Former President Yoon Suk-yeol appeared as a witness in the trial of former and current journalists indicted on charges of defaming him through false reporting. Yoon described the report as a "matadore (smear campaign) operation" and said he wanted the defendants punished.
The 35th Criminal Division of the Seoul Central District Court (presiding judge Baek Dae-hyun) held the 22nd hearing Tuesday for Kim Yong-jin, former head of Newstapa; reporter Han Sang-jin; Kim Man-bae, the largest shareholder of Hwacheon Daeyu Asset Management; and Shin Hak-rim, former chairman of the Korea Federation of Press Unions. They were indicted on charges including violation of the Act on Promotion of Information and Communications Network Utilization and Information Protection (defamation).
Yoon appeared in court as a witness that day. He argued that the Newstapa report in question had an adverse impact on the presidential election process. In March 2022, Newstapa reported allegations that Yoon had quashed an investigation into Busan Savings Bank. "I don't know the details of the report well, but I heard that the defendants fabricated something and ran a smear campaign right before the presidential election," Yoon said. "It had a major adverse impact on the election."
Yoon also expressed his intent to seek punishment for the defendants. Under the Information and Communications Network Act, defamation is an offense that cannot be prosecuted against the victim's will, meaning punishment is not possible if the victim does not want it. "The prosecution also indicted them after finding the charges credible, and I kept hearing that the report was aimed at causing my electoral defeat," he said. When defense attorneys for Kim and Han asked, "You are well aware that freedom of the press must be broadly guaranteed, aren't you?" Yoon countered, "There must be a premise that the press reports the truth with responsibility."
The court decided to summon Yoon again as a witness on the 7th of next month. At that hearing, witness examination by Kim and Shin's defense is scheduled to take place.
Kim and Shin were put on trial on charges of exchanging hundreds of millions of won in money in return for false reporting that defamed Yoon. In September 2021, they conducted an interview claiming that "Yoon quashed an investigation into loan broker Cho Woo-hyung while investigating the Busan Savings Bank case at the Supreme Prosecutors' Office Central Investigation Department in 2011." Newstapa cited this in reporting the allegations of a quashed investigation.
The prosecution concluded that the two conspired with the goal of influencing the presidential election, and that Kim paid Shin 165.5 million won disguised as a book payment in return for the false interview. Kim and Han are accused of conspiring with Shin and others to produce false reporting.
