Woman Eats Takeout Meal on Subway, Spills Food on Floor
No Relevant Law, So Penalties Not Possible
A woman has come under criticism after a video of her eating bossam, soup, kimchi, and other foods while seated on Seoul Subway Line 2 spread across social networking services (SNS).
On October 25, a user posted a photo on their SNS account, stating, "I saw someone eating a meal on Line 2." The user expressed discomfort, saying, "She had taken out bossam and even kimchi and was eating them."
The photo shows a woman sitting at the end of a subway seat, taking out packaged bossam, kimchi, and soup from a white plastic bag and holding them in her hands. Some of the food was placed on her lap as she began to eat with wooden chopsticks, and food that appeared to have fallen during the unwrapping process was seen on the floor.
Many people online have called for appropriate legal action. However, there are currently no clear regulations that explicitly prohibit or penalize eating food on the subway. Article 34, Paragraph 1, Subparagraph 5 of the Seoul Metro Passenger Transport Terms and Conditions states that "items that are unsanitary or likely to cause discomfort to other passengers due to foul odors" are prohibited from being carried in stations or trains, but as this is only a contractual clause, legal action is difficult.
Online users commented, "It's something you would only see in that country," "I doubt she is Korean, and if she is, that's an even bigger problem," and "Because of the nature of the subway, smells linger and spread far; I can't understand what she was thinking."
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