SEOUL--The South Korean government last week set new penalties for scientific misconduct and mandated a new system for investigating alleged misconduct in state-funded science. Drafted in response to the Woo Suk Hwang cloning scandal, the rules require government labs, universities, and research centers that receive state funds to tighten oversight to thwart scientific misconduct, including plagiarism, data tampering, and intimidation of whistleblowers. The guidelines, which contain new wording on training, call on institutions to form investigative committees comprised of at least five persons including experts and outsiders to probe allegations.
Under the guidelines, penalties for misconduct include the government ending state-run projects and barring institutions from receiving state funding for up to 3 years. In-il Lee, a ministry official, said that the government hopes that setting up this system will force scientists to take more responsibility in their research.
