Gathering Experts for 'Not Guilty Opinion' Consultation
Ahn Gyu-baek "Opposition Suppression Behind the Veil of Investigation"
Jung Sung-ho "Harsh to Indict the Leader of the Main Opposition Party for Such a Matter"
The pro-Lee Jae-myung faction (pro-Myung faction) lawmakers' group, 'The Yeomin Forum,' held a debate asserting 'not guilty' regarding the trial of Representative Lee Jae-myung. About 20 lawmakers from the Democratic Party of Korea, along with eight experts including lawyers and law school professors, attended the event.
On the morning of the 16th, the forum held a debate titled 'Review of the Crime of False Statement Publication for Election Purposes under the Public Official Election Act' at the National Assembly Members' Office Building. Before the debate began, forum representative lawmaker Ahn Kyu-baek (5-term, Dongdaemun-gu Gap, Seoul) stated, "The repression method chosen by the current regime today is the prosecution," adding, "They are suppressing the opposition party under the guise of investigation." He continued, "The first trial court for the opposition party leader is nearing its conclusion," and said, "We intend to review why the prosecution's indictment power is unjust from political, legal, and academic perspectives." Representative Lee is on trial for violating the Public Official Election Act and is awaiting the first trial verdict scheduled for November.
On the 10th, at the National Assembly National Defense Committee's audit held at the Joint Chiefs of Staff in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, Assemblyman Ahn Gyu-baek and Assemblyman Park Chan-dae (right) are having a conversation. Photo by National Assembly Press Corps [Image source=Yonhap News]
Participants argued that the crime of false statement publication for election purposes, for which Representative Lee was indicted, is unlawful, and they also presented specific argumentative methods that could be used during the trial process. During the last presidential election, Lee made a statement implying that he "did not know the late Kim Moon-gi during his tenure as mayor of Seongnam," for which the prosecution sought a two-year sentence under the Public Official Election Act's false statement publication charge.
Professor Jeong Han-jung of Hankuk University of Foreign Studies Law School said, "The crime of false statement publication under our country's Public Official Election Act has been widely criticized for excessively restricting freedom of expression," adding, "When applying this to specific cases, the meaning and weight of the restricted fundamental rights must be strictly considered." He further stated, "It can be argued that 'awareness' cannot be encompassed within the act of false statement publication," and "(or) since it is an opinion contained within the expression, it is impossible to prove, so it can also be argued that it is not a fact."
Lawyer Yang Hong-seok mentioned the conditions for establishing the 'crime of false statement publication for election purposes,' saying, "The requirement that it must be advantageous to the candidate must be met, but 'advantageous' is ambiguous and evaluative." Furthermore, he added, "'Not knowing Kim Moon-gi'?isn't that the prosecution's independent judgment?" and said, "I don't know if this warrants such a prolonged trial."
Senior lawmakers such as five-term Jeong Seong-ho and three-term Kim Seong-hwan also attended the debate. Former Supreme Council member Jeon Hyun-hee attended the debate after the Supreme Council meeting and mentioned that the indictment against Representative Lee was not consistent with fairness toward then-candidate Yoon Seok-youl. The forum plans to hold another debate on the 22nd reviewing the establishment conditions of the crime of subornation of perjury. Both violations of the Public Official Election Act and subornation of perjury are charges faced by Representative Lee.
© The Asia Business Daily(www.asiae.co.kr). All rights reserved.
