#MeToo: South Korea speaks out about sexual harassment on 'Blind' App

The #MeToo movement which recently gained momentum worldwide has now finally reached South Korea.

An app released in the country has helped the people to shed light on instances of sexual harassment in their workplace.

The "Blind" chat App helps South Koreans to anonymously talk about instances of their misbehaving bosses and colleagues, helping stir the #MeToo movement in the country.

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The app has added a new feature, a message board dedicated to a rising number of #MeToo stories. It helps the people to talk more freely about the harassments at the office.

The addition in the app came after a recent wave of complaints about misconduct in the workplace. Moreover, a complaint made by a South Korean public prosecutor in January had the utmost effect in escalating the number of MeToo complaints.

The co-founder of the app said that the prosecutor's disclosing the matter in public has put fresh momentum in the #MeToo movement in South Korea.

South Korea is usually not a favorable place for responding to sexual harassment complaints by employees.

Initially, the #MeToo movement could not gain much momentum in South Korea because of the corporate culture in the country restricting employees to share sexual harassment stories due to fear of vengeance.

According to a survey conducted by consulting firm EY, about 61 per cent of South Koreanrespondents working at private companies said they would bypass in-house whistleblower hotlines, saying they didn't trust their organisation to keep complaints confidential.

With over a million users, the launch of the "Blind" app has entertained over 1600 posts relating to sexual harassment at workplace.

It also ensures that it encodes personal data and information to protect users' privacy.

(With input from agency)