In December 2008, an eight-year-old girl's life changed irrevocably inside a church bathroom. Na-young, a fictitious name for the eight-year-old victim, was on her way to school when Cho Doo-soon, a 57-year-old ex-convict, dragged her into the church bathroom and raped her.

After being brutally beaten and raped, Na-young was left behind on the cold bathroom floor with permanent damage to her internal organs. When her parents found her, it was too late. The damage to Nayoung physically and mentally was already permanent. Due to the damage to her organs, she had to carry a colostomy bag for bowel movements, and she had to undergo multiple surgeries for an artificial anus. No matter what she does, she will never be able to forget the day in December 2008.

However, even with the horrible crime, the ex-convict, convicted for 18 past crimes, was sentenced to only 12 years in prison after the girl testified that she smelled alcohol on him during his actions.

Cho Doo-soon was released from prison a couple of days ago on December 12, 2020, to return to Ansan, his hometown. The suffering began instantly, not for Cho Doo-soon the convict, but for the innocent neighbors living in Ansan.

On the day of his release, tens and hundreds of social media influencers such as YouTubers and bloggers visited Cho’s neighbor yelling death threats and other profanities. Due to this action, policemen were stationed in front of Cho's house to regulate people from invading Cho’s home and harming him and his family (his wife). But because of the spread of media attention, more and more people are coming in front of Cho’s house, many times waiting for hours, disrupting the people living in Ansan. Due to the increasing number of people visiting and posting videos of the scene on social media, innocent people living in Ansan are exposed to the public. Their faces and residence locations are exposed to the public without their consent.

A voice pointed out to the crowd how they are suddenly interested and were not 12 years ago when the victim and her family sincerely needed help. One truly needs to question the sincerity of these protestors and whether the actions they are taking are truly for Na-young and her family or simply because of the profit and attention brought to themselves.

김윤서 강남포스트 학생기자  webmaster@ignnews.kr

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