On May 3rd, 2018, the 13th temporary steering committee was held at International Hall 9B217 in the Humanities and Social Sciences Campus in order to discuss whether to permit the sale of alcohol during the upcoming Daedongjae, a term referring to Korean university festivals in May.
On May 1st, 2018, the National Tax Service (NTS) sent out an official document to all university headquarters in Korea, requesting that all university students follow the Liquor Tax Law during festivals. The document contained Article 4-2 of the Punishment of Tax Offenses Act, which says, “A person who commits a violation referred to in Article 106-2 (11) 1 of the Restriction of Special Taxation Act shall be punished by imprisonment with labor for not more than three years or by a fine not exceeding 30 million.” The sale of alcohol at university festivals, however, had been a long tradition of many university festivals, though it was illegal. As it was technically banned by the official from the NTS, Jo Gi-hwa, president of the 50th Student Council “S:with” from the Humanities and Social Sciences Campus, visited Jongno Tax Office, Jongno-gu Office, and NTS Seoul Regional Office to make an inquiry on the document. Jo inquired whether there are alternative ways to sell alcohol during ESKARA, the SKKU’s Daedongjae, but all three localities responded that Article 4-2 of the Punishment of Tax Offenses Act is the positive law and did not propose any alternatives to this situation.
The discussion of not only the sale of alcohol, but also the sale of food, specifically the sale of food cooked outdoors, was made for the sale of food cooked outdoors without permission is also technically the violation of the Food Sanitation Act. According to Article 36, 37, and 94 of the Food Sanitation Act, a person who tries to sell food without a permit or a license shall be punished by imprisonment with labor for not more than ten years or by a fine not exceeding 100 million. Severe discussion went on with 43 representatives present, and the voting took place on the item “To prohibit the sale of alcohol and food in student booths.” Twenty-seven representatives voted for the item, 13 voted against the item, and 3 abstained from voting. After the voting was over, “S:with” revealed that it will try its best to find alternatives such as bringing more food trucks to the campus to have students enjoy more during ESKARA.