Monk Threatening Head Monk with False Sexual Relationship File... Court Rules "Disciplinary Action Justified"

Seoul Central District Court / Photo by Moon Honam munonam@

[Asia Economy Reporter Seongpil Cho] A monk who threatened the head monk with a non-existent sex file, causing a sex scandal suspicion within the Jogye Order, filed a lawsuit against the order's expulsion disciplinary action but lost the case.

According to the legal community on the 30th, the Seoul Central District Court Civil Division 37 (Presiding Judge Seokgeun Park) ruled against Mr. Jo, former General Affairs Director of Gounsa Temple of the Jogye Order, in a lawsuit seeking to nullify the disciplinary action filed against the order. The court stated, "Mr. Jo's actions fall under the disciplinary reasons stipulated in the Monk Act," and "The disciplinary action cannot be seen as an abuse or deviation of discretion as it has not lost its validity according to social norms." Furthermore, the court added, "As a monk, Mr. Jo was obligated to continuously practice, devote himself to training and propagation, and fundamentally comply with the internal regulations such as the order's constitution and laws."

Mr. Jo received an expulsion disciplinary action in March last year for damaging the order's honor and harmony within the monastic community by causing a sex scandal controversy involving the head monk of Gounsa Temple with false information. Expulsion is a severe disciplinary action next to 'defrocking' under the Monk Act, resulting in the deprivation of public rights related to monk status for ten years. At that time, Mr. Jo was investigated for threatening the head monk as if he had a sex file that did not exist and recording this conversation, which he then delivered to Monk A. The recording, containing conversations such as "This is the sex file of the head monk and office manager Mr. B. They did well," was delivered to the media and led to reports of the 'sex scandal suspicion of the head monk of Gounsa Temple.'

Mr. Jo appealed to the retrial committee against the disciplinary action but was dismissed, leading him to file this lawsuit. In court, he claimed, "I did not record the head monk's sexual activity nor did I threaten him," and argued, "The expulsion disciplinary action is excessive compared to the act." The court judged, "The act of sending a recording containing lies threatening the head monk as if there was a sex file to Monk A can be evaluated as damaging harmony within the monastic community."