Lee Sun-kyun died this week in Seoul after leaving a note in his parked car explaining that he could see no other way out. He was interrogated for 19 hours for the third time in the case filed on the allegation of drug use.. A country on the sofa wonders what drove a young man with a wife and two children, at the peak of his acting career, to suicide. The list of suspects is not short: The brutality of the police, the fervent campaign against drugs, the impeccable behavior required by show business, the brazen exposure of their privacy… The picture was summed up by former president and moral reference Moon Jae-in: “These practices, such as excessive media coverage and tendency towards extreme choices Great damage to honor and personality.
A hostess at a club in the exclusive Gangnam district told police earlier this year that the actor had consumed marijuana, ketamine and other substances at home. Lee claimed that he was tricked into doing so and then blackmailed by his stewardess and an accomplice. Police admitted that all of Lee’s drug tests came back negative. The police station in Incheon, a city west of the capital, is now facing a crackdown after learning Lee ignored his final requests to take a lie detector test to prove his sincerity and keep the press away from his latest statement. Police expressed their condolences to the family and said their actions were in accordance with criminal procedure. They added that it was Lee who agreed to the final, grueling interrogation that hastened his death.
conservative government
Lee is the latest and most famous victim of the Conservative government’s anti-drug campaign. After entering the Blue House, President Yoon Suk Yeol promised that there would be no solace for criminals and created a department of 840 officers under the command of the Prosecutor’s Office. The numbers underline this momentum. More than 17,000 arrests were counted last year compared to 10,000 in 2019, youth apprehensions are up sixfold and seizures at the border are breaking records.
South Korean legislation provides for a prison sentence of six months to ten years for those who produce, sell and consume. Its durability does not creak on the continent. China, Singapore, Japan and Taiwan also argue that they have lower tolerance than the West due to the seriousness and urgency of the problem. IBut experts deny that long sentences reduce consumption They criticize the formula for emphasizing punishment rather than rehabilitation, and the crime dimension rather than public health. Lee’s lawyers regretted that the police investigation was solely for his consumption and blackmail was ignored.
Celebrities are in focus
Celebrities are an important crusader in the war on drugs because they lead by example. Before Lee, an investigation was launched against actor Yoo Ah-in and rapper G-Dragon. China was also targeting celebrities when it launched its strongest campaign years ago. The abyss of canceled advertising contracts, concerts or TV series, and postponed movies is widening in front of the lucky ones…
Therein lies the cultural difference. Rock bands in the West can bolster their reputations with drugs, alcohol, trashed hotel rooms and other wilderness excursions. Asya expects proper behavior from her slippery-backed angels that will please any father-in-law. There are no fans hotter and harder at skating than Asians. There is probably no country with a higher celebrity suicide rate than South Korea.
Lee added several months of torture. Television stations, magazines and YouTubers examined his police statements with entomological attention, amplifying his claim of an emotional affair with the stewardess and other rumors. The same country that enjoyed this information frenzy is now criticizing it. Lee was staring at those personal and professional horizons this week when he locked himself in his car and lit a boulder of compressed coal dust that would suffocate him.