For the first time since 1953, South Koreans can now legally have sex with someone other than their spouse.
A panel of judges ruled that a law criminalizing adultery was unconstitutional, AFP reported. The law was created in 1953 to maintain social order, according to the BBC.
The Korean Herald described the ruling as “reflecting a growing importance of personal choice over marital order in a traditionally group-oriented society.”
The BBC reported that about 100,000 people have been prosecuted under the law over the years, with the Herald adding that the penalty for those convicted was two years in jail. In 2014 alone, over 900 South Koreans were prosecuted for adultery, The Guardian reported.
In 2008, prominent South Korean actress Ok So-ri found herself among those prosecuted under the law. She received a suspended eight-month jail sentence.
The adultery law had been challenged numerous times in the past. In 1990, 1993, and 2001 judges upheld the law, the BBC reported.
The law was originally designed to protect the rights of women at a time when marriage afforded them few legal rights, with most having no independent income and divorce carrying enormous social stigma. Defenders of the statute said its loss would encourage sexual depravity. (theguardian.com)