SPREAD OF ANIMAL ABUSE VIDEOS

[Anchor Lead]

Videos of animal abuse spread on the Internet quickly. Although those who post such videos can be punished by law, few of the perpetrators are actually held accountable and punishment is very lenient. Critics are blaming the Korea Communications Standards Commission for not using its authority to prevent brutal videos from being posted online.

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A snake is inserted into a box with a mouse and its offspring. It tries to fight off the snake, but the little ones are gobbled up, one after another. The scene is videotaped until the snake eats up all the mice in front of the mother. The video recorded some 130,000 views in two months.

[Soundbite] Choi Min-kyung(Korea Animal Rights Advocates) : "The producer of this video created extreme conditions on purpose. It’s completely unnatural, extremely violent and abusive."

Videos showing someone brutally burying live fish in flower pots or killing cats or hamsters can be easily found on the Internet. More views when the degree of cruelty intensifies. Uploaders get even more motivated to post more such videos.

[Soundbite] Choi Min-kyung(Korea Animal Rights Advocates) : "The videos are too violent. It may affect people regardless of individual moral standards."

Posting materials about animal abuse is punishable by law, but as long as perpetrators do not take part in cruel acts, they only face a fine of up to 3 million won. The man who was caught early this year for running an animal abuse site was ordered to pay a 3-million-won fine without a trial, but he requested a trial because he found the fine too heavy.

[Soundbite] Byun Ju-eun(Korea Animal Welfare Association) : "Even though these videos are terrifying and cruel, punishment for posting them is too lenient."

The Korea Communications Standards Commission, which has the authority to block or delete brutal videos, is not doing enough to fulfill its responsibility. The commission deliberated only 17 cases of animal abuse videos over the past five years. This year, zero. In response to a public petition demanding punishment for those who produced and posted videos of cat abuse, the government vowed to investigate the incidents and strengthen punishment.