[2018 Local elections] Vandalism of feminist Seoul mayor candidate’s poster continues

Since official local elections campaign kicked off on May 31, Seoul mayoral candidate Shin Ji-ye of the minor Green Party Korea saw dozens of her campaign posters damaged and deliberately taken down. Shin denounced the vandalism as misogynistic. Her campaign posters carry the word “feminist.”

As of Friday, 27 posters and two banners for Shin had been found damaged according to her camp. Some of Shin’s posters, which have a photograph of her face and the phrase “Feminist Seoul Mayor” in Korean on top, had holes punched through them and been scribbled on, while others were torn down. 

Shin, 27, said the vandalism was a “misogynic crime against a female politician.”

“The series of vandalism cases against my posters are clearly misogynic crimes against me, a female feminist politician in her 20s,” she said in a press meeting in front of Suseo Police Station in Seoul on Wednesday. “Police should acknowledge the cases as crimes violating the election law and also misogynic terrorism against a feminist politician.”

Adding that many other women also feel threatened by seeing a feminist candidate attacked, she said votes cast for her will be recorded as “actions against the widespread misogyny” of society.

Election law bans anyone from intervening in the installation of campaign posters and banners, and of damaging or tearing them down without a justifiable reason. Violators are subject to up to two years in prison or a fine of up to 4 million won ($3,720).

By Jo He-rim (herim@heraldcorp.com)