Korean Job Discussion Forums

[Mashimaro]

A female friend of mine is having problems with a stalker/pervert.
Anyone know where i could pick up something to burn the guys eyeballs out? (mase, pepper spray or whatever)
This is a serious situation causing my friend and I a lot of distress and I'd really appreciate any help.

[lush72]

Why not report it to the cops?


(all right now, stop laughing! Someone had to say it first!)

[katydid]

I have to agree that may be the best thing to do as well, though I am also of the mind that Koreans don't take stalking very seriously whether you are Korean or not.

They might take a foreigner trying to get all vigilante on some guy very seriously though.

[diver]

They have gas guns here in Korea. I am not sure how you go about buying one though.

Your girlfriend could consider carrying an aerosol can of hairspray, or some other substance, in lieu of mace. The hairspray is good because it will not be construed as a weapon, or a remeditated attack if she uses it. It is reasonable for a woman to have hairspray in her purse. Whether the Korean police are reasonable or not is anyone's guess.

She could make pepper spray and carry it in a squeeze/spray bottle, but this has disadvantages as it can leak into her purse and the range/power is not as great.

Another option is to carry a small can of bright green, yellow or orange spray paint/dye. This will not only slow the attacker down, but it will also mark the suspect making identification easier.

Tell her to get a small pealess whistle (in standard whistles it is possible for the pea to jam, rendering it useless). The 'Fox 40' is a good pealess whistle and is avaiable in sports and campping stores in Korea. Making noise is a good tactic to scare of an attacker.

For extreme cases she may consider carrying a rat-tailed comb in her purse if she can find one in Korea. A rolled up soft-covered textbook, around A4 size (such as Interchange), makes a handy weapon. Roll it up tightly. Do not use it as you might punish a dog by swatting it on the nose with the long edge. Instead, tell her to grasp it like an ice pick, with one thumb up over the top. Bring it straight down striking with the small end, not the long edge. Having a ballpoint pen handy is not a bad idea either.

She (and you) of course should study local laws regarding reasonable force needed for self-defense in Korea before trying any of these.

[maxxx_power]

Tell her to get a small knife. If he attacks her she should stab him in the inner thigh, armpit, or about the face.

[Ryst Helmut]

[hellofaniceguy]

[quote="lush72"]Why not report it to the cops?quote]
Are you serious?!?! korean cops don't give a rat's rear end about something like this!
They couldn't even find a serial killer for a few years and when they did catch him...they let him escape!
It does not take any intelligence to be a cop in korea. None at all. Trust me on this one. Major police departments in advanced nations of the world look down on korean cops.
However....
I would type up a letter detailing what this person is doing and have your friend carry a camera and that the perverts picture!! Give the letter and pictures to the cops and THEN they would have to do something after having the proof. Documentation is always best.

[lush72]

[jjurabong]

When walking at night, I make a fist around my keys so that the pointy ends stick out through my fingers - kind of like pointy brass knuckles.

[uberscheisse]

way back in the day when my punker friends were harrassing nazi skinheads and before pepper spray was widely available...

dudes used to carry scotch static-guard around as protection. it apparently works very well and i'd guess it's way more available than pepper spray in korea.

i'd also guess the penalties for spraying someone with pepper spray here are pretty severe. if you can find some static guard, it comes in a tiny canister, seems innocuous (especially in the dry-as-a-bone korean winter) and doesn't leave a red peppery residue on someone's face.

if a foreigner pepper sprayed someone in korea, pervert, rapist, drunk ajushi groper or not, i'm willing to bet some really bad stuff would happen to that foreigner.

get someone to mail you some from home. can you mail aerosol products?

[Mashimaro]

I was a little worried about the legal repercussions as well.
My friend has come across this sicko a few times at her bus stop and more than once has 'touched' her. now I don't know where he touched her (it doesn't matter anyway as far as I'm concerned) obviously it upset her.

She started getting to the stop at a different time, but now she has met him there again. I feel really helpless. I think I'll probably the hour train ride to her place and accompany her tomorrow, but I can't do it every day. I feel so helpless and this pervert has made me so damn angry

I'm trying to convince her to get her mum or better still dad to walk with her to the bus stop, but she said she doesn't think they will take it seriously and also she doesn't want to worry them!! My response was they will be more worried if you get raped or abducted!!!
Anyway she 'said' she will tell them, and hopefully they will do the right thing and try to protect their daughter.

[katydid]

Unfortunately, as I know from second hand experience, stalking is considered nothing to worry about, and even a romantic gesture in the eyes of some Koreans. Had a friend who broke up with her boyfriend, but he couldn't accept that. So he would call her at all hours of the night and even lean on her doorbell late at night just so he could talk to her and try to convince her to change her mind.

I'm sorry that your friend is going through this really uncomfortable and difficult time, but I really think you should think very carefully about taking matters into your own hands to deter this guy from harming your friend. You have no idea how the police will interpret this if they get called in and even if you land a punch on the guy, you have no idea how many friends the guy has willing to seek revenge.

Could she take a call taxi to wherever she needs to go?

[Yesterday]

Okay - you are gonna hate me for this -

how ever I have to ask a couple of serious questions -

(1) "Your friend has been acting unusual and states that she is being followed by a "stalker" - DO YOU have any evidence to confirm this -

(2) - How long has your friend been in korea - (I want to know basically if SHE is a newbie - been here a few months - can't handle it - wants some kind of affection/attention etc

I am not trying to be bad, etc etc here - just interested in the facts - as I have been here many years - and this is the first (Foreign teacher- stalker case I have heard of) basically what I am suggesting - if people are so concerned.....

(1) If the stalker is genuine - maybe one or two of us guys could watch for a day or two - and if genuine and he is seen -then bash the Sh it out of him -

(2) If the stalker is imaginary - then obviously the girl needs to be invited to join more social outings/events to help her fit in and feel "at home"

[jjurabong]

Everyone seems to think that Mashimaro is talking about a foreign woman - but I'm guessing she's Korean. Nowhere did he say she's foreign. So, she may have more legal resources available to her than we think.

Mashimaro, I feel for your concern. However you need to convince her to tell her parents and contact the police. This is not stuff that you fool around with. I've personally seen a couple of Korean documentaries on stalking in the past year and I think that people here are becoming more aware of it as a crime and a threat.
In fact, if she's Korean, I'd be more concerned. As a foreign woman, the touching could be seen as "the rules" not applying - such as when a Korean ajusshi tries to talk to me on the street at night when he would never dream of approaching a lone Korean woman. (not excusing any of this, by the way). But a Korean man harrassing a Korean woman he doesn't know, even going so far as to touch her is operating outside of even this very sexist society and should be handled very carefully.

I wish your friend a lot of luck and courage. It is horrible to be made to find fear in your most normal of routines.

[Mashimaro]