Bus driver gets stabbed in the neck, passengers simply look on

On December 8, netizens in Korea were shocked when they learned that a 50-year-old bus driver Mr. Huh was stabbed in the neck while driving and his bus passengers did nothing to help.

In the clip shown above, Mr. Huh can be seen driving his bus. A 29-year-old female passenger Ms. Kim gets up from her seat to sit near the front. When Mr. Huh stops the bus, Ms. Kim is seen attacking the back of Mr. Huh's neck with a knife. As Mr. Huh attempts to stop her, she continues to stab him in a total of ten places on his body. During the attack, none of the eight passengers get up to help, leaving Mr. Huh to eventually overpower and detain the attacker by himself.

On December 10, Mr. Huh, who is currently being treated at the hospital, gave a phone interview on CBS Radio's 'Park Jae Hong's News Show'. He stated, "The bus passengers were all really cold-hearted and simply watched; what's more, they didn't even call 112 (Emergency Number)." He continued, "With one hand I held the woman's hand containing the lethal weapon, and with the other hand I personally called 112."

Some are wondering if this is a case of the bystander effect, a social psychological phenomenon in which individuals do not offer help to a victim because they assume that someone else will step in.

Some netizens, particularly on Nate, even sympathize with the passengers, saying, "Don't [judge them] for not helping; in Korea, the law is like that. If you sacrifice yourself and help out, what are you doing? You help and then you get reported, you get hurt, you die, you get fined, or you get investigated by the police," and, "But I understand the passengers' attitude a little bit; if a passenger grabbed the girl to restrain her, that girl would definitely accuse them of rape or molestation."

Others, however, have criticized the passengers for remaining idle during the attack, saying, "What is this? There's a person getting stabbed; even if the driver's section is blocked off you don't even report it?" and "If this were your dad, you would be anxious."

Share this article