<W commentary> Slandering of Tokyo Olympics "Triple Medallist" An San in South Korea = Dissatisfaction with women's special treatment such as "forced conscription" in the background
<W commentary> Slandering of Tokyo Olympics "Triple Medallist" An San in South Korea = Dissatisfaction with women's special treatment such as "forced conscription" in the background
<W commentary> Slandering of Tokyo Olympics "Triple Medallist" An San in South Korea = Dissatisfaction with women's special treatment such as "forced conscription" in the background
South Korea’s An San (20), who achieved three crowns at the Tokyo Olympics archery, has been slandered on the Korean net for being a “feminist” aiming for gender equality.

In recent years, there has been a growing aversion to feminism among young men in South Korea. The brunt of this is aimed at female medallists who have achieved great achievements, highlighting the distorted side of Korean society.

At this tournament, An won gold medals in mixed group, women's groups, and individual archery, becoming Korea's first "Triple Medallist at the Olympics."

However, after the end of the group event, there were growing criticisms on the Korean internet that An's short hairstyle was "a proof of feminism." There is a prejudice that short-haired women are feminists in South Korea. In addition, there were voices pointing out that An used a secret word that symbolized misandry on SNS in the past, and there were a series of posts of slander, such as "Return the medal and apologize."

In recent years, there have been voices in South Korea, especially from young men, calling for reverse discrimination against men. In particular, men in their twenties complained that "women are given preferential treatment over men" and "men are at a disadvantage compared to women to whom the conscription system is not applied." In May of this year, a petition was raised in the national petition accepted by Cheongwadae, saying, "Please include women in the draft" and more than 290,000 people signed.

For a long time, Korean men have endured a period of "forced conscription" that is pretty much unpaid, but there was also the convenience of having the military service period of two to three years recognized as a "career period" at work. But even now, with the "unconstitutional referee" ruling filed by feminist groups, it's gone.

President Moon Jae-in, who professes to be a feminist president, has been advocating "gender equality in South Korea" since he was a candidate for the presidential election, pledged to eliminate discrimination in women's employment and eradicate gender violence winning the election.

In South Korea, there is a ministry called "Women's Family Department" (Korean "Department" is equivalent to Japan's "Ministry"), which is responsible for planning and generalizing women's policies and improving the status of women. The organization and budget of the department has been significantly strengthened and reorganized into ministries and agencies that invest more than 1 trillion won a year.

Young South Korean men are complaining that women are being given preferential treatment from the Moon administration, which is enthusiastic about women's policies.

There are also calls for the abolition of the Ministry of Gender Equality, and according to the results of a joint survey released by four South Korean opinion poll companies on July 15th, 48% of the respondents "agree" to abolish the department. 41% say "No". 61% of men said they agree, more than 35% of women. By age group, the percentage of those in their 20s and 30s who answered "agree" was the highest at 59%.

It has been reported that An has been slandered not only in South Korea but also overseas. Reuters reported on July 29th (local time) that "Korean archery short-cut hair stimulated anti-feminists" and "online abuse."

On the other hand, celebrities are beginning to support An. Actress Ku Hye sun posted a photo of herself on social media, saying, "I hope the feminist meaning doesn't become a distorted symbol" and "we are all free."

In addition, the Ministry of Gender Equality announced on the 30th that there should be no misogynistic expressions or acts that violate human rights under any circumstances.

Although Korean men complain about "women's preferential treatment" South Korea ranks 102nd out of 156 countries and regions in the latest "Gender Gap Index" ranking that quantifies the level of gender equality by the World Economic Forum.

The ratio of women in parliament and senior officials / managers is 15.7%, ranking 134th, indicating that the society is still male-dominated in the world.
2021/08/04 21:23 KST