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| (Source) Delamere, www.delamere.com |
Have you seen the drama Suriname? This drama features the story of Jeon Yo-Hwan, who became a drug kingpin by creating a drug cartel in Suriname. In the movie Extreme Job, the story ends with Ko Sang-Ki, the head of the Mapo Police Station’s drug squad, catching Lee Moo-Bae, who runs a drug business. As you can see, drugs have become a common topic in Korean movies and dramas. But what if these stories are happening in real life? Recently, there have been many articles about the use of drugs by celebrities. The growing number of people taking drugs is shocking society. Also, the age of drug use is getting lower, between the 20s and 30s, and even some teenagers are being caught with drugs. As the way of dealing drugs becomes more complicated and trade over the Internet increases, it’s becoming more challenging to investigate. Is Korea safe from drugs today?
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| (Source) Korea Customs Service, www.customs.go.kr |
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| (Source) Korea Customs Service, www.customs.go.kr |
The Korea Customs Service detected 238kg[1] of drugs in the first half of 2022. These drugs were brought in many ways, such as by cargo, international mail, and air/sea travelers. Recently, drug cartels have been importing large-scale quantities of drugs with the increase in international passenger flights. One of the ways that cartels used was to threaten Koreans to transport drugs to Korea in person. There's also a bit of a weird way to transport them. Some carry drugs inside their bodies to avoid being caught and are called “body packers”. In October this year, a man from Malaysia died of drug poisoning, and it was confirmed that a sealed drug he had put in his body for trading purposes had burst. Also, there are cases of being caught trading drugs using an express bus post-delivery service. Drug dealing is not the only issue, as drugs are being grown in Korea, too. A high school student was caught by the police while growing a drug plant known as hallucinogenic mushrooms at home, and a soldier was arrested for growing cannabis on an army base. The most frequently imported drugs were methamphetamines, at 87kg, cannabis (and cannabis oil), at 58kg, and the number of new types of drugs, which increased by 18% to 91kg. Particularly, methamphetamines have doubled compared to last year and they seem to be transported from Southeast Asia and the western United States.
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| (Source) engadget, www.engadget.com |
Recently, drug dealers have been paying attention to the Internet, especially social media. As online drug trades have soared due to the COVID-19 virus, purchase by the general public is increasing. Dealers sell drugs through the dark web (any site that cannot track IP addresses) or Telegram and trade with virtual assets, such as Bitcoin, to avoid transaction records. If you search for drug-related words through Google, you can easily gain access to Telegram addresses where you can buy drugs, and see pictures and even videos of people taking drugs. Recently, the police arrested a high school student selling drugs on Telegram. This student imported drugs into Korea by forming a drug trading organization, then sold them through a Telegram chatroom. Since those in their teens and 20s catch IT trends faster than those in their 40s and 50s, drug-related crimes are also increasing rapidly among them.
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| (Source) Yonhap News Agency, www.yna.co.kr |
Drugs are constantly being spread in bars and clubs. In the unprecedented incident in 2018 known as Burning Sun Gate, an enormous amount of drugs was distributed at the club “Burning Sun” in Gangnam. The testimony of female victims also confirmed that drugs are frequently used for sex crimes. Crimes like sneaking drugs into the victims’ drinks are also increasing. For example, in July of this year, an employee and a customer who unknowingly drank drug-mixed alcohol died at a bar in Gangnam. In addition, there was a terrible incident in which a victim unknowingly took drugs and then was threatened with sexual assault by the person who gave the victim the drugs.
According to Korea’s drug crime laws, people who take or possess drugs can be sentenced to a maximum of three years in prison and up to 50 million won in fines, and those who import or manufacture drugs can be sentenced to a maximum of 10 years in prison and up to 100 million won in fines.
People who are addicted to drugs face many financial and family difficulties. Because drugs are addictive and the treatment process is very difficult, temporarily isolating addicts in detention facilities to prevent drug use can’t be a fundamental solution. Just as there is counseling treatment at clinics and hospitals for alcoholics and smokers, there should be a way for experts to help drug addicts. Also, preventive drug education should be provided to raise awareness among teenagers. Currently, Korea provides education on sexual, family, and school violence for middle and high school students but does not provide education related to drug abuse.
It is also essential to increase the number of drug crime investigators. As there are many drugs flowing in by sea and air, the roles of the Korea Coast Guard and the Korea Customs Service in particular are expected to become more important. A drug testing kit will also be released to prevent unknowingly ingesting drugs by checking if there are any drugs in drinks. This will help police officers to detect drug crimes and secure the safety of victims. It is expected that citizens will be able to purchase these kits as early as next year.
As you can see, illegal drugs have already penetrated deeply into Korea. Unlike before, Korea may no longer be free from drugs. When you give in to temptation for a moment, you may live with regret for the rest of your life. Let’s not fall into the trap of drugs.
[1] Korea Customs Service, "Announcement of Trends in Drug Trafficking in the First Half of 2022", 2022.07.26, www.customs.go.kr/kcs/na/ntt/selectNttInfo.do?mi=2891&nttSn=10066028
Kim Youngwoo kyeryoong@gmail.com
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