Citizen Group Files Injunction to Prohibit Fundraising Activities Against Jeonguiyeon

On the morning of the 22nd, Lee Jong-bae, the representative of the Action Alliance for Establishing the Rule of Law (Beopse Ryeon), held a press conference in front of the west gate of the Seoul Central District Court in Seocho-dong, Seoul, regarding the provisional injunction application to 'prohibit fundraising activities' for the Justice Memory Solidarity (Jeonguiyeon). / Photo by Jo Seong-pil gatozz@

[Asia Economy Reporter Seongpil Cho] A provisional injunction banning fundraising activities has been filed against Jeongui Gieok Yeondae (Justice and Memory Solidarity), which is embroiled in allegations of accounting fraud and embezzlement of donations.

The Action Alliance for the Restoration of the Rule of Law (Beopse-ryeon) announced on the morning of the 22nd, "We are submitting a provisional injunction application to the court demanding that Jeongui Gieok Yeondae suspend all fundraising activities and budget expenditures except for essential expenses until a judicial decision is made regarding charges such as embezzlement and breach of trust."

The court is expected to decide on the presiding trial panel and assign the case by next week at the latest. The presiding panel will set a hearing date and examine whether the applicant has the right to seek the requested prohibition and whether there is a need for a provisional ban, then make a final judgment.

In 2004, some former comfort women also filed a lawsuit of a similar nature. They filed a 'provisional injunction to ban fundraising activities and protest mobilization' against the Council for the Issue of Military Comfort Women (Jeongdaehyeop), but the court at that time dismissed the application, stating that "fundraising is for the purpose of supporting the victims' livelihoods."

Regarding the likelihood of this application being accepted, legal circles view the clarification of the embezzlement allegations as crucial. A lawyer in Seocho-dong said, "There is no evidence yet that Jeongui Gieok Yeondae and former director Yoon Mi-hyang embezzled donations," adding, "It will be difficult for the court to issue a decision that prohibits Jeongui Gieok Yeondae's activities solely based on suspicions."