Latest news with #Busan
Yahoo
11 hours ago
- Yahoo
Apology for S Korean woman convicted of biting man's tongue as he attacked her
Prosecutors in South Korea have apologised to a woman who was convicted for defending herself during a sexually violent attack more than 60 years ago. Choi Mal-ja was sentenced to 10 months in prison, suspended for two years, for biting off part of her attacker's tongue as he allegedly tried to rape her in 1964, when she was 18 years old. Inspired by the country's #MeToo movement, Ms Choi, now 78, has campaigned for years to have her conviction overturned. Her retrial began in the city of Busan on Wednesday, where prosecutors issued an apology and asked for the court to quash her guilty verdict. "For 61 years, the state made me live as a criminal," Ms Choi told reporters outside the court ahead of the hearing. She said she hoped future generations could live a happy life free from sexual violence. At the start of the trial, Busan's Chief Prosecutor Jeong Myeong-won said "we sincerely apologise". "We have caused Choi Mal-ja, a victim of a sex crime who should have been protected as one, indescribable pain and agony." A final ruling is scheduled for 10 September, with legal observers expecting the court to overturn Ms Choi's conviction. Outside the courtroom after the hearing, Ms Choi raised her fist and said: "We won!" She celebrated by embracing campaigners from civic organisations who were there to support her. #MeToo takes hold in South Korea Why women in Korea are reclaiming their short hair In 1964, an 18-year-old Choi Mal-ja was attacked by a 21-year-old man, who forced his tongue into her mouth as he pinned her to the ground in the southern town of Gimhae, according to court records. Ms Choi escaped the attack by biting off 1.5cm (0.59in) of the aggressor's tongue. The man was sentenced to six months in prison, suspended for two years, for trespassing and intimidation. He was never convicted of attempted rape. Ms Choi was given a harsher sentence than her attacker for causing him grievous bodily harm. The court at the time said her actions had exceeded the "reasonable bounds" of self-defence. Ms Choi's case has since been cited in legal textbooks in South Korea as a classic example of a court failing to recognise self-defence during sexual violence. 'Justice is alive in this country' After taking inspiration from South Korea's #MeToo movement in the late 2010s, Ms Choi contacted advocacy groups to begin work on petitioning for a retrial. She filed a petition in 2020, 56 years after the attack, but it was initially rejected by the lower courts. Three years later, the Supreme Court ruled that Ms Choi's retrial could go ahead. Her fight for justice became well known in South Korea, with Ms Choi and fellow activists holding protests outside the Supreme Court building in Seoul. "I still can't believe it," Ms Choi said after Wednesday's hearing, the Korea JoongAng Daily newspaper reported. "But if the prosecution is admitting its mistake even now, then I believe justice is alive in this country."
BBC News
11 hours ago
- BBC News
Apology for S Korean woman convicted of biting man's tongue as he attacked her
Prosecutors in South Korea have apologised to a woman who was convicted for defending herself during a sexually violent attack more than 60 years Mal-ja was sentenced to 10 months in prison, suspended for two years, for biting off part of her attacker's tongue as he allegedly tried to rape her in 1964, when she was 18 years by the country's #MeToo movement, Ms Choi, now 78, has campaigned for years to have her conviction retrial began in the city of Busan on Wednesday, where prosecutors issued an apology and asked for the court to quash her guilty verdict. "For 61 years, the state made me live as a criminal," Ms Choi told reporters outside the court ahead of the said she hoped future generations could live a happy life free from sexual the start of the trial, Busan's Chief Prosecutor Jeong Myeong-won said "we sincerely apologise"."We have caused Choi Mal-ja, a victim of a sex crime who should have been protected as one, indescribable pain and agony."A final ruling is scheduled for 10 September, with legal observers expecting the court to overturn Ms Choi's the courtroom after the hearing, Ms Choi raised her fist and said: "We won!"She celebrated by embracing campaigners from civic organisations who were there to support her. In 1964, an 18-year-old Choi Mal-ja was attacked by a 21-year-old man, who forced his tongue into her mouth as he pinned her to the ground in the southern town of Gimhae, according to court Choi escaped the attack by biting off 1.5cm (0.59in) of the aggressor's man was sentenced to six months in prison, suspended for two years, for trespassing and intimidation. He was never convicted of attempted Choi was given a harsher sentence than her attacker for causing him grievous bodily harm. The court at the time said her actions had exceeded the "reasonable bounds" of Choi's case has since been cited in legal textbooks in South Korea as a classic example of a court failing to recognise self-defence during sexual violence. 'Justice is alive in this country' After taking inspiration from South Korea's #MeToo movement in the late 2010s, Ms Choi contacted advocacy groups to begin work on petitioning for a filed a petition in 2020, 56 years after the attack, but it was initially rejected by the lower courts. Three years later, the Supreme Court ruled that Ms Choi's retrial could go fight for justice became well known in South Korea, with Ms Choi and fellow activists holding protests outside the Supreme Court building in Seoul."I still can't believe it," Ms Choi said after Wednesday's hearing, the Korea JoongAng Daily newspaper reported."But if the prosecution is admitting its mistake even now, then I believe justice is alive in this country."
CNA
15 hours ago
- CNA
Retrial opens for South Korean woman who bit off attempted rapist's tongue
SEOUL: A South Korean court reopened a decades-old case on Wednesday (Jul 23) after the country's #MeToo movement inspired a woman to challenge her conviction for defending herself against sexual violence 61 years ago. Choi Mal-ja was 19 when she was attacked by a 21-year-old man in the southern town of Gimhae in 1964. He pinned her to the ground and forced his tongue into her mouth, court records showed. Choi managed to break free by biting off about 1.5cm of his tongue. In one of South Korea's most contentious rulings on sexual violence, the aggressor received only six months in prison, suspended for two years, for trespassing and intimidation - but not attempted rape. But Choi was convicted of causing grievous bodily harm and handed a 10-month prison sentence, suspended for two years. The court said at the time her action had "exceeded the reasonable bounds of legally permissible self-defence". Choi's case gained renewed momentum decades later after #MeToo movement, which took off globally in 2017 and inspired her to seek justice. In South Korea, massive women's rights protests led to victories on issues ranging from abortion access to tougher penalties for spycam crimes. Choi filed for a retrial in 2020, but lower courts initially rejected her petition. After years of campaigning and an appeal, South Korea's top court finally ordered a retrial in 2024. "For 61 years, the state made me live as a criminal," Choi told reporters outside the Busan District Court ahead of Wednesday's retrial hearing. She said she hoped future generations could "live in a world free from sexual violence where they can enjoy human rights and a happy life".
Yahoo
2 days ago
- Politics
- Yahoo
Clip of Lee Jae Myung laughing predates former lawmaker's passing
An old video of South Korean President Lee Jae Myung trying to suppress a laugh has resurfaced in posts falsely claiming it showed how he reacted to the news of a former lawmaker's death. The video was in fact filmed weeks before Chang Je-won was found dead at his office on March 31, 2025. It shows then-opposition leader Lee stifling a laugh as a colleague made mocking remarks about Chang, who was under investigation over allegations of sexual assault. "Lee Jae Myung's chilling reaction to Chang Je-won's tragic end," reads Korean-language text superimposed on a minute-long Instagram clip shared on July 20, 2025. Chang Je-won, a former three-term People Power Party (PPP) lawmaker and close associate of former president Yoon Suk Yeol, was found dead at his personal office on March 31. "A police officer said there were 'no signs of foul play' at the scene and his death was likely by suicide, though an investigation is under way into the exact circumstances," reported the Yonhap News Agency, adding that a note "presumably written by Chang" was also found (archived link). Chang had been under police investigation over allegations of sexual assault stemming from his time as a vice president of a university in Busan. The clip appears to show Lee and Prime Minister Kim Min-seok trying to hold back laughter while listening to former Democratic Party floor leader Park Chan-dae. The video's narrator suggests Park was speaking about Chang's death. "After Chang took his own life at a residence in Gil-dong in March 2025, this scene was brought to light again by internet users," says the narrator. The same clip was widely shared by multiple right-wing social media users on YouTube and Facebook. "This gives me goosebumps, how can they call themselves human," read a comment on one of the posts. Another said: "Lee Jae Myung lacks basic decency, and they elected this guy president." But the clip precedes Chang's death by weeks. Party meeting A keyword search on Google found matching footage published by KBS on March 7, about three weeks before Chang's death (archived link). The KBS footage shows Lee and Kim -- who led the Democratic Party at the time -- chortling during a regular open-to-the-press party meeting as floor leader Park Chan-dae criticised Chang over the sexual assault allegations. Park had attacked Chang's decision to step down from the PPP, saying his resignation alone was not enough to address the serious accusations. Park highlighted a text message Chang allegedly sent to his accuser -- "How do you think I feel if you just leave me like this?" -- repeating it in a mocking tone and drawing the suppressed laughter from Lee and Kim (archived link). Park can be seen reading the text message in footage of the March 7 meeting posted on YouTube by broadcaster JTV, at its 1:36:07 mark (archived link). Lee's reaction was also covered by local media outlets JTBC and MBC (archived here and here). As of July 22, there have been no official reports or videos on the Democratic Party website showing Lee's response to Chang's death, and the party did not issue a separate official response (archived link). AFP has debunked multiple false claims about Lee, who is a frequent target of misinformation online.
Yahoo
3 days ago
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Projects Produced by Alia Bhatt, Payal Kapadia & Kani Kusruti In Busan's APM 2025 Line-up
Busan International Film Festival (BIFF) has annouced the 30 projects selected for this year's Asian Project Market, including two projects produced by high-profile Indian actresses. The line-up includes Difficult Daughters, directed by Soni Razdan, which is being produced by Alia Bhatt and her sister Shaheen Bhatt, along with veteran Indian indie producer Alan McAlex (Santosh). More from Deadline Busan International Film Festival Launches Competition Section; Overhauls Programming Team Busan Film Festival Confirms Jung Hanseok As Festival Director 'Kingdom Of The Insomniacs' Wins Busan Award At Asian Project Market Kani Kusruti, who starred in Cannes Palme d'Or winning film All We Imagine As Light, is teaming with the director of that film, Payal Kapadia, to produce The Last Of Them Plagues, directed by Kunjila Mascillamani. Kusruti attended BIFF last year as a jury member for the New Currents competition. Elsewhere, the line-up includes several other filmmakers with ties to BIFF, including Indian director Pradip Kurbah, recipient of the 2019 Jiseok Award, with new project Moon; Bangladeshi filmmaker Biplob Sarkar, previously invited to BIFF New Currents and returning with LGBTQ+-themed The Magical Men; and Malaysia's Lau Kok Rui from the BIFF 2022 Asian Film Academy, who is presenting Wake Me up When the Mourning Ends, with Soi Cheang, Stefano Centini and Wong Kew Soon on board as producers. The line-up also features five Chinese-language projects, with three from Taiwan focusing on female protagonists. Japan is represented by three projects from established directors Shiraishi Kazuya, Fujita Naoya and Zhang Yaoyuan, with stories revolving around the realities of foreign laborers, a reclusive woman's struggle for identity, and a multifaceted view of what Japanese youth face today. Seven Korean projects have also been selected from both emerging and mid-career directors, including Gilddong from Park Riwoong, who won the New Currents Award at BIFF 2024 for The Land Of Morning Calm; Arrival Of Water from Jo Heeyoung; Dance Dance Revolution by director Choi Hana (More Than Family); and The Descent by director Kim Hyoeun following her BIFF 2024 invitation for Tango At Dawn. Asian Project Market (APM) will be held for four days from September 20-23 during the 20th edition of the Asian Contents & Film Market at BEXCO. ASIAN PROJECT MARKET 2025: *Supported by ACF Script Development Fund Arrival Of Water (Korea, Japan)Dir: Jo HeeyoungProd: Park Sejin Black Star Angel* (Armenia, US)Dir: Christine HaroutounianProd: Maxwell Schwartz, Christine Haroutounian Bodoi (Japan)Dir: Shiraishi KazuyaProd: Kii Muneyuki Buy My Car (Japan, China)Dir: Zhang YaoyuanProd: Ichiyama Shozo, Kunizane Mizue, Mo Zhulin Churching Of Women (Jordan)Dir: Darin SallamProd: Deema Azar, Ayah Jardaneh Dance Dance Revolution (Korea)Dir: Choi HanaProd: An Boyoung The Daughter (Hong Kong, China)Dir: Guan TianProd: Vivian Bao, Ding Ningyuan The Descent (Korea)Dir: Kim HyoeunProd: Park Hyunsuk Difficult Daughters (India)Dir: Soni RazdanProd: Alia Bhatt, Shaheen Bhatt, Alan Mcalex, Grishma Shah Disorder (Iraq, Germany)Dir: Shawkat Amin KorkiProd: Mehmet Aktas, Shohreh Golparian, Shawkat Amin Korki Flying Cows (Vietnam)Dir: Nguyen Pham Thanh DatProd: Nguyen Huu Thi Tuong Vi The Funeral March (Japan, China)Dir: Fujita NaoyaProd: Fujita Kanako, Shiina Yasushi, Zou Aiken, Zou Lin Gilddong (Korea, China)Dir: Park RiwoongProd: Yoon Minyoung Gochi (Korea)Dir: Yoon EunkyoungProd: Stanley Kwak Heaven Help Us!* (Philippines)Dir: Eve BaswelProd: John Torres, Jules Katanyag Lanka (The Fire) (India)Dir: Saurav RaiProd: Sudeepta Sadhukhan, Viraj Selot, Ankita Purkayastha The Last Of Them Plagues (India)Dir: Kunjila MascillamaniProd: Payal Kapadia, Jeo Baby, Kani Kusruti Lost And Cow (Thailand)Dir: Thapanee LoosuwanProd: Chonlasit Upanigkit, Somprasong Srikrajang The Magical Men (Bangladesh, Singapore, France, India)Dir: Biplob SarkarProd: Biplob Sarkar, Fran Borgia, Francois d'Artemare, Sankhajit Biswas Moon (India)Dir: Pradip KurbahProd: Pradip Kurbah New Life* (China)Dir: Li YingtongProd: Annie Song No Country For Old Men (Taiwan)Dir: An BonProd: Chen Pao-Ying Paradis Karaoke (Korea)Dir: Byun SungbinProd: Bong Suji Sama (Canada, Afghanistan)Dir: Brishkay AhmedProd: Brishkay Ahmed, Bonnie Do Silence Of The Looms (Bangladesh)Dir: Mirza Shabnam FerdousiProd: Rajib Mohajan Silent Cry (Korea)Dir: Jero YunProd: Jero Yun The Skull Oracle (Taiwan)Dir: Laha MebowProd: Eric Liang Zara Lin, Chen Yi Chen Snake In The Dreamscapes (Taiwan)Dir: Lou Yi-AnProd: Chen Wen Wen, Kao Chun Ting, Hsu Guo-Lun Stuck Like Babies (Kyrgyzstan)Dir: Dastan Zhapar RyskeldiProd: Veronica Rhyme, Aktan Ryskeldiev, Fernanda Renno Wake Me Up When The Mourning Ends (Malaysia, Hong Kong, Italy, Taiwan)Dir: Lau Kok RuiProd: Soi Cheang, Stefano Centini, Wong Kew Soon Best of Deadline Streamer Subscription Prices And Tiers – Everything To Know As Costs Rise And Ads Abound (Hello, Peacock) - Update 'Stick' Release Guide: When Do New Episodes Come Out? 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