• The Korean Journal of Air & Space Law and Policy
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• v.27 no.1
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• pp.3-27
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• 2012

Although aviation safety and security have been improving, which has made air transportation more reliable, the international aviation community has witnessed a steady increase in the number of unruly passenger incidents. Under international law, the Tokyo Convention (The Convention on Offences and Certain Other Acts Committed on Board Aircraft of 1963) is applicable to unruly passenger issues. While the Tokyo Convention has been a successful convention which 185 member states have ratified, it has its shortcomings. Three major shortcomings are related to definition, jurisdiction, and enforcement. Firstly, the Tokyo Convention does not provide for a definition of unruly passengers, thereby resulting in a situation where conduct that may be considered to be a criminal offence in the country of embarkation may not be a criminal offence in the country where the aircraft lands. Having different definitions may lead to ineffective action on the part of air carriers. Secondly, the fact that the state of landing does not bear jurisdiction produces circumstances in which it is impossible to punish an unruly passenger who clearly committed an offence on board. Thirdly, the Tokyo Convention only recognizes the competence of the state of registry to exercise criminal jurisdiction but does not impose the duty to actually use that competence in any specific case. Along with ratifying the Tokyo Convention, Korea enacted the Aviation Navigation Safety Act in 1974 as a domestic legal approach to dealing with the problem of unruly passengers. Partially reflecting the ICAO's model legislation, Circular 288, the Aviation Safety and Security Act was enacted in 2002. Although the Korean Aviation Safety and Security Act is a comprehensive act which has been constantly updated, there is no provision with respect to jurisdiction and only the Korean criminal code is applicable to jurisdiction. The Korean criminal code establishes its jurisdiction in connection with territoriality, nationality and registration, which is essentially the same as the jurisdictional principles of the Tokyo Convention. Thus, the domestic legal regime cannot close the jurisdictional gap either. Similarly, Korean case law would not take an active posture to jurisdiction unless the offence in question is a serious one, such as hijacking. A Special Sub Committee of the ICAO Legal Committee (LCSC) was established to examine the feasibility of introducing amendments to the Convention on Offences and Certain Other Acts Committed on Board Aircraft of 1963 with particular reference to the issue of unruly passengers. The result of the ICAO's findings should lead to the modernization of the Tokyo Convention, thereby reducing the number of incidents caused by unruly passengers and enabling all parties concerned to respond to unruly passengers more effectively.

• The Korean Journal of Air & Space Law and Policy
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• v.30 no.2
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• pp.201-248
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• 2015

In Korea the number of unlawful interference act on board aircrafts has been increased continuously according to the growth of aviation demand, and there were 55 incidents in 2000, followed by 354 incidents in 2014, and an average of 211 incidents a year over the past five years. In 1963, a number of states adopted the Convention on Offences and Certain Other Acts Committed on Board Aircraft (the Tokyo Convention 1963) as the first worldwide international legal instrument on aviation security. The Tokyo Convention took effect in 1969 and, shortly afterward, in 1970 the Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Seizure of Aircraft(the Hague Convention 1970) was adopted, and the Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Acts Against the Safety of Civil Aviation(the Montreal Convention 1971) was adopted in 1971. After 9/11 incidents in 2001, to amend and supplement the Montreal Convention 1971, the Convention on the Suppression of Unlawful Acts Relating to International Civil Aviation(the Beijing Convention 2010) was adopted in 2010, and to supplement the Hague Convention 1970, the Protocol Supplementary to the Convention for the Suppression of Unlawful Seizure of Aircraft(the Beijing Protocol 2010) was adopted in 2010. Since then, in response to increased cases of unruly behavior on board aircrafts which escalated in both severity and frequency,, the Montreal Protocol which is seen as an amendment to the Convention on Offences and Certain Other Acts Committed on Board Aircraft(the Tokyo Convention 1963) was adopted in 2014. Korea ratified the Tokyo Convention 1963, the Hague Convention 1970, the Montreal Convention 1971, the Montreal Supplementary Protocol 1988, and the Convention on the Marking of Plastic Explosive 1991 which have proven to be effective. Under the Tokyo Convention ratified in 1970, Korea further enacted the Aircraft Navigation Safety Act in 1974, as well as the Aviation Safety and Security Act that replaced the Aircraft Navigation Safety Act in August 2002. Meanwhile, the title of the Aviation Safety and Security Act was changed to the Aviation Security Act in April 2014. The Aviation Security Act is essentially an implementing legislation of the Tokyo Convention and Hague Convention. Also the language of the Aviation Security Act is generally broader than the unruly and disruptive behavior in Sections 1-3 of the model legislation in ICAO Circular 288. The Aviation Security Act has reflected the considerable parts of the implementation of national legislation under the Beijing Convention and Beijing Protocol 2010, and the Montreal Protocol 2014 that are the modernized international conventions relating to aviation security. However, in future, when these international conventions would come into effect and Korea would ratify them, the national legislation that should be amended or provided newly in the Aviation Security Act are as followings : The jurisdiction, the definition of 'in flight', the immunity from the actions against the aircraft commander, etc., the compulsory delivery of the offender by the aircraft commander, etc., the strengthening of penalty on the person breaking the law, the enlargement of application to the accomplice, and the observance of international convention. Among them, particularly the Korean legislation is silent on the scope of the jurisdiction. Therefore, in order for jurisdiction to be extended to the extra-territorial cases of unruly and disruptive offences, it is desirable that either the Aviation Security Act or the general Crime Codes should be revised. In conclusion, in order to meet the intelligent and diverse aviation threats, the Korean government should review closely the contents of international conventions relating to aviation security and the current ratification status of international conventions by each state, and make effort to improve the legislation relating to aviation security and the aviation security system for the ratification of international conventions and the implementation of national legislation under international conventions.

• The Korean Journal of Air & Space Law and Policy
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• v.29 no.1
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• pp.33-66
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• 2014

While the numbers of overseas travelers has been increased rapidly each year, the numbers of passengers in the aircraft also has continued to be increased gradually. In the mist of these increasing numbers, such accidents as threatening an aircraft safety like riot, aircraft hijacking and terrorism have happened constantly. In these circumstances, South Korean government has prescribed "Aviation on Security Act" in accordance with the Convention on International Civil Aviation and other international agreements. This act aims to prevent illegal activities and illegal items on the aircraft to ensure the safety and security of civil aviation. However, this act is not sufficiently regulating all the illegal crimes and illegal items on the flight. For the worse, there is a lack of effective supervisory capacity. Likewise, the inherent problems of the current laws relating to the prevention of the illegal items on the aircraft are appearing on the surface continually. Above all, illegal items on the aircraft are directly connected to the issue of aviation safety and security as well as a safe utilization of the flight service. Thus, when there occurs a serious accident on board, it surely would be led to a huge economic loss not mentioning the loss of lives following the accident. Therefore safety of the flight passengers cannot be guaranteed without ensuring the safety of aircraft facilities and good supervisory mechanism of illegal items on the aircraft. Accordingly, establishing a safe operation order tends to influence economy and tourism of a country in no small measure. Therefore, it is an urgent issue to settle down a reasonable and adequate supervisory regulations regarding the prevention of the illegal items on the aircraft. Consequently, in this article, I studied on a reasonal and effective mechanism to control the prevention of the illegal items and illegal acts on the aircraft in order to ensure a safety and security of civil aircraft.

• The Korean Journal of Air & Space Law and Policy
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• v.29 no.2
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• pp.87-108
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• 2014

Recent examples of abuse by black consumers (including air travellers) against emotional laborers have become a serious social issue in Korea in that they are likely to violate human rights of those laborers. Emotional labor is a form of emotion regulation that creates a publicly visible facial and bodily display, and also emotional management within the workforce that creates a situation in which the emotion management by workers can be exchanged in the marketplace. Example professions that require emotional labor are: nurses, doctors, waiting staff, and television actors. However, as the economy moves from a manufacturing to a service-based economy, many more workers in a variety of occupational fields are expected to manage their emotions according to employer demands when compared to the past. One of symptoms deriving from emotional labor is smile mask syndrome abbreviated SMS, which is a psychological disorder proposed by professor Makoto Natsume where subjects develop depression and physical illness as a result of prolonged, unnatural smiling. And higher degree of using emotion regulation on the job is related to higher levels of employees' emotional exhaustion, and lower levels of employees' job satisfaction. In most part, emotional laborers are more abused and hurt by so called black consumers who are raising complaints relating to products and services purchased against service providers for the purpose of maliciously getting compensation. Against this background, the Korean Government abolished "the Consumer Protection Act" and instead promulgated "the Basic Consumer Act" in September 2006 which stipulates that consumers are expected to have protection as well as responsibility and duty. The Aviation Security Act cites the examples of prohibited behaviors (unruly passengers) while they are travelling. In addition, human rights of emotional laborers could be more protected by the enhancement of etiquettes and cavalry and improvement of culture and working environment.