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Sex Crimes List Spurs Support, Shame in S. Koeea
Personal information about 169 persons convicted of sexual violence against minors has been made public by the government.
The Commission on Youth Protection posted the information on the Internet (www.youth.go.kr) and on government bulletin boards nationwide. The listed persons were selected from among all juvenile-related sex offenders according to the severity of their sentences.
The posting has the names, ages, birthdays, employment, addresses and offenses of the 169 persons. The information will remain on the Internet for six months and on the bulletin boards for one month. This is the first time such details about sex offenders have been made public here.
Sixty-five persons were convicted of raping a minor, 61 were found guilty of sexual harassment, 27 of paid sex with minors and 16 of procuring minors for prostitution. The group includes six female procurers and four men who harassed boys. Two persons are listed as government officials, 35 as unemployed, 32 people as businessmen. Thirty-one are self-employed and 16 are blue-collar workers.
The release of the information triggered intense public interest. The Internet site of the Commission on Youth Protection failed temporarily Thursday morning because of the crush of persons trying to access it.
Crowds gathered in front of the Central Government Complex in Seoul to look at the posters on the board.
The commission was flooded with phone calls of both approval and disapproval. A housewife in her 40s encouraged the staff, saying, "Sexual crimes should be rooted out in society as soon as possible."
One person who said his personal details were posted threatened over the phone to "blow up the building unless the commission takes the list down immediately."
A 36-year-old man recently convicted of paying for sex with a 14-year-old girl said he is currently jobless because of the incident.
"I'm afraid that I can't get a job in the future since everyone knows about the incident now," he said.
The wife of a man also convicted of prostitution sobbed, "Our family was trying to make a new start, and the posting is an ordeal.
"The names of the juveniles who tempted my husband should be posted as well," she said.
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