Make Love Not War: ‘Terror sex’ relieves South Koreans

Venkatesan Vembu

Thursday, October 26, 2006 16:40 IST

HONG KONG:

Driven to heightened anxiety by North Korea’s nuclear test earlier this month, South Koreans are increasingly finding solace, security and therapeutic release in a burst of ‘terror sex’.

Condom sales and motel bookings in Seoul and surrounding areas have shot up since the October 9 nuclear test, an indication that South Koreans are seeking out sexual connection in times of grave fear for the future following Pyongyang’s deadly sabre-rattling.

South Korea’s largest-selling newspaper Chosun Ilbo reports that the average daily sales of condoms across the Family Mart chain of convenience stores during the week from October 9 was nearly 20 per cent higher than average sales in September. Other convenience store chains like GS25 too experienced a 15 per cent spike in average condom sales during the same period.

Hotels and motels — particularly those that cater to transient, by-the-hour relationships — are reporting a flood of bookings, which is unusual since this isn’t the holiday season. In particular, motels in Yeouido island in Seoul’s business district are reported to be fully booked up for the rest of the month. Yeuido is the entertainment district popular among Seoul’s stock traders, whose fortunes have suffered a reversal since the nuclear test.

The phenomenon of people resorting to heightened sexual activity as a coping mechanism in times of stress has been sufficiently well-documented. In the US, the Baby Boom of the late 1940s is believed to have been triggered by an increased resort to sexual contact and release following a prolonged period of conflict during World War II.

More recently, psychologists and sociologists have recorded a similar spike in ‘terror sex’ across the US — often between complete strangers — after the September 11 terrorist attacks.

Pepper Schwartz, a psychology professor at the University of Washington, has said that in times of crisis, an average person wants “some sort of homage to a life force” to reinforce the belief that “I’m alive, I’m functioning, I’m real.” And that inevitably finds expression in sex.

Not everyone in South Korea, however is giving expression to carnal release as a karmic quest in the face of apocalyptic intimations. Some are resorting to the rather more practical device of stockpiling food and gas in anticipation of a crisis. Sales of butane gas and packs of instant noodles too have shot up in recent weeks.

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