The proliferation of gambling in South Korea has lately been highlighted by the media. There may be only one casino in the country legally open to residents, Kangwon Land Casino in Gangwon Province, but there is plenty of opportunity to gamble on video slot machines at arcades. In August the Korean press made much of the fact that gift certificates issued as prizes were being exchanged for gambling chips contrary to regulations and that in less than a year the value of the certificates had rocketed to US$24 billion.

In 2003 the Korean Racing Association was granted a permit for an off-track betting centre in Wonju, about 90 km south-east of Seoul. Some local residents and religious leaders are mounting a protest against it opening early next month. Horseracing takes place at weekends and is generally well attended in Korea, with annual proceeds in the region of US$5.5 billion. The KRA says off-track betting centres are helpful to local economies, an opinion disputed by Wonju protestors who have organised a sit-in in front of the building.

The KRA runs three racecourses and 32 off-track betting centres mostly in and around Seoul. It has plans to open an additional 17 betting centres in areas outside the capital. The main opposition to the centres seems to be that they are for gambling and not entertainment, unlike horseracing, and that the KRA is opening new betting centres for profit without considering possible ill-effects. The protestors are asking the Ministry of Agriculture and Forestry, in charge of horseracing, to withdraw the permit.
(E-10.31.02)

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