School violence, Politics and Censorship in South Korea

The current authoritarian South Korean administration is part of the trend to suppress dissenting views in so called "democratic countries."



OhMyTV cartoon depicts Justice Minister Han Dong-hun using police and warrants as a club to attack a National Assembly office and MBC broadcasting for daring to disclose "private information about the second banana" (him) from his nomination hearing April 2022. The information release reflected on Han's personal corruption and was in the public interest.

One recent investigative report said that President Yoon intended to form an "immunity review committee" to protect the National Police from legal actions that might be taken against police for any injuries inflicted as a result of the new policy to use active forceful measures to suppress demonstrations that "threaten public order." Critics regard this as a dangerous policy from the "80s." The right to peaceful assembly is guaranteed in the South Korean constitution. This is the current Yoon administration response to an upsurge in political demonstrations and assemblies against the Yoon administration, by numerous civic and religious groups, the political opposition and labor and professional organizations.

Recently, Yoon had dismissed the Chief of the Korean Communications Commission, Han Sang-hyuk ( 한상혁 ) based on a criminal accusations which the former Chairman says are unfounded. Other officials and employees of the commission are being harried by investigating police and prosecutors. The CEO of MBC Park Sung-jae was also charged by prosecutors, and consequently forced out as head of MBC broadcasting. Park asserted the charges against him were fabricated by prosecutors. Park also referred to his continuing positive relationship with unions representing company employees. An MBC reporter subjected to multiple warrants and police investigation alleged that the statements to her by police involved suggested they were acting on behalf of the justice minister.

The principal motivation Park the deposed CEO of MBC mentioned was the current administration's need to control public broadcasting editorial and production content with the campaign season for the next general elections in 2024 in view. He said he exercised no control over news coverage and production as practical matter, being involved in the nuts and bolts financial management of the corporation, those news related functions were relegated to news team managers, and the various broadcast branches and department heads. As a former career reporter, he said he had no interest in promoting particular views or restricting freedom of the press. MBC had offended Yoon shortly after he had met with President Biden when an MBC reporter recorded on video some vulgar phrase Yoon used referring to the US Congress in a conversation with his Foreign Minister Park Jin. That MBC reporter is now subject to investigation by police for allegedly illegally disclosing "private information" about Justice Minister Han Dong-hun, from a legislative committee.

Former KCC Chief Han said that the Yoon administration was likely interested in controlling broadcast content, by controlling his former office at the KCC. This entailed removing the independence of the commission as a body, because it was designed as a deliberative institution, rather than one controlled by the chair of the commission. He distinguished his former position from that of a minister, who exercised greater control over subordinate officials and employees. Han said that public broadcasting organization KBS would probably fall next. It is legally arguable that former Chief Commissioner Han should have only have been removed from office by impeachment, but he was dismissed summarily.

Ironically, the proposed replacement as KCC Chief is Lee Dong-gwan 이동관. Lee Dong-gwan held important PR positions in the presidential office of Lee Myung-bak. He began his career as a reporter at Donga Ilbo. Like other tainted nominations by Yoon, Lee's career was jeopardized when his son was accused by witnesses of bullying and assaults on other students in 2011. The school academy concerned was run by a member of the Hana chaebol family of the Hana Financial Group. The former Hana Academy director/principal was said to be one of the "4 Kings" behind the MB administration at the time. The incidents of repeated bullying, assault, and psychological abuse by Lee's son were covered up because of the embarrassment to the academy and the Lee Myung-bak administration. It's telling that a person involved in a political cover up would be considered as the leader of broadcast and communications regulatatory body. It's not a just a coincidence. Why is the legislative hearing into his appointment at the KCC now being delayed? Because, not too long ago another Yoon political appointee, Chung Sun-shin's nomination foundered, in February this year, when the suppressed case and unjust outcome of his child's bullying at school was revealed.

This is a very sensitive issue in South Korea as exemplified by the very popular contemporary drama The Glory whose plot is centered on the role of class, social status in unjust disposition of execeptionally cruel bullying in a school environment and the longitutinal reach of "revenge" in its aftermath. The Glory's plot is said to based on real events from a bullying scandal in 2006 at a girl's academy.

Here's a newspaper article on the earlier failed nomination of Chung Sun-shin-

Case of powerful parent shielding child from consequences touches nerve in S. Korea
Posted on : Feb.28,2023
The saga of Chung Sun-sin is an unwelcome reminder to many young Koreans that without powerful connections, many roads in life remain shut to them
https://english.hani.co.kr/arti/english_edition/e_national/1081618.html



I found the subject matter and content of The Glory quite brutal. It's certainly for adults because of violent content. I couldn't make it all the way through after watching a few episodes. I see there is a season two. It was a success for Netflix and won some South Korean awards. Guess I'm too squeamish in my old age. I posted the trailer, which is fairly well sanitized, but still conveys the sinister ambiance in 2 min.

There is an English translation of the Lee Dong-gwan situation, translated into English in Namu Wiki- it was just updated and is based on the latest reports including independent investigative reports:
https://en.namu.wiki/w/w/이동관%20아들%20학교폭력%20가해%20사건 (The link might not work, I've been having trouble with it.)

Lee Dong-gwan's son's school violence case

[장윤선 단독] 이동관 아들 학폭 왜 묻혔나? 피해자 진술서 내용 단독 공개! (최영일의 시사본부｜장윤선의 주간이슈-장윤선 정치전문기자)｜KBS 230602 방송 https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=eQaafS6_9Kw

There is a peculiar evolving interplay of public relations, crime, corruption, cover up and government going on in the Yoon administration. Yoon's principal MO as the former Prosecutor General and a senior prosecutor before his election was known as press-prosecution collusion. Yoon's "division" of prosecutors and their collaborators in the mainstream conservative South Korean media (representing powerful special interests) would frame political enemies with leaked and false information and protect the privileged by suppressing news stories. That hasn't changed but only gotten worse after Yoon was elected President of South Korea by an extremely slim margin. Yoon's abuse of administration of the justice was also characterized as "revenge politics." Other descriptions of his administration have gone from "the republic of lawyers," soon after he assumed the presidential office, to "the dictatorship of lawyers," to simply that of "dictatorship." The current Minister of Justice and Yoon's right hand man, Han Dong-hun, now continues to choreograph politically motivated criminal investigations and prosecutions in South Korea with mainstream media cooperation. Any significant dissent or political resistance is met with police investigation, a plethora of search warrants, against the victim and his or her family or business associates and hearings for pretrial confinement after indictment. The Korea Communications Commission and MBC were recently targeted. This is ironic as Yoon contended when he was administratively disciplined for prosecutorial misconduct that the Minister of Justice had no authority over the Prosecutor General's office.

Since, becoming president Yoon has without legislative authority secured effective control of the National Police by placing it under the Ministry of Interior and Safety. In this way, Yoon has effectively nullified the major legal reform of the last administration taking investigative power away from prosecutors because it was being systematically abused by Yoon and Han for political purposes. Having corruption tainted public officials appointed to major government positions uses their political vulnerability to insure loyalty to Yoon's far right authoritarian regime. The Ministry of Interior and Public Safety have been seriously compromised by the Itaewon disaster and other botched public safety responses for which they were responsible along with President Yoon. Only local police and emergency officials suffer political consequences. Yoon has moved into the Lee Myung-bak stage of corruption, censorship and authoritarian rule.