Police probe harasser of Yoo's daughter
By Kim Bo-eun
Police in Seoul are questioning a man who sexually harassed the daughter of Yoo Seong-min, the presidential candidate of the minor conservative Bareun Party.
According to the Mapo Police Station, the man surnamed Lee, 30, put his arm around Yoo Dam and stuck out his tongue toward her face as he posed for a picture with her, at her father’s election campaign near Hongik University in Seoul, Thursday.
He left the scene as soon as the photo was taken and posted it on Ilbe, an ultra-conservative online community.
The Bareun Party requested a police investigation on Friday morning, and the police apprehended the suspect immediately after using a location tracking system.
“Because the incident appears to have been planned with foul intentions, investigators must look into not only the individual, but also the details behind the incident,” the party said in a statement. “There is no change in the party’s stance in that we will not accept sexual harassment against vulnerable members of society, including women.”
Yoo Dam, a university student, 23, had recently joined her father’s campaign, but has stopped taking part in it since the incident. She submitted a complaint to the Mapo Police Station the same day.
Regarding the incident, candidate Yoo said Friday: “Half of the population is female, so this is not only an issue my daughter faces. Such behavior toward women must be strictly punished.”
The main opposition Democratic Party of Korea issued a statement claiming “The incident shows the reality that the safety of women is threatened regardless of time and place.”
The Justice Party also reacted: “Korea needs to be a country in which women are respected and are able to live with dignity.”