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South Korea's Constitutional Court on Thursday struck down a controversial adultery law which for more than 60 years had criminalised extra-marital sex and jailed violators for up to two years.
The decision saw shares in the South Korean firm Unidus Corp., one of the world's largest condom manufacturers, soar by the daily limit of 15 percent on the local stock exchange.
The nine-member bench ruled by seven to two that the 1953 statute aimed at protecting traditional family values was unconstitutional.
"Even if adultery should be condemned as immoral, state power should not intervene in individuals' private lives," said presiding justice Park Han-Chul.
It was the fifth time the apex court had considered the constitutional legality of the legislation which had made South Korea one of the few non-Muslim countries to regard marital infidelity as a criminal act.
In the past six years, close to 5,500 people have been formerly arraigned on adultery charges -- including nearly 900 in 2014.
But the numbers had been falling, with cases that ended in prison terms increasingly rare.
Whereas 216 people were jailed under the law in 2004, that figure had dropped to 42 by 2008, and since then only 22 have found themselves behind bars, according to figures from the state prosecution office.
The downward trend was partly a reflection of changing societal trends in a country where rapid modernisation has frequently clashed with traditionally conservative norms.
- 'Debauchery' feared -
"Public conceptions of individuals' rights in their sexual lives have undergone changes," Park said, as he delivered the court's decision.Reading the dissenting opinion, Justice Ahn Chang-Ho insisted the 1953 statute was a key protector of family morals, and warned that its abolition would "spark a surge in debauchery."
Under the law, adultery could only be prosecuted on complaint from an injured party, and any case was closed immediately if the plaintiff dropped the charge -- a common occurrence that often involved a financial settlement.
The debate over its future had simmered away for years, bubbling over from time to time especially if a public figure fell foul of the statute.
Such was the case in 2008 when one of the country's best-known actresses, Ok So-Ri, was given an eight-month suspended sentence for having an adulterous affair.
At that time, Ok unsuccessfully petitioned the Constitutional Court, arguing that the law amounted to a violation of her human rights in the name of revenge.The court had previously deliberated the issue in 1990, 1993 and 2001, but those moves to strike down the law had failed to gain the support of the six judges required.
Ok's 2008 petition had come close with five judges deeming the statute unconstitutional.
- Improving gender equality -
The law was originally designed to protect the rights of women at a time when marriage afforded them few legal rights, with most having no independent income and divorce carrying enormous social stigma.
But even socially conservative civic groups who had supported the legislation in the past acknowledged that times had changed.
"Adultery must be censured morally and socially, but such a law is inappropriate in a modern society," said Ko Seon-Ju, an activist with the Seoul-based civic group Healthy Families.
"It used to be an effective legal tool to protect female rights, but equal rights legislation has improved," Ko said.
"Adultery is an issue that should be dealt with through dialogue between the partners, not by law," she added.
While the adultery law may have been ruled out of existence, social disapproval of marital infidelity remains potent.
In April last year, South Korea blocked the newly launched Korean version of the global adultery hook-up site Ashley Madison, saying it threatened family values.
Yoo Hye-Jung, a 23-year-old college student, suggested that people unable to report adulterous spouses to the police might now resort to more violent methods of exacting revenge.
"If the law doesn't punish adultery and I can't act on my feelings of betrayal, I might take the law into my own hands," Yoo said.
http://news.yahoo.com/south-korea-legal ... 19360.html
Yoo Hye-Jung, a 23-year-old college student, suggested that people unable to report adulterous spouses to the police might now resort to more violent methods of exacting revenge.
"If the law doesn't punish adultery and I can't act on my feelings of betrayal, I might take the law into my own hands," Yoo said.
Mike Oxlong wrote:In the meantime...The decision saw shares in the South Korean firm Unidus Corp., one of the world's largest condom manufacturers, soar by the daily limit of 15 percent on the local stock exchange.
Samurai_Jerk wrote:The most shocking thing about this story is the fact some Koreans actually use condoms.
The Chosun Ilbo and the Korea Culture and Tourism Institute analyzed Japanese immigration data from November 2014 until February this year and found that Korea lost to Japan in terms of global visitors for the first time since September 2008. In February the number of tourists in Japan reached a record 1.39 million, up a whopping 58 percent on-year.
The Japanese government aims to attract 20 million tourists a year until Tokyo hosts the 2020 Summer Olympics.
◆ Chinese Tourist Boom
The main reason for the Japanese boom is a surge in Chinese visitors since Chinese President Xi Jinping and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe met during the APEC Summit in Beijing last November.
One travel agent here said, "Many regulations that had barred Chinese from visiting Japan were eased following the summit."
At the electronics market in the Akihabara district of Tokyo, announcements in Chinese can be heard more often than in Japanese. Most of the signs hanging in shop windows are written in simplified Chinese, while Mandarin interpreters sit at cash registers.
The situation is the same elsewhere in Japan. Shimoda, a popular tourist destination on the Izu Peninsula a two-hour train ride from Tokyo, or the Gotemba Premium Outlet in Shizuoka near Mt. Fuji, are overflowing the Chinese tourists.
◆ Weak Yen and Tourism-Friendly Policies
Chinese tourists are drawn to Japan because the weak yen has made products and services there much more affordable. This has led to fears that many Chinese tourists are heading to Japan instead of Korea.
The Korea Tourism Organization surveyed foreign tourists last year and found that 38 percent had considered traveling to Japan before coming here.
Another factor was the Japanese government's push to attract more tourists. It formulated a plan in 2003 to nurture the tourism industry and enacted a law in 2006 to support it. Last year, it followed up with a wide range of tourism-friendly measures like opening large duty-free shops in downtown Tokyo, VAT refunds for tourists and more visa-free travel.
The number of department stores and convenience stores that offer VAT refunds has increased 60 percent over the last six months to more than 10,000.
The Japanese government has also boosted low-cost carriers and cruise ships.
Lee Hoon at Hanyang University said, "Japan has consistently pursued tourism-friendly polices over the past decade and is now reaping the fruits. There are limits to how many tourists Korea can attract simply by offering shopping opportunities or banking on the appeal of the Korean Wave. Seoul needs to come up with a more systematic plan."
Mike Oxlong wrote:Japan Overtakes Korea in Drawing Global Tourists
Japan overtook Korea for the first time in seven years in attracting foreign tourists thanks to the weak yen.The Chosun Ilbo and the Korea Culture and Tourism Institute analyzed Japanese immigration data from November 2014 until February this year and found that Korea lost to Japan in terms of global visitors for the first time since September 2008. In February the number of tourists in Japan reached a record 1.39 million, up a whopping 58 percent on-year.
The Japanese government aims to attract 20 million tourists a year until Tokyo hosts the 2020 Summer Olympics.
◆ Chinese Tourist Boom
The main reason for the Japanese boom is a surge in Chinese visitors since Chinese President Xi Jinping and Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe met during the APEC Summit in Beijing last November.
One travel agent here said, "Many regulations that had barred Chinese from visiting Japan were eased following the summit."
At the electronics market in the Akihabara district of Tokyo, announcements in Chinese can be heard more often than in Japanese. Most of the signs hanging in shop windows are written in simplified Chinese, while Mandarin interpreters sit at cash registers.
The situation is the same elsewhere in Japan. Shimoda, a popular tourist destination on the Izu Peninsula a two-hour train ride from Tokyo, or the Gotemba Premium Outlet in Shizuoka near Mt. Fuji, are overflowing the Chinese tourists.
◆ Weak Yen and Tourism-Friendly Policies
Chinese tourists are drawn to Japan because the weak yen has made products and services there much more affordable. This has led to fears that many Chinese tourists are heading to Japan instead of Korea.
The Korea Tourism Organization surveyed foreign tourists last year and found that 38 percent had considered traveling to Japan before coming here.
Another factor was the Japanese government's push to attract more tourists. It formulated a plan in 2003 to nurture the tourism industry and enacted a law in 2006 to support it. Last year, it followed up with a wide range of tourism-friendly measures like opening large duty-free shops in downtown Tokyo, VAT refunds for tourists and more visa-free travel.
The number of department stores and convenience stores that offer VAT refunds has increased 60 percent over the last six months to more than 10,000.
The Japanese government has also boosted low-cost carriers and cruise ships.
Lee Hoon at Hanyang University said, "Japan has consistently pursued tourism-friendly polices over the past decade and is now reaping the fruits. There are limits to how many tourists Korea can attract simply by offering shopping opportunities or banking on the appeal of the Korean Wave. Seoul needs to come up with a more systematic plan."
http://english.chosun.com/site/data/htm ... 00517.html
Russell wrote:I am surprised that South-Korea was even able to surpass Japan in number of tourists at one time, since it has much fewer attractions. Many of its temples have been destroyed in the occupation by Japan, I heard.
inflames wrote:IME most Chinese tourists aren't interested in temples and want to go shopping.
Mike Oxlong wrote:I do wonder why Korea was getting more tourists than Japan for that long of a time. By number of tourists vs. native population and land area, it was really outperforming Japan.
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