Recent data shows that an increasing number of male victims of sexual harassment are requesting assistance from the ‘Sunflower Center’, a network of facilities that provide help and support for victims of sexual harassment, domestic violence and prostitution. (Image : Pixabay)
SEOUL, March 2 (Korea Bizwire) – Recent data shows that an increasing number of male victims of sexual harassment are requesting assistance from the ‘Sunflower Center’, a network of facilities that provide help and support for victims of sexual harassment, domestic violence and prostitution.
The Ministry of Gender Equality and Family announced that 1,019 male victims had asked for help at the 36 Sunflower Centers nationwide.
A total of 433 boys under the age of 13, 466 teenagers between the ages of 13 and 19, and 120 adult males over 19 sought help at the centers.
The percentage of adult male victims was low among the total number of victims, but the increase rate was extremely high, reaching 66.7 percent compared to the number of victims tallied the previous year.
Ministry officials commented that the increase in the number of male victims resulted from the object of sexual harassment crimes changing from ‘women’ to ‘person’, and a significant change in the public perception of victims.
It must be noted, however, that 95 percent of all sexual harassment victims (20,218 individuals) were still female.
The ministry added that 71.6 percent of the victim total suffered from sexual harassment, 19.8 percent were victims of domestic violence, and 0.7 percent prostitution.
The number of sexual harassment victims decreased 2.3 percent compared to the previous year, but domestic violence victims increased 1.2 percent. As the Sunflower Centers are located inside hospitals, the number of total users decreased due to the outbreak of MERS. However, due to cooperation with the police, more domestic violence victims were able to get help at the Sunflower Centers.
Ministry authorities plan to increase the number of Sunflower Centers to support more victims. They also plan to strengthen cooperation with other organizations to help children who fall victim to domestic violence.
By Lina Jang (linajang@koreabizwire.com)
