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Child sex offender data to be on Web
Seeking to better protect children amid a growing number of sex crimes
against minors, Korea next year will start disclosing the identities of all
convicted child sex offenders on the Internet, officials said yesterday.
The Ministry of Health, Welfare and Family Affairs said all adults aged over
20 will be allowed under a revised law to log on to a government-run Web site
(www.sexoffender.go.kr) featuring the latest information on
all convicted child sex offenders, including their names, ages, addresses,
photos and summary of their offenses.
With the opening of the Web site, Korea will become the second nation in the
world after the U.S. to make public photos of sex offenders, officials said.
Their personal data will be available for five to 10 years.
The Korean government will also push for a separate legal revision to mail
the personal information of all convicted child sex offenders to nearby
households with children, said the officials.
Under the present law, personal information of those who are convicted of sex
crimes against minors under 13 is open to the public only at district police
stations. A growing number of violent sexual assaults on children has recently
put pressure on the government and judiciary to get much tougher with sex
offenders.
The limited access to the sex offenders identities has not been effective
in giving information to parents of young children, said Im Eul-gi, an official
at the ministry. But the new measures will have far-reaching effects,
considering the nations highly advanced broadband network.
Source: Joong Ang Daily
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