"Red License Plates for Drunk Drivers": Why the Idea Keeps Resurfacing

"There are very few people who have only driven drunk once. I support this," and "Let's implement it immediately so we can point fingers when we see them on the road."

These are some of the comments left on a recent post in an online community titled "Red License Plates Supported by 97%."

The post recorded 36,000 views and 666 likes.

A similar post on another community on the same day also drew attention, recording 22,000 views.

The idea of attaching red license plates, which would distinguish them from regular vehicles, to cars driven by repeat drunk offenders to prevent recidivism has recently been heating up online again.

This is not the first time the idea of introducing red license plates has become a hot topic.

The discussion has been resurfacing online every few months to half a year.

In October last year, an Instagram post discussing the pros and cons of attaching red license plates received more than 360 comments.

In February of this year, a related post was uploaded to X (formerly Twitter), recording approximately 920,000 views and 24,000 likes.

Public reaction to these posts is predominantly in favor of the introduction of the plates, with comments such as, "We need to attach red license plates to raise awareness."

There are also voices calling for even stronger punishments than red license plates, such as, "Permanent license revocation is necessary," and "They should be prevented from ever driving again."


The demand for stronger measures against drunk driving is also confirmed by government surveys.

According to a survey on drunk driving prevention measures released by the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission in 2023, 5,211 out of 5,334 respondents (97.7%) answered that "stronger and more comprehensive additional measures are needed to prevent drunk driving."

The phrase "97% of the public supports it" in the social media posts refers to the percentage of respondents who agreed on the need for stronger drunk driving prevention measures, not the percentage that supports the introduction of red license plates itself.

In the same survey, only 14.7% of respondents identified "attaching special license plates" as the most necessary policy for preventing drunk driving accidents.

The most frequently cited policy was "strengthening sanctions such as criminal penalties" (25.7%).

Reasons cited for the need for additional measures included, in order, "drunk driving is not being eradicated," "fatal accidents caused by drunk driving are frequent," "the recidivism rate is high," and "punishments for drunk driving are weak."

Given concerns over the stigmatization of drunk drivers and the potential for the system to be bypassed by using vehicles owned by family members or corporations, it seems unlikely that red license plates will actually be introduced.

Heo Chang-duk, a professor of sociology at Yeungnam University, pointed out, "Even if a measure is efficient, if it contains elements that infringe on human rights, it does not align with the direction of our community."

Kim Gwang-il, secretary-general of the Green Transport Movement, stated that the limitation of the special license plate system is that it applies to the vehicle, not the individual driver who commits the drunk driving.

Nevertheless, experts analyze that the phenomenon of red license plates being periodically discussed on social media is the result of a combination of public dissatisfaction with the current judicial system and the collective conformity psychology unique to online communities.

Professor Heo said, "It can be seen as a form of 'punitive vicarious satisfaction' that arises because current punishments do not meet the legal sentiment desired by the public."

Secretary-General Kim emphasized, "The bigger problem is the sentencing standards for drunk driving, where sentences can be reduced through petitions or donations," adding, "The best system is strong criminal penalties and punishment (sufficient to completely block drunk driving)."

(Photo: Screenshot of Bobaedream post, Yonhap News)
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.