President Lee Jae-myung marked the fourth anniversary of the Sindang Station murder on Sept. 14, saying he would "move quickly on the institutional fixes needed so that the same tragedy is not repeated."
Writing on X, formerly Twitter, Lee said four years had passed since the stalking murder at Sindang Station. "I still remember the words left on the memorial wall at Exit 10 of Sindang Station: 'I'm sorry we could not protect you,'" he wrote.
"Since the case, we have revised the anti-stalking law and strengthened victim protection, but the reality in which victims must leave their homes and workplaces and go into hiding on their own still remains," he said. "Not long ago there was another tragedy, in which a wife who had fled domestic violence was killed by her husband."
Lee stressed the state's responsibility in stalking and domestic violence cases. "When violence repeats itself and warning signs appear, the state must step in first," he said. "Responsibility cannot be deferred on the grounds that the system is inadequate. The first task is making sure the systems we already have work properly on the ground."
"It is not the victim who should have to hide — the perpetrator must be stopped," he said. "What should be restricted is not the victim's daily life but the dangerous conduct of the perpetrator." He also pledged to carry out without delay the government's plan to strengthen the response to stalking and dating violence, announced in July.
"Even as investigative and prosecutorial powers are separated, I will make sure the relevant ministries attend closely to keeping the response to crimes against women and young people from wavering," he said. "The state will fulfill its responsibility in building a society safe enough that no one fears stalking — at work, on the commute or anywhere in daily life."
