Pointing the finger
Following in the footsteps of the USA and Japan, South Korea has announced plans to fingerprint all visitors to the country as of 2012 alongside supplying an identity photograph in a bid to tighten immigration controls and prevent criminals from entering...
Whilst America and Japan have been fingerprinting visitors ever since the September 11th terror attacks in 2001 and Britain began fingerprinting arrivals from non-EU countries last year, this is a new requirement for South Korea.
Japan currently uses the
two-finger scanner, which was what the US used at first, before adopting
the 10-finger system.
Minimum age requirements have also been set in place - in the United States only foreigners 14 years old and
above are printed, while the UK
was pushing for the minimum age to be six - a decision that received much
criticism.
All international visitors over the age of 17 will now be asked to supply prints of their index fingers as well as a photograph upon entry to South Korea from 2012.
Previously, fingerprints were only required from people who were intending to stay in the country for more than a year, but this was abandoned in 2004.
Now, not only will all adult visitors have to do this, those intending to stay for more than three months will have to provide fingerprints of every single finger, not just the index one.
This new requirement has been introduced following a sharp rise in the number of crimes committed by foreigners in South Korea over the last decade.
Police data reveals that crimes rose from 4,328 in 2001 to a whopping 20,624 last year, signalling a huge fivefold increase.
"A database of physical information on foreigners is urgently needed to stop illegal immigrants, criminals and terrorists from entering the country," said Lee Bok-Nam, an immigration official at the justice ministry.
However, some officials at the Tourism Organisatuion are concerned that these new stringent entry regulations may put off visitors intending to travel to the country. With the tourist industry struggling in the face of global recession, they are worried that even this new rule could lower numbers further.
A professor at Seoul National University said, "Such a decision would be disappointing for all those committed to the vision of a Korea that is truly multicultural and thus both welcoming and comfortable in our ever more globalized world."
In a bid to boost the flagging tourist numbers, Seoul has declared 2010-2012 ‘Visit Korea' years, seeking to attract 10 million foreign tourists a year and earn £6 billion in foreign currency in the first year.
Picture by shadowkill