On the 29th, in a phone interview with Flat, the Kyunghyang Shinmun archive for women narratives, Ms. Choi Mal-ja (78) looked back on 2025 in these terms. Her struggle, spanning almost her entire life, concluded in victory this year. In the voice with which she recalled that victory, there was regret as deep as the years of pain.

In 1964, she was sentenced to 10 months in prison, suspended for two years, on charges of biting and severing the tongue of Mr. Noh (then 21), who had attempted to rape her. She asserted self-defense, but it was not accepted, and the reproach that she had ‘crippled a promising young man’ was attached to her. Mr. Noh was convicted only on the remaining charges other than attempted rape and was sentenced to six months in prison, suspended for two years.

The indictment and verdict that made it seem as if the sexual violence victim and perpetrator had been reversed, the detention investigation that continued for more than six months, and the anger and resentment over the disgrace did not fade even after 56 years. Spurred by the ‘MeToo (I also accuse)’ movement, Ms. Choi filed for a retrial in 2020. The path to restoring her honor was arduous. After a dismissal by the court, and then rulings granting her re-appeal and appeal, in September the Busan District Court ruled, “The defendant’s act constitutes self-defense undertaken to escape an unjust infringement upon her body and sexual self-determination.” It was the first case in which the self-defense of a sexual violence victim was recognized in a retrial. As a sexual violence victim, Ms. Choi’s fight became a symbol of courage, and Flat selected her as the ‘2025 Woman of the Year’.

Ms. Choi said, “Although my honor has been restored, I also feel a bit empty and have many thoughts. I kept my eyes only forward for the two characters ‘Not guilty’, so there were many twists and turns, and when I look back, I wonder whether I even had a life of my own.” She still vividly remembers undergoing investigation and trial at age 18. Ms. Choi said, “They put a shoe-clad foot on a chair and said, ‘You crippled a man, so you must take responsibility.’ We lived in such times that even my lawyer told me, ‘Marry him, settle it.’ My father sold a rice paddy to reach a settlement because he could not let his daughter spend her life in prison.” She added, “How could I forget that humiliation. Even now, when I think of it, my hair stands on end in the middle of the night and I cannot sleep. Such resentment cannot be forgotten in just a few months,” and said, “Now I want to put everything down, empty my heart, and live free of it all, but it does not come easily.”

Ms. Choi said she was able to endure the long years thanks to those who stood in solidarity with her. The women who shouted 61 years ago, “Miss Choi is innocent,” the teachers who lectured on the structures of sexual violence and human rights, countless citizens, and the lawyers and women’s organizations that helped with the legal fight gave her courage. Ms. Choi recalled, “When I went to court in custody, mothers in their forties and fifties gathered and cried out, ‘Why have you detained innocent Miss Choi,’ to the point the trial could not proceed. I was in tears.” She said, “While attending Korea National Open University, I replayed lectures on human rights and minorities dozens of times. Through that, I came to know for certain that I was a victim and felt, ‘The time has come to go out into the open,’ and I found courage.”

[Flat] Self-defense after 61 years ‘Acquittal in Ms. Choi Mal-ja’s retrial’… the most groundbreaking ruling of the year

On July 23, the prosecutor sought an acquittal for her. The victim-perpetrator frame was corrected and a path opened for recognition of Ms. Choi’s self-defense. It was the moment when Ms. Choi’s courage changed herself and, further, the world. After the request for acquittal, she said, “Having lived for 61 years as a criminal made by the state, if I have a wish now, I want to put my hands together and ask that our descendants be able to live in a world without sexual violence.”

In the interview that day, Ms. Choi also expressed solidarity, saying, “My heart always aches when I see victims.” To those who may be suffering the same pain as hers, Ms. Choi advised, “One cannot solve the problem alone, so be sure to come out and get help.” She said, “Victims are all the same. How unjust, resentful, and painful it is to be alone. Especially for women, it is hard even to speak about sexual crimes. However, you must receive help if it is to lead to a good outcome.”

No method is sufficient to restore justice delayed by 61 years. Taking the acquittal as a starting point, Ms. Choi sought criminal compensation. She said, “I recently heard from my counsel that it was finalized at about 70 million won,” and added, “It does not compensate for detaining that innocent child for 192 days, but I have no choice but to accept reality.” A separate civil damages case is under way. Citing the Busan turning-kick and attempted rape and attempted murder case as an example, Ms. Choi said, “My heart always hurts when I see sexual violence victims in our society. I am now close to 80, so I have nothing to fear, but victim protection measures need to be strengthened going forward.”

Ms. Choi said, “I feel keenly that today is possible because there were people who helped and the strength of their support. I am truly grateful for making me who I am,” and added, “I will try to live in good health.”