Summons Issued Regardless of Weekend or Weekdays... The Core of KMA Investigation Is Whether There Was 'Collective Action Instigation'

As the collective resignation crisis of resident doctors prolongs, the police investigation into the Korean Medical Association (KMA) is also gaining momentum. The police, who have summoned current and former KMA officials regardless of weekends, are continuing their investigation focusing on whether there was incitement of collective action.

According to the police on the 11th, the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency's Public Crime Investigation Unit summoned former KMA President Roh Hwan-gyu on Saturday, the 9th, on charges of inciting the collective resignation of resident doctors, and conducted an intensive investigation for over 11 hours.

On the 6th, when the police began the first summons investigation into the suspicions of collective resignation conspiracy among current and former executives of the Korean Medical Association (KMA), Joo Su-ho, the KMA Emergency Response Committee's Public Relations Committee Chairman, appeared at the Public Crime Investigation Unit of the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency in Mapo-gu, Seoul, to state his position. Photo by Jo Yong-jun jun21@

Earlier, on the 27th of last month, the Ministry of Health and Welfare filed a complaint with the National Police Agency against Roh and four others for violations of the Medical Service Act, obstruction of business under the Criminal Act, and incitement and aiding. The government views that they incited and aided the collective action by supporting and legally assisting the resident doctors' mass resignation.

The police reportedly focused their questioning on whether Roh’s posts on social networking services (SNS) provoked resident doctors opposing the increase in medical school quotas to leave their hospitals, and whether the resulting collective action of the residents led to financial losses for the hospitals.

After the investigation, Roh denied the charges, stating, “It is impossible that nearly 10,000 resident doctors would leave medical sites just because of posts I personally made on SNS. There is absolutely no conspiracy.”

Summons of current and former KMA executives are also proceeding rapidly. On the 6th, Joo Su-ho, the Media Relations Commissioner of the Emergency Response Committee, underwent the first police investigation, and on the 12th, Im Hyun-taek, President of the Korean Pediatric Society, Kim Taek-woo, Emergency Response Committee Chairman of the KMA, and Park Myung-ha, Emergency Response Committee Organizational Strengthening Commissioner, are scheduled to appear for questioning.

The core of the police investigation into these individuals is whether they actually incited the collective action of the resident doctors. So far, all five maintain that the residents’ actions were voluntary. Commissioner Joo also refuted the allegations, stating, “I have never incited anyone.”

The police are also investigating the online distribution of a ‘resident doctor blacklist’ of those who did not participate in the collective resignation. If this list actually exists, it could serve as evidence that the KMA led the collective resignation.

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