Dear Friends,
The Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) has learned that prosecutors have pleaded with the court to imposed four to five years of imprisonment on two human rights activists for organising an assembly. The assembly was to commemorate those who lost their family members in the January 20, 2009 Yongsan incident where five protestors and a police officer were killed during a police operation to forcibly evict villagers. One big challenge for rights activists in Korea is the legal action despite the fact that their activities have been made in accordance with the international human rights norms and standards. Please intervene on their behalf.
CASE NARRATIVE:
As mentioned in our previous appeals (AHRC-FUA-001-2009; AHRC-UAC-130-2009; AHRC-UAC-007-2010), Mr. Park Lae-goon and Mr. Lee Jong-hoi voluntarily surrendered to the police after they were issued with arrest warrants. In South Korea, before a judge rendered his sentence prosecutors gave their opinions about the sentence. In this case, a prosecutor had asked the judge to sentence Mr. Park five years and Mr. Lee four and half years of imprisonment respectively. The two were charged for holding assemblies to commemorate the Yongsan incident. After the Yongsan incident, they had been organising commemoration and assembly for those who protested against the forced eviction and lost their lives in the process of police operation.
According to the statement of the prosecution, they allegedly organised illegal assembly, organised assembly which might have directly threatened the public safety such as collective violence, obstructed public transportation and held assembly after sunset.
As far as direct threats of public safety is concerned, the prosecutor have not provided evidence specifying the time, place, reason and those who used violence in the period of the commemoration ceremony after the Yongsan incident. In addition, the violence that took place was not instigated by or with acquiescence by Mr. Park and Lee but was done by those individuals who took part in the assembly after the commemoration ceremony. Reasonable doubts should be made based on the evidence. In this case, the prosecutor has failed to provide such evidence.
Mr. Park and Mr. Lee, chairpersons of the pan-committee to solve the Yongsan incident and hold several assemblies where the families of those who lost their lives could make a speech to the public. Those commemoration ceremonies were earlier reported to the head of Seoul Jong-ro police station that prohibited any assemblies relating to the Yongsan incident based on the article 5 (1)((2)) of the Act on Assembly and Demonstration. It says, “No one shall hold any assembly, or stage any demonstration which falls under any of following subparagraphs…((2)) An assembly or demonstration which clearly poses a direct threat to public peace and order by inciting collective violence, threats, destruction, arson, etc.” However, no assemblies were planned and done with violence. Although such violence occurred, it was not directly related to the commemoration ceremonies. In this case, the police misuse their discretion on giving permission to anyone who applies for holding assembly. In addition, the article 21 (2) of the Constitution completely prohibited any assembly and demonstration from implementing as permission system.
Regarding the general obstruction of traffic, the article 185 of the Criminal Act does not punish any act obstructing traffic. It should be interpreted with the circumstantial evidence such as the unique of the place, other possible flow of traffic, intention and lasting time of such obstruction etc. In this case, the prosecutor has again failed to provide evidence the traffic was completely obstructed by the assembly and demonstration.
SUGGESTED ACTION:
Please send your letters to the authorities below and ask them to release Mr. Park and Mr. Lee and dismiss the cases against them.
Please be informed that the AHRC has also written a letter to the UN Special Rapporteur on human rights defenders as well as the Working Group for arbitrary detention, requesting their intervention.
To support this case, please click here: SEND APPEAL LETTER
SAMPLE LETTER
SOUTH KOREA: Law should not be used to restrict activities of rights defenders
Details of the accused:
1) Mr. Park Lae-gun, 49, a human rights activist from the SARANGBANG Group for Human Rights; of 398-17 3F, Junglim-dong, Jung-gu, Seoul 100-360, South Korea; imprisoned under No. 90 in Seoul Detention Center.
2) Mr. Lee Jong-hoi, 51, a human rights activist at the Korean Progressive Network Jinbonet; of 227-1 3F, Chungjungro-3ga, Seodaemun-gu, Seoul 120-840, South Korea; imprisoned under No. 15 at Seoul Detention Center.
Case details: 2010GODAN453
I am disappointed to learn that Mr. Park Lae-goon and Mr. Park Jong-hoi, rights activists and chairperson of pan-committee to solve Yongsan incident, were plead for guilty with four and half years and five years of imprisonment respectively by the prosecutor.
According to the information that I have obtained, they were prosecuted for three reasons; leading violent assemblies, illegal assemblies and obstruction of general traffic.
However I challenge for such reasons based on the following reasons.
Firstly, the prosecutor has failed to provide evidence to the court whether or not the commemoration ceremonies that they hold were violent. Despite the fact that there was some violence taking place after the ceremonies, it does not allow a judgement that the ceremonies were directly involved in such violent acts. Rather Mr. Park and Mr. Lee dismissed the assembly after the ceremonies. Reasonable doubts should be made based on the evidence. However, the prosecutor has failed to provide direct involvement of the ceremonies to such violence.
Secondly, Mr. Park and Mr. Lee, chairpersons of the pan-committee to solve the Yongsan incident, hold several assemblies of ceremonies that the families members of those who lost their lives could have an opportunity what happened to their family members and serious problem of eviction process to the public.
Thirdly, the article 185 of the Criminal Act (general obstruction of traffic) was used to prosecute Mr. Park and Mr. Lee. The article should be interpreted with the circumstantial evidence such as the unique of the place, other possible flow of traffic, intention and lasting time of such obstruction etc. In this case, the prosecutor has failed to provide evidence whether or not the traffic was completely obstructed by the commemoration ceremonies.
What I have learned about the situation of rights activists in general in South Korea is that legal action has often been used to punish them and therefore restrict their activities. However, rights activists have continued doing their activities regardless of such legal actions that had imposed on them. It is understood that this is how rights of other people have been also guaranteed by the sacrifice of rights activists. If Mr. Park and Mr. Lee are punished based on their peaceful activities, it will only indicate how the domestic Acts are interpreted and implemented and further show how they are incompatible with the international human rights norms and standards.
If such domestic acts or laws are applied in restricting rights activists’ activities, it will be nothing but prove that the court itself ignores or narrowly interpreted the international human rights norms and the Constitutional itself.
Therefore I humbly request you to judge based on the evidence provided by both parties and decide based on the reasonable doubt that can emerge by the evidence.
Yours sincerely,
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PLEASE SEND YOUR LETTERS TO:
1. Mr. Lee Myeng-Bak
President
1 Sejong-no, Jongno-gu
Seoul, 110-820
REPUBLIC OF KOREA
Fax: +82 2 770 4751
Tel:
E-mail: foreign@president.go.kr or president@cwd.go.kr or president@president.go.kr
2. Mr. Lee Gui-Nam
Minister of Justice
88 Gwanmon-ro, Gwachon-si
Gyonggi Province 427-760
REPUBLIC OF KOREA
Tel: +82 2 503 7023
Fax: +82 2 2110 3079 / 503 7046
E-mail: webmaster@moj.go.kr
3. Mr. Kim Joon-Gyu
Prosecutor General
Supreme Prosecutor’s Office
1730-1, Seocho3-dong
Seocho-gu, Seoul
REPUBLIC OF KOREA
Fax: +82 2 3480 2555
Tel: +82 2 3480 2000
E-mail: koreapros@spo.go.kr
4. Mr. Kang Hee-Rak
Commissioner General
Korean National Police Agency
Uiju-ro 91(Migeun-dong 209) Seodaemun-gu
Seoul 120-704
REPUBLIC OF KOREA
E-mail: cnpa100@police.go.kr
5. Lee, Suk-Yeon
Criminal court 12
Seoul District Court, 100 Umyeon-ro, Seoch-gu,
Seoul (133-737)
REPUBLIC OF KOREA
Thank you.
Urgent Appeals Programme
Asian Human Rights Commission (AHRC) (ua@ahrc.asia)
