National Assembly Science and ICT Committee Files Complaint Against Ryu Hee-rim, Chairman of the Broadcasting and Communications Commission, for 'Non-attendance at Current Issue Inquiry'

Resolution Calling for Resignation Also Adopted

On the 11th, the National Assembly's Science, Technology, Information and Broadcasting Communications Committee decided to file charges against Ryu Hee-rim, the Chairman of the Korea Communications Standards Commission (KCSC), who was absent from the inquiry regarding the 'civil complaint manipulation' allegations. The committee also passed a resolution urging Chairman Ryu to resign and requested the Board of Audit and Inspection to conduct a full audit into the KCSC's alleged cover-up of the civil complaint manipulation.

Ryu Hee-rim, Chairperson of the Korea Communications Standards Commission. Photo by Yonhap News

On the same day, the committee held a plenary session and resolved to file charges against Chairman Ryu, who was absent from the inquiry held on the 5th. All 12 opposition party members, including those from the Democratic Party and the Innovation Party for Justice, voted in favor. However, ruling party members opposed the vote and left the meeting room.

Chairman Ryu is suspected of having mobilized family and acquaintances in September 2023 to file complaints with the KCSC, requesting the commission to review broadcasters that cited the 'Kim Man-bae and Shin Hak-rim recordings' reported by Newstapa.

Until now, Chairman Ryu and KCSC executives have denied the allegations, but the situation changed after Jang Kyung-sik, head of the Gangwon office and then head of the General Programming News Channel team, reversed his testimony during the committee's inquiry on the 5th.

Following Jang's testimony, the opposition parties repeatedly demanded Chairman Ryu appear for the inquiry, but he has not appeared in the National Assembly as of this day.

During the plenary session, the opposition stated, "The KCSC gave a clean bill of health by concluding it could not confirm any illegality, clearly damaging fairness and public interest," and requested the Board of Audit and Inspection to audit the KCSC's internal investigation. They also adopted a resolution calling for Chairman Ryu's resignation.

In this regard, the KCSC branch of the Korean Federation of Journalists' Unions criticized the Anti-Corruption and Civil Rights Commission for demanding a reinvestigation by the KCSC, saying, "It is tantamount to entrusting the investigation again to an accomplice in the cover-up of the incident."