By Park Si-soo
Staff Reporter
The territorial dispute over ownership of Dokdo between South Korea and Japan helped attract a record number of visitors to Dokdo last year, the government said Tuesday.
According to administration offices at Ulleung Islet and Dokdo, 129,910 people landed on the islets last year, up from 101,428 in 2007.
The number of monthly travelers to the islets was at its highest in May with 23,135, followed by 19,876 in October and 19,485 in August. But the figure plunged after a cold spell swept the peninsula ― 6,421 in November and a mere 36 in December.
More than 100,000 travelers landed from ferries, helicopters or navy patrol vessels. Nearly 27,300 failed to land due to adverse weather conditions.
Visitors jumped after the government increased the daily quota of visitors to Dokdo to 1,880 starting 2007 from 140 in 2005.
``Japan's claim of sovereignty also played a substantial role in increasing the number,'' an official said. ``We will upgrade port facilities to attract more travelers.''
Meanwhile, the Japanese newspaper Yomiuri Shimbun reported Tuesday that the Japanese government will conduct new research on ocean energy and mineral resources around waters off Dokdo, starting April.