Korea has 3.2 million adults addicted to gambling, and 1.3 million of them are seriously addicted and in need of urgent medical treatment, according to the Korean Racing Association, which sponsors gambling activities, and the Seoul Olympic Sports Promotion Foundation.
The figures were presented to the Millennium Democrat lawmaker Lee Jung-il, a member of the National Assembly’s Committee of Agriculture, Forestry, Maritime Affairs and Fisheries. According to the statistics, 9.3 percent of Korean adults are addicted to gambling, and 49 percent show a lack of will power, 32 percent suffer problems with relationships, 39 percent are unable to pay off debts, 16 percent are unemployed and 14 percent are violent toward their spouses.
Also, the committee was also told that 3.8 percent of Korean adults have severely lost their sense of control and have a high possibility of endangering themselves, their families or co-workers, and thus are in need of immediate medical treatment.
This percentage of gambling addicts among adults is four to five times higher than that of other nations such as the United States (1-2 percent), Canada (2.6 percent) and Australia (2.1 percent). The ratio is even higher that that of the U.S. state known for gambling, Nevada, which is 6-8 percent.
The symptoms for gambling addictiveness are mostly found in people who use legal gambling services. Those who bet on bicycle racing, horse racing, and casinos make up 44.4 percent of the total, followed by Internet gambling at 30.9 percent and cards at 19.85 percent.
CRITICS WARY OF COMPULSIVE GAMBLER BAN
Compulsive gamblers soon may be able to ban themselves from Indiana casinos, but critics charge that the proposed system works only when the gamblers win.
Under the program, expected to begin next year, costaneranj casinos will share a statewide computerized database of names, addresses, Social Security numbers and photos of addicted gamblers who want to bar themselves from gambling.
Each time such a gambler tries to cash a check, claim a jackpot of more than over $1,200 or use his or her player tracking card, he or she would be removed from the casino, and the winnings would be turned over to the state. Those violating the ban also could be charged with trespassing.
“They can’t win, but they can still lose,” said John Wolf, director of the Indiana Coalition Against Legalized Gambling.
Three Indiana casinos have been sued for allowing admitted problem gamblers to bet. On Wednesday, the 7th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in Chicago heard oral arguments in the case of David N. Williams, who sued Evansville’s Casino Aztar after he gambled away his life savings. A ruling is expected in January.
The program was approved by the General Assembly earlier this year. The rules now must be approved by the Indiana Gaming Commission, the attorney general and the governor. The Gaming Commission will have a public hearing on the rules at 10:30 a.m. Friday.
“If you know you can never possibly win, you will be less likely to go,” said Jennifer Arnold, spokeswoman for the Indiana Gaming Commission.
Wolf thinks casinos can do more to track problem gamblers.
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