"You drank beer and smoked, didn't you? The fine is 100,000 won"... Cheonggyecheon to crack down on 'nuisance behavior' with penalties

[Financial News] Seoul Metropolitan Government has decided to impose fines of up to 100,000 won on people caught drinking, smoking, and engaging in other nuisance behavior along Cheonggyecheon in central Seoul. The measure is expected to take effect as early as the second half of this year.

According to News 1 on the 12th, the Seoul Metropolitan Government plans to designate the entire 8.12-kilometer stretch of Cheonggyecheon, from Cheonggye Plaza to the confluence with Jungnangcheon, as a no-smoking and no-drinking zone and begin imposing fines within this year.
At Cheonggyecheon, drinking, smoking, entering the water, cooking, sleeping outdoors, urinating, and bringing pets are currently prohibited. However, there is no legal basis for imposing fines for violations. Forty safety officers from Seoul Facilities Corporation patrol the entire area in shifts, but until now they have only been able to issue warnings.
The Seoul Metropolitan Government plans to officially designate Cheonggyecheon as a no-smoking and no-drinking zone under the National Health Promotion Act and revise local ordinances so that enforcement officers from the relevant district can directly crack down on violations and impose fines.
The enforcement area will cover the riverside walkways used by visitors to access the stream. The upper roads and sidewalks that run alongside Cheonggyecheon are expected to be excluded from enforcement.
The fine is expected to be set at up to 100,000 won under Article 34 of the National Health Promotion Act. Once the ordinance revision is completed, the shift from warning-based responses to actual penalties is expected to reduce disorderly behavior at the site.

The move comes as a series of disorderly acts at Cheonggyecheon have recently sparked growing controversy.
On July 19, footage showing a middle-aged man and woman taking coins thrown into Cheonggyecheon as 'lucky coins' without permission drew criticism.
A sign at Palseokdam stated, "Collected lucky coins are used for education support projects for children in Korea and around the world through the Seoul Scholarship Foundation and the Korean Committee for UNICEF," which intensified public criticism. Many said the revelation that coins donated for public purposes were taken by individuals fueled public anger.
A woman bathing in the waterside area was also caught on camera. On the 24th of the same month, a video spread on social media and online communities showing a woman in a one-piece dress laying out bathing supplies near the stone steps by the Cheonggyecheon riverside and scrubbing herself.
Internet users reacted by saying, "It is true that order has become more chaotic as more foreigners have come in," "They need to be hit with a heavy fine so they never do that again," and "Stronger sanctions are needed."
[email protected] Ahn Ga-eul Reporter