In 2022, 71% of perpetrators of sexual violence in churches done by leadership positions = Korea

In South Korea, many of the perpetrators of sexual violence incidents at churches have been found to be pastors or people in leadership positions.

The Christian Anti-Sexual Violence Center announced on February 16th that this was the result of an investigation into the perpetrators of church sexual violence incidents last year.

Between January and December in 2022, the center analyzed 38 cases of perpetrators of sexual violence in churches, including churches, missionary organizations, schools within the Christian cultural sphere, and private organizations.

As a result, 12 of the 38 perpetrators were senior pastors, 9 assistant pastors, and 6 secretaries/leaders/teachers. It was confirmed that there were 8 believers, and 3 whose positions in the church had not been confirmed. All but 3 of the perpetrators were found to have known the victims.

Among them, sexual assault was the most common with 15, followed by sexual harassment with 8 and sexual harassment with 7.

Of the 47 cases, including the 9 that the Center had already taken up and the 38 that it received in 2022, 16 cases resulted in criminal charges.

Of the 16 cases, 11 have been convicted and 3 are pending trial. There was 1 non-prosecution and one suspension of prosecution. The center added that various sentences were handed down in the conviction case, ranging from a fine of 8 million won (about US$6,500) to seven years in prison.