Strengthened sex crime provisions go into effect June 19

Posted on : 2013-06-18 14:34 KST Modified on : 2019-10-19 20:29 KST
After public outcry over horrific sex crimes, convicted offenders will face more extensive controls

By Kim Won-chul, staff reporter

On June 4, prosecutors declined to press charges against former Blue House spokesman Yoon Chang-jung for “sexual misconduct through abuse of power” for the alleged groping of a young, female intern in Washington, DC.

Women’s rights groups, including WomenCorea, had requested an indictment on violation of the Act on Special Cases Concerning the Punishment, etc., of Sexual Crimes. At the time, prosecutors said the nature of the crime required that the victim herself file the accusation.

Starting on June 19, this restriction no longer applies. This week, the requirement that the victim be the one pressing charges on any sex crimes is to be abolished, as are provisions dictating that an assailant cannot be punished if the victim does not agree to it.

The Ministry of Justice and Ministry of Gender Equality and Family announced Monday that 150 new or amended provisions to six sex crime laws would go into effect as of June 19. The decision was the result of the ministries’ discussions with a National Assembly special committee on sexual violence against children and women, formed after a high-profile murder case involving a stay-at-home mother in Seoul’s Gwangjin district.

The new provisions are structured around strengthening victim protections and after-the-fact management to punish sexual offenders and prevent recidivism. In addition to abolishing requirements that the victim lodge an accusation and consent to prosecution, they also step up punishments for the possession of obscene materials involving minors.

In particular, they attempt to eliminate ambiguities by defining “obscene materials using children/young adults” as those featuring “children/young adults, individuals clearly identifiable as children/young adults, and representations thereof,” and “possession” as “possessing while aware that [the materials] are obscene materials using children/young adults.”

The level of punishment was also increased, with the addition of jail time to statutory penalties.

Also introduced was a probation system that requires offenders in sexual assault cases - which have a high degree of recidivism - to be monitored by probation officers after their release. The aim is to stop repeat offenses by those who are not being monitored after completing their sentences, like the individual in Tongyeong, South Gyeongsang Province, who abducted and murdered an elementary school student after his release.

Another change involves stronger requirements for disclosure of personal information for sexual offenders. Photographs are to be taken directly by the intake institution at a resolution of at least six million pixels - a measure adopted after frequent complaints that poor picture quality made faces difficult to identify. Additionally, street names and building numbers are being added to the posted address, which previously only included the name of the neighborhood or municipality.

Offenders are also subject to greater restrictions on the places where they can be employed, including security companies, businesses providing online gaming facilities, children’s game centers, and children’s singing rooms.

An additional change makes the crime of sexual assault apply for cases committed against any individual, not only “women and girls” as in the previous wording. With this, offenders would be subject to prosecution for male-on-male assault.

Sexual crime status is also assigned to cases of entering a public bathroom or bathhouse to spy, plant a hidden camera, or otherwise satisfy sexual desires.

 

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