Anti-Corruption Coalition and Beopse Ryeon File Consecutive Complaints Against Opposing Political Forces
"Concerns Over Waste of Administrative and Investigative Resources If Biased Complaints Are Abused"
Shin Seung-mok, Representative of the National Participation Solidarity for Clearing Deep-rooted Evils Photo by Yonhap News
[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Jung-yoon] Whenever various political and social controversies arise, citizen groups invariably file complaints. While this is a positive activity for citizens to check power, attempts to resolve social controversies solely through 'judicial' means are not desirable and can also lead to a waste of administrative resources.
On the 16th, Asia Economy compiled the number of complaints filed by major citizen groups this year. The group called the Anti-Corruption National Participation Solidarity (Anti-Corruption Solidarity) submitted a total of 51 complaints from January to this day. The Rule of Law Restoration Action Solidarity (Beopse-ryeon) filed 41 cases. This means Anti-Corruption Solidarity filed a complaint once every 6.2 days, and Beopse-ryeon once every 7.8 days.
The progressive-leaning Anti-Corruption Solidarity mostly targets the conservative camp. Former Future United Party (now People Power Party) lawmaker Min Kyung-wook was reported four times on charges including violation of the Assembly and Demonstration Act. Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl, who has recently been at odds with Minister of Justice Choo Mi-ae, was also reported three times. Additionally, lawyer Kim Jae-ryeon, the legal representative of the victim who accused the late former Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon of sexual harassment, was reported twice by this group.
Lee Jong-bae, Representative of the Rule of Law Restoration Action Alliance [Image source=Yonhap News]
The group opposing Anti-Corruption Solidarity is the conservative-leaning Beopse-ryeon. They mainly name ruling party figures as defendants. Beopse-ryeon has filed complaints against Minister Choo 14 times. Choi Kang-wook, leader of the Open Democratic Party, and Yoon Mi-hyang, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, were also not spared by Beopse-ryeon. Beopse-ryeon submits complaints to the prosecution, citing concerns that the police are easily swayed by power.
Besides these two, the conservative-leaning Judicial Examination Preparation Group (Sajunmo) and the progressive Judicial Justice Restoration Citizen Action (Sasaehaeng) are also considered citizen groups with a high number of complaints. They filed 14 and 13 complaints respectively to investigative agencies. Shin Seung-mok, head of Anti-Corruption Solidarity, said, "We are filing complaints for the country and the people," adding, "We are not targeting the opposition party per se, but reporting lawbreakers, especially shameless lawbreakers, based on law and principles." Lee Jong-bae, head of Beopse-ryeon, said, "Unchecked power runs wild and the damage falls on the people, so monitoring all power is necessary."
From the perspective of power monitoring, citizen groups' complaints should be viewed positively, but relying solely on complaints is criticized for contradicting the spirit of prioritizing social compromise or consensus. Professor Lee Jun-han of the Department of Political Science and Diplomacy at Incheon National University explained, "When citizens monitor power, power becomes alert and morality can improve," but added, "If complaints biased by ideology and purpose are abused, it can lead to increased social costs such as waste of administrative and investigative resources."
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