Considering Criminal Complaints Against Responsible Public Officials and Others
On September 17, the Daegu Citizens' Coalition for Economic Justice announced that it had filed a lawsuit with the Daegu District Court, seeking 1 million won in damages against Daegu City for intentionally and repeatedly withholding information regarding the civil servant golf tournament, which is subject to public disclosure.
The Daegu Citizens' Coalition for Economic Justice stated, "Daegu City decided not to disclose documents such as the business plan, settlement report, budget execution details, and supporting documents for the 2nd Daegu City Civil Servant Golf Tournament, which we requested to be made public in June 2024. However, the Central Administrative Appeals Commission ruled that this non-disclosure decision was unlawful."
In 2023, despite a ruling by the Central Administrative Appeals Commission that the non-disclosure of information was unlawful, Daegu City did not disclose documents such as the business plan, settlement report, budget execution details, and supporting documents for the 1st Daegu City Civil Servant Golf Tournament. It was only after the Commission accepted the indirect enforcement application filed by the Daegu Citizens' Coalition for Economic Justice that the city released the information. Daegu City was fully aware that information related to the civil servant golf tournament was subject to public disclosure, yet intentionally withheld it.
The local online news outlet 'Newsmin' also filed a lawsuit seeking 1 million won in damages against Daegu City for withholding the '2024 Employee Club Support Plan,' despite the Central Administrative Appeals Commission's ruling that the non-disclosure of the '2023 Employee Club Support Plan' was unlawful. The Daegu District Court ruled that Daegu City must pay 1 million won in damages.
Daegu City appealed the decision, but on July 17, the court dismissed the appeal. It is reported that Daegu City subsequently paid 'Newsmin' a total of 1.1 million won, including interest.
The Daegu Citizens' Coalition for Economic Justice explained that it filed the damages lawsuit for several reasons: the information maliciously withheld by Daegu City pertains to the civil servant golf tournament, which former Daegu Mayor Hong Joonpyo boasted was a unique event in the country; Daegu City did not disclose the information despite the Central Administrative Appeals Commission's ruling, only releasing it after the indirect enforcement decision; and the repeated pattern of the city's non-disclosure decisions, subsequent administrative appeals, and the Commission's rulings to accept or partially accept those appeals.
The Daegu Citizens' Coalition for Economic Justice added, "If we win this lawsuit, we will pursue not only administrative accountability for the civil servants responsible for these illegal acts, but also civil liability, including exercising the right of recourse and recovering litigation costs."
Additionally, the Daegu Citizens' Coalition for Economic Justice is considering filing a complaint against the public officials and related parties responsible for withholding information about the civil servant golf tournament, in order to uncover the truth and assign responsibility for Daegu City's malicious non-disclosure, address the abuse of loopholes in the 'Act on Disclosure of Information by Public Agencies'-which lacks provisions for punishing violators-and prevent recurrence. While the Act does not provide for disciplinary action against information disclosure officers who act improperly, it does contain provisions to protect the status of those who act properly.
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