D-Report: Fear of Family Punishment Keeps Elder Abuse Reporting Rate at 2%

A woman in her 70s passed away after suffering abuse for a year and a half at the hands of her child in their 40s with whom she lived.

The perpetrator would tape her mouth shut for failing to perform household chores properly and frequently kicked her when she fell.

In a recent first trial, the daughter among the siblings was sentenced to seven years in prison, while the son received a three-year sentence.

In another case, a man in his 50s was arrested for beating his mother, who was in her 80s and suffering from severe dementia, to death.

[(Reporter: Did you not know she could die if you hit her?) ….]

The son was sentenced to six years in prison in his first trial yesterday.

According to data from the Ministry of Health and Welfare, there were approximately 26,000 reports of elder abuse involving individuals aged 65 or older last year, an increase of about 17% compared to the previous year.

The number of confirmed cases of elder abuse reached approximately 7,900, an 11% increase, marking an all-time high.

The perpetrators were spouses (39.4%), sons (23.5%), institutions (18.9%), and daughters (7.7%), reflecting the trend of fewer households living with children and an increase in households consisting of elderly couples.

What stands out is "who reported" the elder abuse in the first place.

The number of cases reported by the elderly victims themselves was 226, accounting for only 2.8%.

While self-reports accounted for 24.7% of all cases in 2015, the figure dropped to 5.3% in 2020 and fell to the 2% range last year.

Experts believe that feelings of helplessness due to habitual violence and the sentiment that "it is embarrassing to bring family matters to the outside" have contributed to this trend.

[Kim Do-saeng/Yeongdeungpo-dong, Seoul: It’s useless to say anything. Even when I hear others talk about it and think, 'Wow, they are being abused so severely,' I just...]

In particular, there is a distinct tendency for victims to keep quiet for fear that their spouses or children will be punished.

Even when authorities arrive after a report, victims often deny that anything happened or ask to drop the matter, making it difficult to even identify the facts of the abuse.

[Choi So-yeon/Officer, Victim Protection Team, Yeongdeungpo Police Station: Elder abuse almost always occurs within the home. Many are reluctant to report it because they worry that their family members will be punished. We are working with relevant agencies to break down these barriers.]

[Lee Min-ho/Social Worker, Seoul Southern Elder Protection Agency: Most elderly people do not tell us (at first), or they often say, 'I am fine.' Since elder abuse has a hidden nature, we believe there are many more cases of elder abuse that we are unaware of and that have not been reported.]

However, experts agree that since reporting is the first step toward receiving counseling or separation, it is necessary to foster a belief that "reporting makes a difference."

There are currently 20 shelters nationwide exclusively for elderly victims of abuse where they can stay away from home, and the Ministry of Health and Welfare has announced plans to expand these facilities.

Reported by Han Sung-hee | Video by Park Hyun-chul | Video Editing by Choi Hye-young | Produced by SBS Digital News
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.