Gov't set to publish names of poachers, traffickers

In the future, consumers who buy wild animal meat that has been banned will be subject to prosecution and have their names made public. At the same time, those who poach or traffic in wild animals will face fines of five to 10 times the amount of their income from the illegal transactions.

The government decided on Monday to enact laws to this effect and strengthen punishments against poachers and traffickers. It also decided to implement a program to better impede poaching and illegal trafficking by the end of next month through close cooperation among the Environment Ministry, prosecution, police and local governments.

Last year alone, 766 cases of poaching and trafficking were discovered and 36,760 illegal poaching devices removed. A total of 849 people were booked on related charges.

Prime Minister Lee Han-Dong ordered the agencies involved to establish effective policy measures to protect endangered animals, noting that further acts of environmental destruction would label Korea as a backward nation.

Boo Hyung-Kwon bookum90@donga.com