By Lee Hyo-sik
Travelers to Jeju Island are advised to take extra caution while touring the nation’s southern resort island due to the highest rate of physical assaults and traffic accidents in Korea recorded there.
According to a data released by the Supreme Prosecutors’ Office, Jeju’s physical assault rate in proportion to the population came to 460.1 in 2009, the highest in the country. The rate is calculated by dividing the number of crimes times 100,000 with the population.
Gangneung, Gangwon Province, showed the second highest rate of physical attacks at 403.3, followed by 390.6 in Guri, Gyeonggi Province. A total of 1,888 cases of violence were reported in Korea’s most popular travel destination in 2009.
Jeju was also found to have had the country’s highest rate of traffic accidents in proportion to the population. Its ratio came to 788.8, followed by Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang Province, at 710 and Wonju, Gangwon Province, at 660.6. A total of 3,237 car crashes occurred in Jeju in 2009.
But an official at the Jeju Provincial Police Agency said hundreds of thousands of visitors come to Jeju every year, adding many of the physical assault cases and traffic accidents doesn’t accurately reflect the habits of the locals. “It is not fair to say Jeju has the highest rate of physical attacks and vehicle crashes by only taking the Jeju population into account. The number of visitors from either the mainland or abroad should be incorporated into the number of people when calculating the ratio.”
Meanwhile, Busan was found to be Korea’s most robbery-prone city, with its rate standing at 24.7, followed by Bucheon, Gyeonggi Province, at 22.6 and Guri at 22.
The murder ratio in proportion to population was the highest in Nonsan, South Chungcheong Province, at 12.6 as a total of 16 cases of homicide occurred in the city of 127,097 people two years ago. Chungju, North Chungcheong Province, came in second at 4.8, followed closely by Paju, Gyeonggi Province at 4.6.
Iksan, North Jeolla Province, showed the highest ratio of sexual assault at 101.4, followed by Jeonju, North Jeolla Province, at 100.2 and Siheung, Gyeonggi Province, at 94.7.
According to the data, residents of Mokpo, South Jeolla Province, were most likely to cheat on spouses, while Iksan was the city of illegal gambling.
