Lee Seunghyun, otherwise known by his stage-name Seungri, was believed to be shy, funny, and mature among fans. A budding entrepreneur and member of the famous K-pop band Big Bang, he had everything he wanted: fame, fortune, love, and happiness. His lavish lifestyle and charismatic charm earned him the nickname “the Great Gatsby of Korea.”
That same man is now being investigated for offering prostitutes to businessmen in Seoul nightclubs. Lee, as well as other stars in the entertainment business –– most notably, singer-songwriter Jung Joon Young –– are also suspected of having been in a chat-room where videos of sexual activity filmed without consent were shared.
Before this scandal unfolded, even amidst the #MeToo movement and the acquittal of many influential male figures in South Korean society, many thought that the lucrative $5 billion K-pop industry would be immune to scandals such as this one. They thought that K-Pop’s strength and size would protect it — according to a January report from UPI, BTS, one of the industry’s many groups, is worth around $3.5 billion to the economy every year alone. Many see the outcry over this scandal as a turning point for South Korea, a sign of the vulnerability of a patriarchal society — a sign that rape culture and toxic masculinity is finally being exposed. After all, doesn’t this scandal show that male celebrities with power are no longer getting away with heinous crimes and gender-based violence?
Unfortunately, this is not the case. The K-pop sexual exploitation scandal is only one of many instances of sexual violence in South Korea. Just two days ago, it was discovered that around 1,600 people had been secretly filmed in motel rooms, with the footage live-streamed online for subscribers to access. The website had about 4,000 users that paid $44.95 per month to watch people in their most vulnerable state. Authorities in South Korea have received more than 6,500 reports of hidden camera crimes since 2017, and the Korea Women’s Development Institute reported that nearly 50% of these spycam victims contemplate suicide. Clearly, voyeurism is still a severe epidemic in South Korea.
South Korea still has a lot of work to do in terms of gender equality. The country still has the largest gender wage gap in the Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD) and close to the lowest number of women in politics. A misogynist culture still thrives within the nation — a culture that tells boys that women are just another object for them to “use” and “conquer,” that women are just playthings. It is no surprise that, in 2015, three South Korean comedians dared to suggest on a podcast the idea that women are incompetent and need to be virgins. It is precisely this kind of culture that nurtured the conditions for the sexual exploitation scandals to occur.
The recent K-Pop scandals further expose an entire nation’s aged patriarchal beliefs. While it is very likely that this K-Pop scandal will soon die down, we must neither forgive nor forget. We can not forget that ten years ago, South Korean actress Jang Ja-yeon killed herself because she was allegedly forced to have sex with more than thirty men. We must not forget that in 2004, 41 high school students gang raped middle school girls over the course of 11 months, and that the policemen mistreated the victims.
Victims’ cries and pleads for help must not be left unheard any longer.
