Constitutional Court: "Prohibition on Teachers Forming or Joining Political Organizations is Unconstitutional"... Ban on Joining Political Parties is Constitutional

Chief Justice Yoo Nam-seok of the Constitutional Court is delivering a ruling on the constitutional petition filed by the family of the late farmer Baek Nam-gi in December 2015, claiming that the police's direct shooting violated the Constitution, at the Constitutional Court in Jongno-gu, Seoul, on the 23rd. Photo by Kang Jin-hyung aymsdream@

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyung-min] The Constitutional Court has ruled that the provision in the National Public Service Act prohibiting elementary and secondary school teachers from participating in or joining political organizations is unconstitutional. However, the court judged that the provision in the Political Parties Act, which prohibits them from becoming founding members or party members of political parties, does not violate the constitution.

On the 23rd, the Constitutional Court ruled unconstitutional (6-3) in a constitutional complaint filed by nine active teachers claiming that Article 65, Paragraph 1 of the National Public Service Act "infringes on the freedom to establish and join political parties."

The provision states that "public officials shall not be involved in the formation of political parties or other political organizations, nor join them."

The court stated, "The National Public Service Act provision defines the subjects prohibited from joining as 'political parties or other political organizations,' but without any restrictions on the purpose or activities of the organizations, it is impossible to derive criteria to distinguish between 'political organizations' and 'non-political organizations.'"

It added, "The use of the vague concept of 'other political organizations' causes a chilling effect on the subjects (those to whom the law applies) and poses a risk of arbitrary judgment by law enforcement officials."

Furthermore, "Since it completely prohibits formation and joining even when unrelated to duties or not considered an abuse of position, the appropriateness of the means and minimal infringement cannot be recognized."

However, the court upheld the constitutionality of the provision in the Political Parties Act that prohibits public officials and elementary and secondary school teachers from becoming founding members or party members of political parties.

Article 22, Paragraph 1 of the Political Parties Act states, "Any person with the right to vote in National Assembly elections may become a founding member or party member of a political party, notwithstanding other laws prohibiting public officials or others from joining political parties or engaging in political activities due to their status," but adds the proviso that "public officials and teachers as defined in the National Public Service Act and the Higher Education Act are excluded."

The court said, "This proviso aims to guarantee the political neutrality of teachers and secure the neutrality of education so that it is not influenced by partisan interests, and its purpose and appropriateness of means are recognized."

Meanwhile, the court dismissed a constitutional complaint filed by active teachers challenging Article 66, Paragraph 1 of the National Public Service Act, which prohibits public officials from engaging in collective actions for labor movements or other non-official matters, ruling that it does not violate the principles of clarity and excessive prohibition.

The court explained, "The meaning can be supplemented by ordinary legal interpretation, so it does not violate the principle of clarity, and since collective actions by public officials can undermine political neutrality, restricting them does not violate the principle of excessive prohibition."

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