Gallery
A petition launched against the import of sex dolls argues an influx of the products could lead to an increase in sex crimes.
SEOUL, South Korea — A petition calling for a ban on importing life-size sex dolls into South Korea has gathered nearly a quarter-million signatures as of Friday, passing a threshold that requires the president’s office to respond to the matter.
However, the Seoul High Court said in January that sex dolls were for personal use and should be treated differently than pornography, which is heavily restricted under South Korean law. That decision was upheld by the supreme court in June.
The ruling has sparked a backlash, with one petition filed with the presidential Blue House gathering more than 237,000 signatures. The unidentified author of the petition argued that an influx of imported sex dolls could lead to .
The boss of the distributing company which challenged the earlier customs agency ruling said it could not provide total figures for the number of sex dolls imported into South Korea.
