The Cabinet on Tuesday passed an anti-corruption bill amid unrelenting controversy over whether it violates an individual’s constitutional rights.
The so-called Kim Young-ran law, named after its proposer, passed through a regular Cabinet meeting, three weeks after the National Assembly approved it.
The bill now heads to the presidential office Cheong Wa Dae where it is expected to be signed by President Park Geun-hye.
After a presidential nod, the government is expected to publicly announce the legislation later this week, putting it into force from October 2016.
The new law subjects public officials, journalists and private school faculty to a maximum penalty of three years in prison or five times the amount accepted in money or valuables if they accept money or valuables worth more than 1 million won ($900) from one person in one installment, regardless of whether it was in exchange for favors or related to their work.
For gifts that are work-related and worth 1 million won or less, the penalty is a fine of up to five times the gift’s value.
The law is also designed to punish the spouses of those subject to the anti-corruption law if they fail to report the latter’s illegal bribery, which critics say could be in violation of the Constitution. (Yonhap)
