Re: Convicted of treason 반역죄 선고를 받다

[민생정부]

Posted : 2014-02-18 17:27             Updated : 2014-02-18 17:27

Convicted of treason

Time to remain calm over ruling on leftist lawmaker 

The Suwon District Court on Monday sentenced Rep. Lee Seok-ki of the left-wing Unified Progressive Party (UPP) to 12 years in prison for plotting to overthrow the government.

The court found Lee guilty of conspiring, with other members of an underground group, the Revolutionary Organization (RO), to stage an armed insurrection in support of North Korea. This is the first time that an incumbent lawmaker has been convicted of sedition in the nation’s constitutional history.

Six other UPP members were sentenced to jail terms ranging from four to seven years.   

Presiding Judge Kim Jeong-un defended his ruling, commenting that Lee’s plot posed a ''substantial and apparent’’ threat to the country. The judge cited testimony by an informant, surnamed Lee, which he said was consistent and reliable, as one of the reasons for the conviction.

Judge Kim accepted the prosecution’s claim that the group plotted a revolt and planned collective action to carry it out. “We accept that the RO was the main force behind this subversive scheme and that Rep. Lee was in charge of running it,’’ he said.

The most important evidence used against Lee and the other defendants was an audio recording of a meeting on May 12 attended by about 130 participants at a Catholic facility in western Seoul. According to the ruling, Lee told members of his group at the meeting to prepare attacks on the nation’s railways and other key infrastructure in the event of a full-scale conflict with North Korea.

The UPP condemned the ruling, saying, ''Our democracy clock turned back 30 years.’’ “The court made a judgment that was too politically influenced. It looks as if all things had been swayed by a foregone conclusion,’’ a spokesman said.

Lee’s sedition case triggered a fierce political debate. The first-term lawmaker denied all the charges brought against him, saying he was the victim of a “witch hunt’’ by the spy agency which intended to divert public attention away from a scandal over allegations that it attempted to influence the 2012 presidential election.

True, progressive lawyers raised questions about the ruling, saying it was ridiculous for the court to make such a ruling merely out of what was discussed nonsensically during the May 12 meeting. They also argued that the ruling was not based on facts and evidence.

But Lee and his colleagues have no excuse for their anachronistic remarks and behavior. It simply defies our understanding that they plotted an armed rebellion by blindly following North Korea’s outdated juche or self-reliance ideology.

It appears that the latest ruling will influence the Constitutional Court’s upcoming decision on a government petition to disband the UPP. It’s necessary for the top court to hasten a ruling as soon as possible.

Once the ruling on Lee’s case has been made, all the concerned parties need to watch the subsequent judiciary procedures calmly. In this regard, the UPP is wrong to reject the ruling. The leftist party should attempt to rectify what it believes is wrong through the higher courts.

http://koreatimes.co.kr/www/news/opinon/2014/02/137_151841.html