S. Korea to allow more tourists to viisit Tokto

South Korea will lift restrictions on visiting the Tokto islets to reaffirm its actual control over the disputed territory.

Regulations will be eased, opening access to the rocky islands, Cultural Heritage Administration head Yoo Hong-joon announced Wednesday.

"We will raise the quota as long as it does not damage the environment," Yoo said in an emergency media conference held at the Kyongbok Palace in central Seoul . The ministry will also lift prohibitions of on-site media coverage, Yoo said.

The government restricts the number of visitors to 70 people a day, citing environmental and security reasons and prohibits reporters from visiting the rocky islands. Every visitor is required to get permission from the governor of North Kyongsang Province, which has jurisdiction over the islets.

Some have claimed that the restrictions were not for security nor environmental reasons, but rather to avoid diplomatic friction with Japan , which has long claimed the islands.

"We are well aware that the limitation has brought about unnecessary misunderstandings. Therefore we will increase access to the island as much as possible,'' the administrator said.

The administration will have discussions with the government of North Kyongsang Province to raise visitation quota, Yoo said.

According to a recent study, the tiny islets are capable of accepting around 141 visitors a day or 5,640 people per year.

Last year, 1,597 people in 120 groups visited the East Sea islands . The figure has been about 1,500 since 2001. The Korea Coast Guard began to restrict visits in December 1992, actively enforcing it until 1997. The administration took jurisdiction over the island when the remote islets became government-designated Natural Monument No. 336.

Yoo's announcement came just after Japan's Shimane Prefectural Assembly voted to designate Feb. 22 "Takeshima Day'' to celebrate Tokyo's claim over volcanic islets in East Sea . Japan has long claimed its sovereignty over the Korea-held outcrops, eyeing the surrounding rich fishing grounds.

Source: Agencies