from The Eletric
Newpaper
Cyber thugs make life HELL for Korean
stars
Was singer U-nee a victim of 'cyber
violence'
By Chang May Choon, 25 January 2007
SOME called her a 'plastic human being'.
Others said she was a 'manufactured celebrity'.
Many in the Internet community had blasted her overtly sexy image
and speculated which other part of her body she would fix
next.
Their target: Korean singer U-nee.
The 26-year-old babe was one of many Korean celebrities who have
been hit by a growing social phenomenon known as 'cyber violence'
in Korea, the world's most wired country.
This includes unwarranted personal attacks, harassment and
defamation - all unleashed anonymously by a cyber community whose
maturity level is said to have fallen behind the country's
fast-developing technology.
In 2005, the Korea Internet Safety Commission received 8,406
complaints of online offences, twice the number in 2004.
Celebrity attacks, in particular, have become increasingly vicious
recently, with the police stepping in to nab the culprits.
Sometimes there are tragic consequences.
U-nee killed herself on Sunday.
It is not known yet why she commited suicide in the apartment she
shared with her grandmother in Incheon, near Seoul.
But her family and friends believe she was suffering from
depression and 'living in agony' due to the numerous cyber attacks
inflicted on her, The Chosun Ilbo reported.
Singaporeans would remember U-nee as the Korean singer whose
pictures were mistaken to be that of a murdered Mongolian model in
Kuala Lumpur last November.
Entertainment journalist Han Eun Jung, who used to write for The
Korea Times, said that Korean people in general are 'emotional' and
'passionate' and it is reflected in their online postings.
Increasingly liberal teenagers, especially, do not mince their
words when it comes to criticising celebrities they dislike.
Miss Han told The New Paper: 'Korea is still a conservative place
and Confucian values are still practised and are expected of young
people.
'But they have their own need to let out their feelings. The
Internet is an easy outlet for them and this has resulted in all
the negative comments.'
Apparently, U-nee was an easy target because of her showbiz history
- she had started at age 15 as a sweet and innocent girl-next-door
actress, but disappeared for two years to transform herself into a
singing sex goddess.
'U-nee was the most attacked because it was so evident in her face
that she had extensive surgery,' said Miss Han.
'As opposed to some artistes who would deny it, U-nee had been very
honest and open about having had surgery.... but it backfired on
her. Some bloggers were more harsh on her and they hurt her.'
U-nee's death has left the nation reeling in shock and cast the
media spotlight on cyber violence against celebrities.
Despite many affected artistes speaking up against the hurtful
remarks during media interviews in the past, netizens have
continued the attacks.
Miss Han said: 'People are saddened and shocked that words can push
somebody to such extreme measures, but unfortunately, it won't put
an end (to the celebrity bashing).'
Still, help may be on its way.
An earlier Reuters report said the Korean government plans to
introduce a Bill on real-name authentication that requires Net
users to log in with their national identification numbers (like
our IC number).
This is supposed to help the authorities track netizens and reduce
anonymous Internet attacks.
