South Korea's ruling party and government agreed Tuesday to strengthen economic penalties against those profiting from illegal structures in streams and valleys. They are considering increasing the frequency of non-compliance fines and pursuing claims for the return of unjust gains from illegal structures that defy removal orders.
The Democratic Party of Korea and the Ministry of the Interior and Safety held a "ruling party-government consultation on stream and valley cleanup" at the National Assembly on the 20th to discuss these measures. The meeting was arranged to review the cleanup progress for 72,658 illegal structures in streams and valleys nationwide that the Interior Ministry recently confirmed through a full-scale survey, and to discuss future directions.
Han Jeoung-ae, chair of the Democratic Party's policy committee, told reporters after the meeting, "We are considering legislative measures to strengthen the penalty system for the act of illegally taking private profits (through illegal structures)." She added, "In the case of non-compliance fines, they are imposed once a year. If imposed multiple times, we think it will be necessary to prepare a legal basis for adding to the penalty, and we are preparing for that."
The ruling party and government are even examining a "punitive penalty system." On this, Han explained, "Since individuals have reaped private profits by utilizing what is essentially a public asset, the approach must be one of recovering those profits." She added, "On a preventive level, the Interior Ministry and other ministries will discuss institutional improvements, infrastructure installation, and monitoring systems for managing streams and valleys."
Kwon Chil-seung, chairman of the National Assembly's Public Administration and Security Committee, also stressed, "When voluntary removal has been induced and recommended (for illegal structures) but not followed at all, especially in cases of long-term occupation for commercial activity, the state can file claims for the return of unjust enrichment." He added, "There were opinions that such measures should also be mobilized, and we consider them quite effective tools."
The ruling party and government plan to push for related legal revisions in earnest after the June 3 local elections. The specific level of sanctions is expected to take shape during the legislative discussion process.
Interior Minister Yoon Ho-jung said in his opening remarks at the meeting, "Under the principle of zero tolerance, we are strictly cleaning up (illegal structures in streams and valleys), while also pursuing voluntary cleanup through a guidance period." He added, "For facilities used in common by residents or closely tied to their livelihoods, we will establish reasonable standards and proceed with cleanup, taking into account public inconvenience and on-site conditions."
