Police Arrest Former Broadcasting and Communications Commission Chairwoman Lee Jinsook for Failing to Comply with Summons (Comprehensive)

Suspected Violations of the Public Official Election Act and the National Public Service Act

On October 2, police arrested former Broadcasting and Communications Commission Chairwoman Lee Jinsook on charges of violating the Public Official Election Act and the National Public Service Act.

Former Broadcasting and Communications Commission Chairman Jin-Sook Lee is holding a press conference. Photo by Yonhap News

The Yeongdeungpo Police Station in Seoul executed an arrest warrant at Lee's residence in Daechi-dong, Gangnam District, that afternoon and escorted her to the police station. It has been reported that police applied for and obtained the arrest warrant after Lee failed to comply with a summons request.

Police believe that after the National Assembly passed the impeachment motion against her in August last year, Lee appeared on a YouTube channel and made remarks such as "the left does everything imaginable" and "if majority rule leads to dictatorship, it becomes the worst form of politics, not democracy." Authorities view these comments as either constituting preliminary electioneering or violating the political neutrality required of public officials.

In July, the Board of Audit and Inspection issued a warning to Lee for violating her duty of political neutrality as a public official, and further complaints were filed by the Democratic Party of Korea and civic groups. At that time, Democratic Party lawmakers on the Science, ICT, Broadcasting, and Communications Committee stated, "The head of the Broadcasting and Communications Commission, a core state institution directly linked to press freedom and freedom of expression, has blatantly revealed political bias and privatized public authority." They added, "On April 30, we reported Chairwoman Lee to the Yeongdeungpo Police Station for violating the National Public Service Act and the Election Act, but for some reason, the investigative authorities have been conducting a lenient investigation. The authorities must stop hesitating and strictly punish Chairwoman Lee’s illegal actions."