Policy
As terrorism and counter terrorism financing arise as key issues in the international community since the 9/11 terrorist attack, Korea enacted The Act on Prohibition Against the Financing of Terrorism and Proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction (PFOPIA) on 21th December, 2007 and it went into force since 22th December 2008. The act serves as legal grounds to implement the International Convention for the Suppression of the Financing of Terrorism, which Korea signed and ratified on February 17, 2004 and the UN Security Council resolutions on WMD, etc. In 2014, for further effective regulation on proliferation financing, we have renamed the “Act on Prohibition against the Financing of Terrorism” into “Act on Prohibition against the Financing of Terrorism and Proliferation of Weapons of Mass Destruction”. The Act prohibits the collection and provision of funds for terrorism financing and proliferation of WMD, and it stipulates the designation of restricted persons and approvals for financial transactions.
Any individual who collects, provides, delivers, or keeps funds with the knowledge that such funds are to be used for terrorism will be punished by imprisonment not exceeding 10 years or a fine not exceeding KRW 100 million. The same criminal penalty is applied to any person who encourages or requests the collection, provision, delivery, or keeping of funds or assets with the knowledge that such funds or assets are to be used for terrorism (Article 6-1).
“Funds for terrorism” are defined as any funds or assets collected, provided, delivered, or kept for use in a prescribed list of violent acts committed with the intention to intimidate the public or to interfere with the exercise of power of a national, local, or foreign government (including any foreign local government or international organization established by an international treaty or an international agreement), or to force by intimidation such a government to abstain from acting (Article 2(1)).