Diplomatic immunity row sparked by Belgian envoy’s wife ‘hitting’ two in Seoul

The wife of Belgium’s ambassador to South Korea will now be exercising her diplomatic immunity to avoid criminal charges after the allegedly hit two staff members at a boutique in Seoul last month.

Daily Current Affairs Quiz 2021

Diplomatic immunity is a privilege of exemption from certain laws and taxes granted to diplomats by the country in which they are posted.

The custom was formed so that diplomats can function without fear, threat or intimidation from the host country.

Diplomatic immunity is granted on the basis of two conventions, popularly called the Vienna Conventions — the Convention on Diplomatic Relations, 1961, and the Convention on Consular Relations, 1963.

They have been ratified by 187 countries, including South Korea, which means, it is a law under that country’s legal framework and cannot be violated.