S Koreans jam net sex register

Sex-related issues are taboo in South Korea

By BBC's Caroline Gluck in Seoul

A South Korean Government website has been jammed with people trying to access details of 169 recently convicted sex offenders.

The Commission on Youth Protection put the names on the website and on government bulletin boards across the country on Thursday in the latest initiative in its battle to curb sex crimes against minors.

The decision to release the names of sex offenders on the internet follows recently enacted legislation which allows for public disclosure to protect juveniles from sex crimes.

South Koreans examine the list pinned to a government bulletin board

Many see it as a bold step in a conservative country where discussion of sex-related issues is still a taboo.

Brief details of recently convicted rapists, child molesters and individuals who paid for sex with minors have been posted on the website. But a plan to release their photographs and full home addresses was shelved amid criticism that it would violate their privacy rights.

Nevertheless the move is a bold step in South Korea. It comes amid a worrying rise in sex crimes against juveniles which have increased by about 60% over the past five years.

South Korea's Commission on Youth Protection, which released the names, says the public disclosure system is aimed at shaming offenders and deterring them from committing further crimes.

But the move has proved controversial.

'Double punishment'

Critics say offenders have already been punished by the courts and this step is a double punishment. There are also concerns that once information about offenders has been released it could encourage vigilante-style attacks against them.

But the government commission says offenders who object to their names being released can appeal against the decision in court.

It adds that opinion polls show that an overwhelming majority of Koreans support the new measure.