The Number of Campaign Offenders Picks Up

Just 19 days away from the April 13 General Election, Korea's political arena is becoming more vicious. The National Police Agency announce yesterday that they had booked 527 people for breaking campaign laws. During the last election period in 1997, only 260 people were booked.
The Public Prosecutor's Office (PPO) has arrested 15 and indighted 29 of the entire 527 peope booked. The remaining 533 are under investigation.

A spokesman from the PPO said, "The right of investigation of the Central Election Management Committee has been strengthened. About 30 people have been booked on the charge of distributing name cards, an act designated as illegal for this election."
The offenders were booked because of corruption (198), false propaganda (83), illegal campaigning (115), violence (8). 104 of those booked are members of the Millennium Democratic Party (MDP), while 86 are from the Grand National Party (GNP), 65 from the United Liberal Democrats (ULD), 15 from the Democratic People's Party (DPP), and 252 are independent.

by Choi Jae-hee