Women’s organizations and civic groups in South Korea are up in arms about a festival featuring Japanese adult video (AV) actors to be held in Suwon, Gyeonggi-do, next month. They condemned it as sexual exploitation.
The Suwon Women’s Group Network, comprised of seven women’s organizations including Suwon Women’s HotLine, and the Suwon Civil Society Organization Council, a group of more than 30 civil society organizations, held a press conference in front of the Suwon Station Culture Plaza on Mar. 12 and said, “We strongly condemn “2024 KXF The Fashion,” which commodifies female bodies and sexual activities, turning them into a product.”
“The event is not to create a safe and free sexual culture, but to profit from a blatant sexual exploitation of “women’s sexuality,” only spreading a culture that advocates sex trafficking,” the organizations said, adding, “It is a serious form of sexual violence as it consumes women as sexual objects and women’s bodies as something “enjoyable to play” with.
“The festival only provides a space that promotes a culture that makes prostitution a common way to fulfill men’s libido, a space to sexually exploit women,” the groups said, demanding an immediate end to 2024 KXF The Fashion that exploits and commodifies women’s sexuality.
The controversial expo, organized by an adult content producer, is scheduled to be held at Suwon Messe, a private exhibition center in Seodun-dong, Gwonseon-gu, Suwon, for two days from Apr. 20 to 21. This is the second event following the first one held in Gwangmyeong, Gyeonggi-do in December last year. After paying an entrance fee, visitors certified as adults can participate in activities such as getting autographs from Japanese AV actors, taking photos with them, and watching a lingerie fashion show.
The organizers of the event claimed, “Sexual cultures are remaining underground and heading for an unhealthy direction because of prejudices that “things related to sex or sexual activities are all illegal.” They also added that “According to a study published by “The Scientist,” an American magazine for life science professionals, sex crimes decrease as the use of this kind of content increases.” “We need a way for adults to freely enjoy the culture in South Korea, and to share it healthily and appropriately,” they said. “If such an environment is created, the public’s perception of it will also change.”
