Public Officials' Past 'Ilbe' Controversy and Sexual Harassment... Ongoing 'Public Officials' Sexual Misconduct' Scandals

"Sexual Harassment Offender Passes Daejeon Grade 9 Civil Service Exam" 청 국민청원 글 올라와
Controversy Over Grade 7 Civil Servant Who Posted Sexual Crime Content on Ilbe
Experts Say "Stronger Disciplinary Actions and Awareness Needed"

On the 31st of last month, a petition titled "Reporting a Child Sexual Harasser Who Passed the Daejeon Grade 9 Civil Service Exam" was posted on the Blue House National Petition Board. Photo by Blue House National Petition Website Capture

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Suwan] Controversy is brewing as a 7th-grade civil servant who passed the Gyeonggi Province civil service exam is suspected of posting sexually harassing and derogatory comments about disabled people on the 'Ilgan Best Storage' (Ilbe) website, and similarly, in Daejeon, a 9th-grade civil servant who passed the exam has been accused of posting malicious comments sexually harassing underage members of an idol group for several years.

Some voices are calling for the cancellation of their appointments, while others criticize the need for thorough qualification checks before appointing civil servants. It is pointed out that public officials committing sex crimes cannot be tolerated.

On the Blue House's national petition board, a petition titled "I accuse a child sexual harasser who passed the Daejeon 9th-grade civil service exam" was posted on the 31st of last month.

The petitioner stated, "I accuse a malicious commenter who has been active for a long time in the domestic baseball gallery on the online community site DC Inside," adding, "It is unacceptable as a member of society that a person who has continuously posted obscene malicious comments mocking the body parts of underage members aged 15 to 17 of a certain girl group has become a civil servant and is wasting taxpayers' money."

They continued, "The nickname itself was a compound word that insulted the name and body parts of the then underage member," and "The person personally verified the appointment letter for the position of local administrative assistant probationary officer along with the notification of passing the Daejeon city local civil service exam in October 2020," they pointed out.

The petitioner added, "Some netizens filed complaints with the relevant district office in Daejeon, but since there seems to be no significant response, I suspect they are protecting their own," urging, "Please prevent such shameless underage sexual harassers from receiving taxpayers' money and performing civil servant duties."

On the 30th of last month, a petition titled "Please prevent the appointment of a Grade 7 local government official in Gyeonggi-do who has posted countless sexually harassing and derogatory comments about disabled people on the Ilbe website" was posted on the Blue House National Petition Board. Photo by Blue House National Petition website capture

The person targeted for appointment at a certain district office in Daejeon, whom the petitioner accused, is currently working as a 9th-grade probationary officer and is known to strongly deny the allegations.

Moreover, there was previously controversy when it was claimed that a sex offender active on the Ilbe site passed the Gyeonggi Province 7th-grade civil service exam.

On the 30th of last month, a petition was posted on the national petition board claiming that a 7th-grade civil servant who passed the Gyeonggi Province exam posted sexually harassing and derogatory comments about disabled people on the Ilbe site.

The petitioner, who introduced themselves as a resident of Gyeonggi Province, stated, "Someone posted a photo certifying their civil service exam pass on an internet community," and "This person is the one who frequently posted mocking posts on the community after secretly filming women and disabled people on the street." They criticized, "It is incomprehensible that such a person with a flawed character was not filtered out during the interview and was finally accepted."

In response, Lee Jae-myung, Governor of Gyeonggi Province, warned that a thorough investigation would be conducted, and if confirmed, the appointment would be canceled and legal action taken.

Governor Lee posted on his Facebook, "A Gyeonggi Province civil servant who passed the exam and is suspected of being a sex offender from Ilbe is causing controversy. If true, they are not qualified to serve the residents," adding, "We will thoroughly investigate, and if confirmed, we will cancel the appointment and take legal measures."

In fact, Article 14 of the Local Public Officials Appointment Decree states that if an appointee is recognized as having committed acts that seriously damage dignity and make it difficult to perform duties as a public official, their appointment qualifications may be lost through a resolution of the personnel committee.

Examinees who took the 2020 National Public Officials Grade 7 Open Competitive Recruitment Written Examination entered the examination hall set up at Jungdae High School in Gangnam-gu, Seoul on the morning of September 26 last year. The photo is unrelated to specific expressions in the article. Photo by Yonhap News

Among citizens, voices calling for the cancellation of their appointments are growing louder. A 20-something office worker, Mr. A, who heard the news, said, "How can a public official who should not be ashamed before the people commit crimes? If the investigation proves it true, they should be dismissed. If such a person performs public duties, it is a disgrace to the country," expressing outrage.

Some argue that thorough qualification checks should be conducted when appointing civil servants. Since higher morality is required compared to other professions, stricter standards should be applied.

Experts have suggested strengthening disciplinary measures and raising awareness regarding related crimes.

Attorney Lee Eun-ui, who defends women victims of sexual violence, said, "The biggest problem with civil servants is that unless criminal punishment is imposed for external issues, they rarely face severe disciplinary actions such as dismissal or removal," adding, "Especially in cases like this, since the problem did not arise within the civil service community, it is difficult to uncover the facts."

She continued, "The most important prevention for crimes like sexual harassment and sexual violence is 'education.' It is crucial to make people aware that they can face severe punishment if they commit such crimes," emphasizing, "Disciplinary standards should be raised and applied so that there is an awareness that strong penalties can be imposed."

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