"Moon Jae-in Received Orders from North Korea to Impeach Park Geun-hye," Former Busan National University Professor's Fine Confirmed

Law: "False information disclosure undermines election order... No significant impact on presidential election results"

[Asia Economy Reporter Heo Kyung-jun] Ahead of the 19th presidential election, a fine was confirmed for Choi Woo-won, a former professor at Pusan National University, who was prosecuted for defaming then-candidate Moon Jae-in at a conservative rally.

The Supreme Court's 2nd Division (Presiding Justice Lee Dong-won) announced on the 1st that it upheld the lower court's ruling sentencing former Professor Choi to a fine in the final appeal trial on charges of violating the Public Official Election Act and defamation.

From February 2017, former Professor Choi traveled nationwide, expressing then-candidate Moon Jae-in as a "ppalgaengi" (communist), "spy boss," and publicly spreading false information such as "Moon Jae-in received orders from North Korea to lead the impeachment of former President Park Geun-hye" to cause Moon's defeat, leading to his prosecution.

The trial focused on whether former Professor Choi's expressions of the presidential candidate as "ppalgaengi" and "spy boss" constituted defamation and whether the publication of false information influenced the election.

The first trial recognized violations of the Public Official Election Act and defamation, sentencing fines of 10 million won and 5 million won respectively. The first trial judged, "By making false statements about a specific party's presidential candidate, the fairness and transparency of the election were damaged, and the statements included abusive and harsh criticism, making the crime serious."

The second trial mostly upheld the first trial's judgment but overturned some parts deemed guilty by the first trial, sentencing fines of 5 million won and 2.5 million won respectively. The second trial stated, "The crime of violating the Public Official Election Act by publishing false information threatens the foundation of election order and has a serious negative impact on election culture. However, most people who heard the defendant's remarks shared similar political views with the defendant, so the influence on the presidential election results or the evaluation of the victim appears to have been limited."

The Supreme Court also agreed with the second trial's judgment.

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