‘Congratulations!’ adopted by a smack and humiliation

 
Final month, a Korean Navy sergeant was lynched by a bunch of seven fellow servicemen for greater than two hours at a unit in Donghae, Gangwon Province. The sufferer suffered extreme ligament tears and bruises throughout his physique, which required 4 weeks of medical therapy.

A couple of month earlier than that, 4 highschool ladies in Cheonho-dong, southeastern Seoul have been caught by police for assaulting considered one of their classmates at a building web site. 

The 2 circumstances could appear unrelated, however have one factor in widespread; the assailants declare that they have been simply “celebrating” the victims on their massive days. 

Within the Navy case, the sergeant was to be discharged from the army the subsequent day. The Seoul incident happened on the sufferer’s birthday.

Hit for pleasure 

Nasty celebrations that includes violence and humiliation are nothing new in South Korea, neither is it distinctive to the nation. 

On YouTube, there may be an abundance of “saengil-bbang” movies displaying Koreans – largely youngsters — kicking their mates’ butts whereas wishing them a cheerful birthday. “Saengil” means birthday in Korean, and the phrase “bbang” is used as a suffix to point violent celebrations. 

Within the early 2000s, saengil-bbang was extra violent. They have been additionally extra humiliating for the recipients, going down in public locations and — in some excessive circumstances — that includes nudity. 

A 2007 report by public broadcaster KBS presents a glimpse into the apply at the moment, with footage and pictures. In a single clip, a bunch of individuals stand in a circle, kicking and stamping on an individual on the heart. One other reveals a woman, tied to a avenue pole or a tree with duct tape, getting flour dumped on her. 

A 2010 article printed by native newspaper the JoongAng Ilbo quotes then-President Lee Myung-bak as calling “ugly” commencement after-parties of youngsters a “illness of our society.” The comment got here after a sequence of reviews about a number of teenage boys tearing off one another’s uniforms at commencement ceremonies, as a part of “joleop-bbang.” “Joleop” is the Korean phrase for commencement. 

Whereas the birthday and commencement ceremonies have been largely a teenage factor, younger male army conscripts had their very own tradition of “jeonyeok-bbang,” or violent discharge ceremony. 

Ham Younger-wok, a 30-year-old workplace employee in Seoul who accomplished his obligatory army service in 2015, stated the apply normally occurred throughout a farewell celebration for troopers who’re to be discharged. 

“One among my army comrades smashed my face right into a cake. They (fellow comrades) stood in a line to kick my butt, one after one other. They didn’t hit me too arduous as a result of it was just a bit prank. I believe this customary apply could possibly be harmful when accompanied by alcohol,” Ham stated.

Little is thought about when and the way such practices began in Korea. Nevertheless it seems to have been in apply within the Nineties. 

Koo Jung-woo, a sociology professor at Keimyung College, famous a tradition of violence prevalent within the army could have led troopers to precise their feelings, good or dangerous, in bodily methods.

“Many Korean army items have used corporal punishment, even for small errors. Troopers’ repeated publicity to violence has led to violent methods of communication,” he stated. 

“Though the army wants a sure stage of hierarchy and strict self-discipline, it doesn’t imply that violence might be missed,” the professor added.
Outdoors the barracks, there’s a tendency to view violence as a mere prank, identified Kim Sung-chul, a professor within the media division at Korea College. 

“There are a lot of TV reveals the place solid members hit one another to entertain viewers. It’s also fairly widespread to see solid members obtain penalties like a bucket of water being poured on their heads or a finger flick on their foreheads,” he stated.

This type of media illustration might give viewers the fallacious thought about violence and its use as a prank. 

The professor additionally famous that violent celebrations could possibly be related to, or result in, bullying. 

By Choi Jae-hee (cjh@heraldcorp.com)