4 Years Jail for Libel Regarding 5.18 Gwangju Incident? Freedom of Speech to be Set Back Again in South Korea

February 2, 2020, Tara O

The  suppression of freedom of speech continues in South Korea.  Prosecutors are pushing for 4 years of jail for Dr. Ji Man-won (지만원, 77-year old researcher) and 1 year of jail for Mr. Son Sang-dae (손상대, 65-year old journalist), and the court will decide on their fate in mid-February. (0:40)   Why? Because of what Dr. Ji wrote about the Gwangju Uprising of 1980 (referred to as “5.18” in South Korea due to the start date of the incident), raising the issue of North Korean special forces involvement.  Mr. Son has discussed the 5.18 issue on his small news outlet NewsTown, which has a website and a YouTube news channel, and that is considered his “crime.”

In 2013, the mayor of Gwangju City and the 5.18 Gwangju History Distortion Countermeasure Committee, which consists of multiple organizations, filed a civil lawsuit and criminal charges against Dr. Ji Man-won.  The charges include libel and dissemination of information using information and communications networks.  Initially one lawsuit, four more were added over the years to create hearings that merged the cases at the court (2016고단2095, 2016고단9358, 2017고단4705, 2017고단8331, 2019고단8398).

Under the Moon Jae-in administration, the court already sent two journalists to jail for libel. See here and here.  Additionally, discussing  5.18 in a way that is other than the current narrative–that it was a democracy movement–elicits swift, severe, and irrational responses from certain groups, including both the ruling Deobureo Minjoo Party (Democratic Party of Korea) and the main opposition Liberty Korea Party.

For instance, National Assemblymen Lee Jong-myeong (이종명) and Kim Jin-tae (김진태), both Liberty Korea Party, sponsored a public hearing on February 8, 2019 to discuss whether or not North Korea was involved in the Gwangju Incident.  At the hearing, both National Assemblyman Lee Jong-myeong, a retired colonel who lost both legs to DMZ mines, and National Assemblywoman Kim Soon-rye (김순례) spoke. In 2018, the National Assembly already decided that the issue of North Korea involvement was one of the items to be investigated, so holding a public hearing on it should not have been a problem.

Mayhem occurred at the hearing, as the “5.18 Meritorious Persons” families physically blocked the entry of Dr. Ji Man-won, prompting police involvement.  At the hearing, Assemblyman Lee said, “After the 5.18 incident occurred, it was termed the ‘5.18 Riot,’ but as time went on, it was changed to the ‘Democracy Movement’…not based on scientific facts, but because political powers used it for political and ideological purposes and changed the ‘riot’ to a ‘democracy movement.’”  Assemblywoman Kim Soon-rye raised the issue of taxpayer money going toward the 5.18 Meritorious Persons group and demanded that the 5.18 Meritorious Persons list be made available.  Unlike the veterans’ list, the names of the 5.18 Meritorious Persons have been kept secret, the selection process has been opaque, and some who were not even in Gwangju at the time were added to the list, including National Assemblyman Lee Hae-chan (이해찬), the former leader of the Deobureo Minju Party. (0:30)

The comprehensive, lifetime, and generational benefits that the 5.18 Meritorious Persons and their families receive are lavish, and include not only thousands of dollars per month per person, but also support in employment, education, health, housing, transportation and more.  By contrast, the Korean War and Vietnam War veterans do not receive most of the benefits that the 5.18 Meritorious Persons receive, and their monthly benefit is only about $268 and only after age 65. See here for more details (the comparison chart is re-published below).

5.18 Yugongja (Meritorious Persons) vs. War Veterans

Benefit Areas	5.18 (Gwangju incident) Yugongja (Meritorious Persons)	Korean War/ Vietnam War Veterans
Qualifications designation	Include those imprisoned / detained / taken to the police station	Participated in Korean War/Vietnam War
One time payment	₩5 million-317 million ($4,446-$282,000)	$0
Monthly Payment to Self	₩453,000-5,219,000 ($403-$4,644)	₩300,000 ($268) after age 65
Monthly Payment to Spouse	of dead Yugongja: ₩1,513,000 ($1,346)/ Level 1-5: ₩1,337,000 ($1,189)/ Level 6: ₩490,000 ($436)	$0
Monthly Payment to each Offspring	of dead Yugongja: ₩1,754,000 ($1,560)/ Level 1-5: ₩1,551,000 ($1,379)/ Level 6: ₩709,000 ($631)	$0
Monthly Payment to Parents	of dead Yugongja: ₩1,486,000 ($1,321)/ Level 1-4: ₩1,315,000 ($1,169)/ Level 6: ₩465,000 ($413)	$0
National Cemetery burial	Yes; also for spouse	Yes; possible for spouse
Funeral Expense	₩2,000,000 ($1,780) (10 times the payment for war veterans)	₩200,000 ($178); no support if interred at the National Cemetery
Headstone	Reimbursement up to ₩400,000 ($356); no support, if interred at the National Cemetery	–
South Korean flag	Yes	Yes
Medical Care	100% discount at MPV hospitals; 60% for family; reimbursement for emergency care at private hospitals; For those registered after 2016-2-23, full coverage at MPV hospitals, authorized hospitals; prosthetics coverage	90% discount at MPV hospitals; If over age 75, 90% discount at authorized hospitals, but no external pharmacy coverage
Telephone fee	Exempt; 50% off long-distance call	–
Mobile Phone fee	Tax exempt; 35% off basic & use fee	–
Internet fee	30% off	–
Electricity fee	₩16,000-20,000 ($14-18) off/month	–
Gas fee	₩8,280 ($7) off/month	–
Gas, heating fee	₩24,000 ($21) during cold season	–
A/C cooling fee	₩5,000 ($4.50) off/month	–
KTX ticket fare	6 trips free; 50% off after	–
Subway fare	Exempt	–
Bus fare	Exempt	–
Intercity bus fare	70% off (level 1-7); 30% off (level 8-14)	–
High speed bus fare	50% off (evel 1-7); 30% off (level 8-14)	–
Airport Rail fare	Exempt	–
Airport Fast Track svc	Exempt, up to 3 others traveling with you	–
Ferry, domestic fare	Exempt (level 1-7); 50% off (level 8-14)	–
Ferry, international fare	20% off	–
Air fare, domestic	50% off; 30% for low-cost domestic airlines	–
Air fare, international	10% off (Korean Air, Asiana Air)	–
Govt jobs, points	5-10% for self, offspring; Jobs, education, medical, other benefits apply to offspring as well.	–
Job preference	At firms under the MPV for offspring up to age 35 (38 with exemption)	–
Job training	₩40,000 ($36)/month bonus if getting trained at a public job training institutions; if at private job training centers, then able to apply for reimbursement. Job & Education benefits apply to family, including offspring	–
Fee to attend lectures	70% or up to ₩3,000,000 ($2,670) total	–
Education: Middle School (MS)/High Schools (HS)	Learning Subsidy: MS: ₩124,000 ($110)/yr; HS (academic): ₩144,000 ($128); HS (vocational): ₩186,000 ($166); HS: application fee, tuition, school operation fee exempt for family, including offsprings	–
Education: College	Registration fee/tuition exempt; up to 12 semesters; allowance: ₩236,000 ($210)/year; offspring need to maintain 70% grade average.	–
Education: Special	Kindergarten/elementary learning subsidy: ₩534,000 ($475)/year; MS/HS: ₩718,000 ($640); for family, including offspring	–
Education: Scholarship	Graduate school: up to ₩1,150,000 ($1,023); Special School: ₩300,000 ($267); for family, including offspring	–
Housing	Priority in purchase/rent	–
Housing tax	Exempt	–
Mortgage/loans	Low interest (2-3%) loan up to ₩60 million ($53,385) loan at KB Kookmin Bank or NH Bank for condo purchase; other amounts for farm land purchase, housing rental, renovation, life stability	–
Car purchase taxes/fees	Exempt from purchase tax, car tax, special consumption tax, city railroad bond, regional development municipal bond	–
Public Parking	50-80% off; 50% off at airport parking	–
Toll road fee	Exempt (level 1-5 disability); 50% off (level 6-14)	–
LPG auto gas	₩220 (20 cents) / liter off; 300 liters per month	–
Disaster relief	Reimbursement	–
Resort Discount	Discount at MPV recreation facilities & private resorts, such as Daemyung Resort, Hanwha Resort, Ilseung Resort, etc.	–
Taxi driver license	Free for self or 1 designated person (parent, spouse, offspring)	–
Entrance fees	Exempt at palaces, national/public museums & galleries, National Independence Museum, War Memorial Museum, national parks; 50% discount at national/public theaters, sports facilities	Exempt at national/public places as the left column
Income tax	₩2,000,000 ($1,780) additional deduction	–
Savings interest income	Tax exemption of interest income from savings up to ₩50,000,000 ($44,500)	–
Inheritance tax/gift tax	Tax exemption on inheritance, gift valued up to 500,000,000 won ($445,000)	–
Country/local office document fees	Fee exemption: National ID issuance/re-issuance fees, family registry documents fee, certified document fee, residency application fee, immigration document fees	–
Elderly care (age 65 or over)	Elderly care for self, spouse & parents; gov’t subsidy of 80% for self, 40% for spouse & parents	–
Nursing Care cost for self	Regular care: ₩2,387,000 ($2,032)/On demand: ₩1,591,000 ($1,414); wounded: 23,000 ($20); To Spouse, if spouse takes care of you: ₩100,000 ($89); To Offspring: ₩100,000 ($89)	–
Nursing Care cost for spouse, parents, offspring	If taken care by other offspring/sibling, then to the offspring: ₩100,000 ($89) / to sibling: ₩200,000 ($178)	–
MPV senior care center (longt-term)	80% off for self, 40% off for spouse/parents	–
MPV senior long-term facility	Food, clothing, shelter, health care, funeral arrangements	–
Welfare Town	For self and spouse, low-fee	–
Any other beneficiary?	*If no spouse or children, their benefits apply to parents or 1 sibling.	–

Sources: Ministry of Patriots and Veterans brochure, benefits documents, https://www.mpva.go.kr/mpva

https://www.mpva.go.kr/mpva/support/518merit03.do  https://www.mpva.go.kr/mpva/support/warmerit03.do https://www.mpva.go.kr/mpva/support/supportdataView.do?id=2210    https://youtu.be/zg7EehynS7c

Note:  The one time lump sum payment was not listed in the Ministry of Patriots and Veterans website.

The hearing and the sponsors of the hearing were swiftly and heavily condemned by 5.18 groups, the ruling Deobureo Minjoo Party and other parties, then-Prime Minister, the president, and some major media as “undermining the democracy movement” and making “ludicrous statements” about the Gwangju incident.  The Deobureo Minjoo Party demanded the Liberty Korea Party expel the three lawmakers and apologize for the “anti-history and anti-democracy ludicrous statements.”

Instead of defending their lawmakers and freedom of speech, the Liberty Korea Party took disciplinary actions.  Kim Byung-joon (김병준), then the Emergency Countermeasures Committee Chairman for the Liberty Korea Party (de facto party leader brought in from outside the party) requested Liberty Korea Party’s Central Ethics Committee punish the three lawmakers, and the Ethics Committee decided to do so.  The committee decided to mete out the party’s worst punishment on a national hero Lee Jong-myoung–that of recommending to expel him from the party, while it delayed the punishment for the other two, because they were running for party leadership at that time  After the party election, in which Hwang Kyo-ahn (황교안) was elected the party leader (and Na Kyung-won 나경원 remained the floor leader), Assemblywoman Kim Soon-rye received a three-month suspension and Assemblyman Kim Jin-tae received a warning.  It is incredulous that such violations of freedom of speech was condoned by no less than the National Assembly of a “liberal democracy.”

5.18 has been elevated to a holy level. President Moon Jae-in himself, when he was a presidential candidate, stated “I will not forgive any talk or any acts that insult the 5.18 democracy struggle; I’ll designate it by rule as ‘the enemy of democracy’ and prohibit it by law.” (1:41)  Moon also pledged to add “Gwangju Revolution Spirit” to the South Korean Constitution and tried adding it in early 2018, when his party also wanted to remove “freedom” from the Constitution.

Making any comments that question the current narrative on 5.18 could even earn jail time–at least that is the movement at the National Assembly.  Deobureo Minjoo Party (Democratic Party of Korea), Justice Party, Peace and Democracy Party, and Bareun Mirae Party agreed to introduce a bill that imprisons people 7 years or fines ₩70,000,000 (~$67,0000) for “denying, slandering, distorting, fabricating, and distributing false facts” about 5.18.

Such sentiments and efforts suppress freedom of speech and the press, and prevent any serious discussions on various aspects of 5.18, many of which are still very contentious.  Sending a 77-year old researcher to jail for four years and a 65-year old journalist to jail for one year are certainly not the answer to the still controversial Gwangju incident.  The best way for South Korea to settle the 5.18 controversy is to remove the fear, harassment, and politics, hold more discussions, add more transparency, and allow the evidence and facts to speak for themselves.