Former Broadcasting Commission Chairman Hansanghyuk's Dismissal Upheld... Court Rejects Appeal

Hansanghyuk, Former Chairman of the Korea Communications Commission Photo by Yonhap News

Former Chairman of the Korea Communications Commission (KCC) Han Sang-hyuk appealed the court's decision to uphold the dismissal order but was rejected. The ruling affirmed the validity of the dismissal approved by President Yoon Seok-yeol.

On the 21st, the Administrative Division 7 of the Seoul High Court (Presiding Judges Kim Dae-woong, Kim Sang-cheol, Bae Sang-won) dismissed the appeal filed by former Chairman Han against the first-instance decision that denied the suspension of the dismissal order.

Former Chairman Han was indicted without detention on May 2nd for appointing a member of a civic group opposing TV Chosun as a screening committee member on March 11, 2020, and for knowingly overlooking the manipulation of TV Chosun's evaluation scores in April of the same year.

President Yoon approved the dismissal of former Chairman Han on the 30th of the same month on grounds of violating the KCC Act and the State Public Officials Act. Originally, Han's term was set to last until the end of this month.

Former Chairman Han filed a lawsuit seeking cancellation of the dismissal order and simultaneously submitted a request for suspension of execution.

The first-instance court, which reviewed the suspension request, dismissed Han's application. At the time, the court stated, "With former Chairman Han and staff indicted for related acts, the KCC has faced difficulties in performing its normal duties. Furthermore, serious harm has been caused to social trust and the public interest regarding the fairness, objectivity, and transparency that must be guaranteed in the KCC's deliberation and resolution processes and outcomes."

It added, "Allowing the former chairman to perform his duties poses a concrete risk of undermining social trust in the KCC's deliberation and resolution processes and outcomes, as well as the fairness of public service execution and public trust, which could significantly impact the public welfare."

Han's legal representative argued at the appellate hearing on the 13th, "Since many aspects need to be clarified through witness examination in the criminal trial, it cannot be acknowledged that the charges have been substantiated," but the appellate court also rejected this argument.

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