The South Korean government on Wednesday unveiled a new duty-free license scheme to improve transparency and fairness as part of efforts to revamp the scandal-hit sector.
Under the plan, the government will form a neutral private panel to examine the qualifications of applicants and grant permits, according to the Ministry of Strategy and Finance.
The panel will consist of 100 experts in four different groups, with 25 members to be picked at random to convene a decision-making board. The names of all members can be checked by the public.
Currently, a 15-member panel is formed three days before the examination, with half of them being government officials, while the identities of others are withheld.
The ministry said it will also disclose the results of the screening process and strengthen punishment against leaked information and kickbacks in order to make the entire procedures more transparent. The public disclosure can moreover push panel members to take responsibility for their decisions.
The revised process will be applied to the upcoming review of the operating license by Lotte Duty Free, which is scheduled to expire in December, the ministry said.
The Seoul government came up with the new duty-free scheme as the current licensing system has been under fierce criticism due to the massive corruption scandal involving former President Park Geun-hye and her close friend Choi Soon-sil.
The state audit agency said earlier that the Korea Customs Service (KTS) had selected certain operators upon request from high-ranking officials related to Choi and it even revised the procedures to give them an edge.
Since the Moon Jae-in administration took office in May, the government has suspended the entire process for duty-free licensing.
The South Korean duty-free business had enjoyed a heyday for years, but it has entered a downturn cycle due to a steep drop in Chinese tourists this year. The decline is largely attributable to the protracted diplomatic row with China over Seoul's decision to station a U.S. missile defense system on its soil.
