The National Assembly has passed a bill that labels stalking a crime and imposes a maximum five-year prison sentence.

The bill, known as the stalking prevention law, was approved during Wednesday's plenary session, with 235 of 238 lawmakers present in favor and three abstaining.

The bill defines the act of stalking and calls for a maximum five years behind bars for stalkers that use a weapon.

It also calls on district prosecutors offices and police to designate sections exclusively for stalking-related crimes so that law enforcement can respond in a more professional and effective way.

Until now, there had been no domestic law to properly punish stalking and previous fines of under 100-thousand won have been criticized for being too weak a penalty.