Suicide in South Korea (tag archive)

South Koreans are shaken by another suicide scandal following the death of actress Jang Ja-yun (pic)… and this latest case might be darker than ever.

Koreans were shocked by numerous celebrity suicide incidents in 2008, including the death of Ahn Jae-hwan, Choi Jin-shil and a few lesser known artists.

The unfortunate trend seems to continue in 2009 with the death of Jang on March 7th, while trot singer Lee Chang-young was also found dead in an apparent suicide on March 12th.

Jang was initially ruled to have ended her life because of stress, but the situation took a sudden twist following revelation from Jang’s ex-manager, Yoo, that her suicide was a conspiracy.

Yoo said that Jang had requested him (on Feb 28) to hand over a seven-page document to her family should anything happen to her; and the document hinted that Jang (and some other female artists) might have been physically and sexually abused by prominent figures in the entertainment industry.

The revelation has caused uproar in the Korean public, and Yoo himself is said to have attempted suicide on March 14th because of the immense pressure. The police is now investigating into the claims, hope that justice could be served. Rest in peace.

[Update] Police are seriously investigating the scandal. CEO of Jang’s former agency has been arrested.

Gay model Kim Ji-hoo (pic) became the latest Korean entertainer to commit suicide.

Choi was found dead on October 6; he was the second entertainer who committed suicide following the death of actress Choi Jin-shil last week. Earlier on October 3, transsexual entertainer Jang Chae-won committed suicide ala Choi Jin-shil’s method.

Initial investigations suggested that Kim committed suicide because of career block and online harassment of his sexual preference, while Jang chosen the path because of a broken relationship.

I’ve read somewhere that there was at least another two copycat suicide since Choi’s death… and the Korean authorities are fearing that the suicide chain would create a domino effect in the Korean society, which is already fragile with their high suicide rate.

The Korean government is drafting a law against malicious rumours and slandering via the internet, as the online harassment is seen as one of the major causes of entertainers’ suicide.

I doubt the law could work though; and the effect would be minimal even if it works, because the problem is not the internet itself… it’s a cultural and society problem.

Internet is just a medium that pulled the final trigger; there are still other mediums for spreading rumours and slanders… what the Koreans need are to find the root cause and solve the problems once and for all.