Court: "Seobu District Court Incident, Attempt to Undermine Rule of Law... Some Judges Hesitant Even About Personal Security"

National Assembly Holds Emergency Inquiry on Violent Incident at Seoul Western District Court
Chief Cheon Dae-yeop: "Acts Undermining the Judiciary Must Not Be Tolerated"
Significant Psychological Trauma Reported Among Court Employees
Concerns Rise Over Continued Threats to Legal Professionals

Cheon Dae-yeop, Chief of the Court Administration Office, directly addressed the violent incident at the Seoul Western District Court on the 23rd, calling it "an act that undermines the normal functioning of the judiciary, which is the core of the rule of law."

On the 23rd, the National Assembly plenary session passed a motion to hold an urgent inquiry regarding the illegal riot situation at the Seoul Western District Court. Photo by Kim Hyun-min

On the same day, during an emergency inquiry related to the illegal riot at the Seoul Western District Court held at the National Assembly plenary session, Chief Cheon stated, "Attempts to collapse the rule of law must neither be tolerated nor succeed."

Jeon Yong-gi, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, asked, "What is the extent of the damage the court suffered due to the riot?" In response, Chief Cheon said, "The material damage is estimated to be around 600 to 700 million won, but this estimate was made a long time ago during installation, so the amount is expected to increase for restoration."

He added, "More serious is the significant psychological trauma suffered by about 50 employees of the Western District Court," and said, "We have heard many stories from court members complaining of psychological damage, and we are currently sharing these difficulties together."

He continued, "At the time of the incident, about 20 employees directly confronted the illegal intruders inside the court, but most fortunately evacuated to the rooftop or basement, so actual physical assaults on them did not occur," but expressed concern, saying, "Judges and general staff uphold the rule of law, and I worry that their psychological defense line might collapse."

Regarding the ongoing threats not only from the rioters who committed violence during the Western District Court incident but also in online spaces targeting legal professionals including Judge Cha Eun-kyung of the Western District Court, who issued an arrest warrant for President Yoon Seok-yeol, Chief Cheon stated, "In fact, some judges have had to receive personal safety measures from the police, but rather, they are so afraid that their residences and other personal information might be exposed that they are even afraid to request protection themselves, indicating a severe psychological panic state among judges."

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