South Korea

South Korea’s AIDS Prevention Act 1987 includes a provision under Article 19 which states that a person living with HIV must not perform any sexual acts without using preventative measures (as prescribed by Presidential Decree), or acts which may transmit HIV through blood or bodily fluids. Failure to comply is punishable by up to three years’ imprisonment under Article 25(2).

HIV Justice Network is aware of several cases. In 2009, an HIV-positive man became the first person known to be prosecuted under the AIDS Prevention Act for having condomless sex without disclosing his HIV status. It was reported that he had had sex with at least ten women. The man was sentenced to 18 months in prison.

In 2010, a court refused to issue an arrest warrant for a teenage HIV-positive sex worker who was alleged to have had sex with 20 men without disclosure. The same woman was arrested in 2017 and testified that she had had sex with about 10 to 20 men without using a condom. The outcome of her trial is not known.

In October 2023, Articles 19 and 25(2) the AIDS Prevention Act came under challenge in the Constitutional Court. In its split decision, the Court found that both provisions were constitutional, but five of the nine justices found the provisions to be partially unconstitutional to the extent that they criminalise people living with HIV who “faithfully implements the treatment prescribed by a medical practitioner”. However, the court report suggests that the required quorum of six judges was not met to determine unconstitutionality.

Article 15 of the law also makes it an offence for people living with HIV to fail to comply with directions for medical treatment. Article 27(4) establishes a penalty of imprisonment of up to one year, or a fine up to three million won.

The Criminal Code includes a provision on aggravated bodily injury which includes within its definition the transmission of disease, but no cases have been reported regarding its use in relation to HIV.