service for the girl was being held and begged forgiveness, while netizens severely criticized the university and its students.
The government and universities have introduced education programs to prevent alcohol-related incidents, but freshmen-welcoming events and seasonal university festivals are expected to continue to create fatalities unless the booze culture changes completely.