Conceptualizing Emotional Domestic Violence and Supporting its Victims

Abstract

가정폭력처벌법과 가정폭력방지법이 시행되기 시작한지 20년이 넘었지만 가정폭력처벌법의 입법취지인 건강한 가정의 육성과 가정의 회복에 가려져서 그동안 가정 폭력 피해자들의 인권은 충분히 보호받지 못했다. 신체적인 폭력 조차도 범죄 행위로서 충분히 다뤄지지 못했던 경우가 많았던 만큼 비물리적인 형태의 폭력인 가정 내 정서적 폭력은 폭력 유형 중 가장 빈번히 보고되는 폭력임에도 불구하고 그동안 그 심각성이 중요하게 인식되지 못했다. 그러나, 정서적 폭력의 파괴적 영향력은 결코 신체적 폭력에 비해 뒤지지 않을 뿐만 아니라 오히려 회복되지 않는 평생에 걸친 상처를 남긴다. 이 논문에서는 가정 내 정서적 폭력의 피해자들을 보호하고 지원할 수 있는 방법을 마련하기 위해서 먼저 정서적 폭력과 관련된 개념들을 통합적으로 정리하였고, 아동 및 배우자에 관해서 현행 법령 및 사회적 시스템이 이러한 개념들에 관해서 얼마나 잘 부합되어 있고 운용되고 있는지 살펴보았으며, 그러한 비교 분석 결과를 토대로 정서적 폭력 피해자들을 도울 수 있는 예방적 방안들을 제시하였다.About 20 years have passed since the “Act on special cases concerning the punishment, etc. of crimes of domestic violence”, and the “Act on the prevention of domestic violence and protection, etc. of victims” were enacted in Korea. However, the victims of domestic violence are still not properly protected by the law because of an excessive focus on maintaining the family rather than protecting domestic victims’ human rights, as in the “Act on special cases concerning the punishment, etc. of crimes of domestic violence”. In many cases, even the victims of severe physical violence were not protected by the law. People are not naturally aware that the victims of emotional violence with non-physical harm have to be protected, even though emotional violence is the most frequently reported violence among all types of domestic violence. Emotional child abuse was legally defined by the Supreme Court of Korea in 2011 for the first time. This definition considers physical violence to be more severe violence than emotional violence. However, in 2015 the Constitutional Court of Korea decided that emotional violence is equally as violent as physical violence. This study attempted to conceptualize the interrelated and overlapping concepts of emotional domestic violence, including violence, abuse, and neglect, in order to prepare for the first steps in supporting victims of emotional violence. After which, legislations for domestic violence are explored with the goal of supplementing the gap between the specification of emotional violence and related legislations. This study then explored the weaknesses and defects of the legal and social systems devoted to addressing emotional violence. Finally, this study suggested comprehensive future directionsfor supporting victims of emotional violence and violence prevention including:the need to use common terminology for this violence among government parties, specialist qualifications for this field, the need to understand emotional neglect as violence, and the need to educate the respect to personal boundaries.