The number of cases of angry elderly parents using violence against their children is on a quick rise. The majority come from families with middle-aged children who are dependent on their parents. (image: Flickr/ Yumi Kimura)
SEOUL, Oct. 21 (Korea Bizwire) – Blood is thicker than water. The relationship between parents and children is not to be broken. But these days, this unity seems too close for comfort. The number of cases of parents resorting to violent behavior directed to their middle-aged children is increasing drastically.
Incheon’s Jungbu Police Department arrested a 79-year-old man for killing his 46-year-old son on October 20. The man allegedly stabbed his son multiple times to death in the afternoon of Oct. 19. The dispute started from a quarrel caused by the son meddling in a conversation the father was having with his wife.
On the same day, Chungbuk’s Danyang Police Department booked a 79-year-old man for slashing his son with a knife for beating his mother. The 51-year-old son was also booked for violence. The father ended up stabbing his son once, but the injury was not life-threatening.
The number of cases of angry elderly parents using violence against their children is on a quick rise. The majority come from families with middle-aged children who are dependent on their parents. This puts responsibility on the parents to take care of them even after they retire, making the parents feel stressed out about the situation. When tempers flare, elderly parents sometimes resort to violence, sometimes going as far as killing their children.
However, there are many more cases of children using violence against their parents. In a report about violence towards the elderly compiled by the Ministry of Health and Welfare, the percentage of violence related to the elderly increased 12.6 percent to 1,905 cases. Cases of elderly abuse also increased by 8.1 percent to 3,818 cases. Among the assailants, 36.1 percent were sons, and 69.6% were other family members. According to statistics provided by National Police Agency, there were 94,700 cases of children killing or acting violent towards their parents from 2005 to 2015, and over half these are estimated to come from families with elderly parents.
The conflict between elderly parents and their children seems very serious these days. The major factor behind the rising incidence of crime comes from parents and children having to live together because of economic issues.
“Crime between elderly parents and middle-aged children is often deeply rooted, going back as long as childhood. They don’t just kill each other just because they had a couple of drinks,” said Lee Mi-jin from the Department of Social Welfare at Konkuk University. A professor of Police Studies at the same university said, “Horrific crime can occur with just a small comment in a group of individuals with deep-rooted conflict. It’s like throwing gasoline onto a fire.”
By Lina Jang (linajang@koreabizwire.com)
