Namyangju Mayor Jo Gwang-han and Governor Lee Jae-myung Reported to Prosecutors for Alleged Violations of the Personal Information Protection Act

(Photo from left) Jo Gwang-han, Mayor of Namyangju City, and Lee Jae-myung, Governor of Gyeonggi Province [File Photo]

[Asia Economy Reporter Ra Young-cheol] Namyangju Mayor Cho Gwang-han and others have filed a complaint with the prosecution against Gyeonggi Province Governor Lee Jae-myung and others on charges of 'violating the Personal Information Protection Act, etc.'

On the 28th, Mayor Cho and others stated in the complaint, "We are filing a complaint with the Suwon District Prosecutors' Office against the accused for 'abuse of authority and obstruction of the exercise of rights under the Criminal Act and violation of the Personal Information Protection Act.'"

The complainants are Mayor Cho and Eom Gang-seok, head of the Namyangju branch of the Gyeonggi Regional Headquarters of the National Public Officials Labor Union, and the legal representative is Lee & Lee Law Firm.

The accused are Gyeonggi Province Governor Lee Jae-myung, Gyeonggi Province Auditor Kim Hee-soo, Investigator Ha Young-min, Investigation General Team Leader Min Ju-sik, and Officer Lee Jung-gi, totaling five people.

Mayor Cho and others explained the reason for the complaint on the day, stating, "The accused's collection of personal information such as internet portal site IDs and comments of Namyangju city officials and investigation activities beyond the purpose of the audit are not for the public interest."

They added, "The accused's unauthorized collection and management of IDs and comment information without the consent of the parties involved constitute illegal surveillance intended to monitor the thoughts and behaviors of individuals who wrote the comments," and pointed out, "This violates the fundamental principles and duties of the Constitution and infringes on the basic rights of the people, such as the secrecy and freedom of privacy and freedom of expression."

The complainants also claimed, "The audit by the accused in Gyeonggi Province ignored the procedures of the Local Autonomy Act and abused their authority by coercing lower-ranking public officials to make statements without obligation through intimidation that seemed to threaten their status."

Earlier, on the 10th, Mayor Cho Gwang-han stated, "The retaliatory audit behavior of Gyeonggi Province is no longer tolerable."

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