Anti-graft law throws public into confusion
official at the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission answers a phone inquiry about a possible breach of the anti-graft law, at the commission’s Seoul branch, Wednesday, when the law took effect. / Korea Times photo by Hong In-kee
By Lee Kyung-min
The public is in confusion following the implementation of the anti-graft law, known as the Kim Young-ran Act.
While the toughest-ever anti-corruption law bans public servants, teachers and journalists from being served meals and gifts with prices surpassing specific amounts, many ambiguous terms and factors are confusing people, forcing them to consider whether their actions are within the permitted levels every time they have meals or meet people.
In the first two days since the law took effect Wednesday, police received a total of 31 reports of suspected breaches of the law, including two written ones and 29 phone calls.
One of the written ones was filed against Gangnam-gu head Shin Yeon-hee over an allegation that she violated the law by offering free meals and tours to 160 heads of senior centers in the district.
Her office denied the allegations, saying it was part of its senior benefit programs set up a decade ago and it fully reviewed the law in advance to see whether the program violated the new law. Police said they would determine later on whether to investigate the matter.
Another report was filed by an investigator at a police station in Gangwon Province, after he received a box of rice cakes from a person whose case he had been investigating. The officer immediately returned it to the sender and reported it to the station’s internal inspection team.
Among the 29 calls, a group of students in Busan asked police whether they would be punished if they paid 50,000 won each to buy birthday presents for a professor. Another person reported that a university professor received a can of coffee from a student.
Police said they would not accept phone reports but only written ones, and would decide whether to investigate them.
Confusion also took hold at a theme park.
Everland in Yongin, Gyeonggi Province, announced Thursday that it decided to suspend free admission to soldiers on leave. It said soldiers are public servants the admission ticket costs more than 50,000 won, the permitted amount, so the benefit would violate the Kim Young-ran Act. But the decision met criticism, and Everland said Friday that it would keep providing free tickets to all soldiers except high-ranking military officials.
University seniors are also adjusting their customary practice of asking their professors for a favor.
It has been usual for seniors who land a job before graduation to ask their professors to give them credits despite not attending classes. The request used to be accepted in most cases, as professors acknowledge the difficult job market.
However, according to the anti-graft law, making and accepting such a request is an “illicit favor,” subject to two years in prison or 20 million won in fines.
The Ministry of Education hastily told universities that they could revise own regulations to give credits to such students.