Cho Doo-soon [Yonhap Photo]
The window for public petitions at South Korea's official presidential website has been flooded with more than 300,000 endorsors supporting a petition for the continued detention and isolation of a 64-year-old violent rapist who has vowed vengeance in a solitary prison room.
The petition was posted first on September 6 to oppose the release of Cho Doo-soon, who is serving a 12-year jail term on conviction of abducting, raping and beating an eight-year-old girl at a church toilet in December 2008 on her way to school in the southern city of Ansan.
As of Thursday morning, more than 342,000 people endorsed the petition, which also received widespread support on online communities with many calling for a new trial.
Cho's name topped Wednesday's daily trending keyword list on South Korea's most popular web search portal, Naver, ahead of U.S. President Donald Trump who was on his two-day state visit to Seoul.
The girl, known as Nayoung (alias), had serious injuries to her internal organs, sparking public outrage and calls for harsh punishment. Prosecutors sought life imprisonment, citing a police record of multiple crimes, but a court acknowledged Cho's argument that he had acted under the influence of alcohol.
Cho, who will be released in December 2020, has vowed to take revenge on Nayoung and her family. On a radio news program on Wednesday, a producer said Nayoung's family has been seized with fear.
Nayoung's father was quoted as saying: "It's difficult for us to find him, but Cho may locate us with ease. I'm really terrified. If we cannot do anything with the law, I want to go first and attack him for the safety of my daughter."
Pyo Doo-sun, a ruling party lawmaker, told a radio talk show that administrative measures should be taken to isolate Cho from society after his release because a retrial aimed at overturning an original sentence for longer imprisonment is legally impossible.
In parliament, lawmakers opened discussion on special legislation called "Cho Doo-soon law" to deal with such a case. However, debate faces constitutional restrictions.
A survey published this month showed that a majority of South Koreans supported executions as a legal penalty, reflecting widespread concerns about a sharp increase in violent crimes.
Capital punishment is a legal penalty in South Korea with its criminal code regulating executions as a form of punishment for crimes including rebellion, conspiracy with foreign countries, and homicide. Since the last execution took place in December 1997, capital punishment has been a controversial issue in South Korea.
reporter
Lim Chang-won
cwlim34@ajunews.com
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