{"id":2201893,"date":"2023-08-04T17:21:40","date_gmt":"2023-08-04T08:21:40","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/?p=2201893"},"modified":"2023-11-20T17:37:59","modified_gmt":"2023-11-20T08:37:59","slug":"terror-in-south-korea-knife-attacks-spur-death-penalty-discussions","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/koreapro.org\/2023\/08\/terror-in-south-korea-knife-attacks-spur-death-penalty-discussions\/","title":{"rendered":"Terror in South Korea: Knife attacks spur death penalty discussions"},"content":{"rendered":"
At least 14 people were injured in Seongnam, a city in South Korea\u2019s Gyeonggi Province, on Thursday evening after a 23-year-old delivery worker, identified only by his surname Choi, drove his car into pedestrians and then embarked on a <\/span>stabbing rampage<\/span><\/a> in a nearby shopping mall.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n The police detained the suspect, and authorities later confirmed that Choi acted alone, with his motives remaining unclear.<\/span><\/p>\n Among the nine individuals Choi stabbed, eight remain in critical condition. Two of the five pedestrians he struck with his car sustained severe injuries. Two others potentially face <\/span>life-threatening brain<\/span><\/a> damage. The victims\u2019 ages ranged widely, from their 20s to their 70s.<\/span><\/p>\n This incident marks the latest in a series of knife attacks in South Korea in recent weeks. On July 21, a 33-year-old man, identified by his surname Cho, was detained after <\/span>fatally stabbing<\/span><\/a> a stranger in his 20s multiple times near Seoul\u2019s Sillim Station. He also wounded three other men in a nearby alleyway.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n In response to Thursday\u2019s knife attack, President Yoon Suk-yeol <\/span>denounced<\/span><\/a> the violence as \u201can act of terrorism against innocent citizens\u201d and directed law enforcement agencies to mobilize \u201call possible police forces\u201d as a precaution against potential copycat crimes.<\/span><\/p>\n The rising frequency of random acts of violence has reignited a discussion in South Korea, with the public and lawmakers from various political affiliations <\/span>calling for stricter punishments<\/span><\/a>, including reinstating the death penalty.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n These incidents and the broader discussion of societal violence will likely influence the political discourse and legislative agenda in the coming months.<\/span><\/p>\n STILL ON THE BOOKS<\/b><\/p>\n Article 66 of South Korea\u2019s <\/span>Criminal Act<\/span><\/a> stipulates that the death penalty shall be carried out by hanging. Despite retaining capital punishment in its legal framework, South Korea has not enforced this penalty since <\/span>1997<\/span><\/a>, effectively making it a de facto abolitionist nation. That year, 23 people \u2014 18 men and five women \u2014 were executed.<\/span><\/p>\n Though the death penalty has remained dormant for over a quarter-century, the South Korean government signaled a departure from this trend in June by <\/span>approving a bill<\/span><\/a> to remove the sunset clause for the death penalty. This move aims to prevent inmates on death row from avoiding execution after spending 30 years in prison. Currently, there are 59 inmates on death row in the country.<\/span><\/p>\n South Korean <\/span>public opinion<\/span><\/a> is firmly aligned with maintaining the death penalty, especially in the wake of heinous and violent crimes. From 1994 to 2022, survey data reveals that support for capital punishment has consistently outpaced calls for its abolition. The latest survey shows that 69% of respondents believe the death penalty should be upheld, while only 23% feel it should be abolished.<\/span><\/p>\n The complex interplay between human rights considerations and the perceived necessity for the most severe form of punishment was recently illustrated in a <\/span>dialogue<\/span><\/a> between Cho Jeong-hoon, the leader of the minor opposition Transition Korea Party, and Minister of Justice Han Dong-hoon during a plenary session of the National Assembly\u2019s Legislation and Judiciary Committee.<\/span><\/p>\n