In South Korea, where adultery is not just grounds for public embarrassment but arrest as well, two of the nation's biggest stars are embroiled in a widely publicized marital meltdown that could have far-reaching ramifications for the radically conservative country.
When the fading TV heartthrob Park Chul accused his actress wife of
infidelity, he ignited an undignified row that has transfixed South
Korea and probably mortally wounded the careers of two of the country's
top stars. But the best might yet be to come: could Korea's rawest
celebrity scandal end a half-century-old law banning adultery?
Last year, Chul publicly claimed his wife had had an affair with "an Italian chef and an opera singer," which Scanner is willing to bet are probably going to be identified as Mario Batali and Luciano Pavarotti. No? Well, in any case, the wife, with the unfortunate name (at least when read in English-speaking countries) of Ok So-ri was rumored to have been secretly videotaped having the affair.
Ok stunned
Koreans by calling a press conference in which she denied sleeping with
the Italian – who she said had only given her English and cooking
lessons – but admitted to a short affair with the singer. She then
aired intimate details of her sham marriage, leaving her husband
feeling, in his words, like a "pedestrian hit by a car". Park responded
by filing a criminal suit against his wife for adultery...
The offence, which conservatives say is
designed to protect the family, carries a two-year prison sentence,
although just 47 of the 1,200 people convicted last year served jail
time (most were given suspended sentences).
Ms. So-ri (or "Ok") has petitioned the country's Constitutional Court (we doubt that their Constitution is as awesome as ours, although it's probably just as usurped) to overturn the law, which some observers speculate could actually happen. We're tempted to make jokes about what this would open the door for, but we'll admit this is too scary a story to poke much fun at. (Jail for adultery? Hell, back in 1992 in this country, you could elected President because you had an affair.)
Via the Independent.
