Supreme Court Upholds Fines for Hyun Jeonghee, Public Service Union Chair, Rules COVID-19 Rally Restrictions Legitimate

Rally of 40 Held in Violation of 2021 Gathering Restrictions

Lower Courts: "Downtown Quarantine Measures Justified"

Supreme Court: "No Violation of the Principle of Legality or Equality" Appeals Dismissed

On the 18th, the Cargo Solidarity under the Public Transport Union of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions held a rally in front of the HiteJinro headquarters in Gangnam-gu, Seoul, demanding the withdrawal of the collective dismissal and damage compensation lawsuit by HiteJinro. Hyun Jeonghee, Chairperson of the Public Transport Union, is shouting slogans. /Photo by Moon Honam munonam@

During the COVID-19 pandemic, Hyun Jeonghee, Chairperson of the Public Service and Transport Workers' Union, and others who defied local government quarantine regulations and held a large-scale rally in downtown Seoul have received a confirmed sentence of a monetary fine. The Supreme Court ruled that the local government’s public notice restricting the number of participants and locations in rallies, aimed at preventing the spread of infectious diseases, does not infringe on the freedom of assembly and demonstration.

According to legal sources on February 27, the Supreme Court (Presiding Justice Oh Seokjun) upheld the original verdict of a monetary fine in the final appeal trial for Chairperson Hyun and union members identified as Lee and Kim, who were indicted for violating the Infectious Disease Control and Prevention Act and other charges.

Chairperson Hyun and others were accused of conducting a car parade and publicity campaign in March 2021 in front of the Kumho Asiana headquarters in Jongno-gu, Seoul, with about 40 people to demand the reinstatement of dismissed workers. At that time, the Seoul city government had issued a public notice banning gatherings of more than 10 people, and Jongno-gu district had also completely banned rallies in the area until the infectious disease crisis alert was lifted. They were also charged with going significantly beyond the scope of their pre-registered notification and proceeding with the rally regardless.

The key issue in the trial was whether the strict restrictions on the number of participants and location imposed by the local government’s quarantine notice were unconstitutional or violated the freedom of assembly and demonstration.

The first and second trial courts ruled, “Given that this downtown area has a high floating population, the need for quarantine is as great as the need to guarantee freedom of assembly and demonstration,” and recognized the legitimacy of the administrative authority’s restrictions, stating, “The administrative agency’s judgment should be respected.” Accordingly, Chairperson Hyun and Lee were each fined 2 million won, and Kim was fined 800,000 won.

The Supreme Court reached the same conclusion. The justices stated, “The lower court’s ruling neither deviated from the limits of free evaluation of evidence by violating the rules of logic and experience, nor did it misinterpret legal principles such as the principle of legality, equality, or proportionality.” The defendants’ appeals were dismissed.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.