(Image: Yonhap)
SEOUL, Nov. 6 (Korea Bizwire) — At 85 percent, the vast majority of South Koreans believe that DUI killings should be punished by more than 10 years in prison.
The Citizen’s Coalition for Safety conducted a study on 249 participants over the age of 20 last month and delivered the results on Tuesday, revealing that as many as 49 percent of the respondents called for 10 years in prison.
Another 9.6 percent said 15 years, while 26.5 percent called for more than 20 years of imprisonment.
They also called for stronger restrictions on drunk driving.
In contrast to the current regulations in which a BAC of 0.05 percent is the minimum standard for drunk driving, 51.6 percent of the participants said that a person should not drive even after consuming a single glass of alcohol, while 26 percent called for a stricter standard of BAC 0.03 percent.
Asked whether locking devices should be installed in the vehicle of a driver who had their license revoked to prevent them from starting the engine while under the influence, 62.7 percent said the device should be installed for first-time drunk drivers, while 17.7 percent said the device should be installed the second time the drivers are caught driving drunk.
As for the duration of the suspension of one’s driver’s license after being caught drunk-driving more than three times, 30.1 percent said it should be more than five years, while 29.3 percent said the suspension should be permanent.
“There is a vast gap between the regulations on drunk driving and how the people think about it,” said Lee Yoon-ho, the Coalition’s Chief of Safety Policy.
“Information about drunk drivers who hurt or even kill someone should be made public, like we do with sex offenders, so that they will never drive under the influence again.”
H. M. Kang (hmkang@koreabizwire.com)
