Park Won-soon |
By Park Si-soo
Staff Reporter
Park Won-soon, a renowned civic leader, accused the government of suppressing nongovernmental organizations (NGOs) Thursday.
"I've learned from sources that the National Intelligence Service (NIS) closely monitored my activities and pressured companies not to financially support progressive civic groups, including mine," Park said in a press conference held at a Seoul auditorium. "The current law bans any kind of censorship by the authorities. But the reality is different."
The government filed a suit against Park, a lawyer and the head of the Hope Institute, a progressive civic group, with the Seoul Central District Court, Tuesday, demanding 200 million won in compensation for what it called "defamatory" remarks against the authorities.
It said in a statement that the remarks made during an interview with a newspaper in June were groundless and tarnished the image of Korea. In the interview, Park claimed that the NIS went behind the scenes to put pressure on companies not to support civic organizations, including his nonprofit chain of shops dealing inused goods.
For instance, the 53-year-old claimed his organization was supposed to launch a microcredit service - the extension of small loans to those in poverty designed to spur entrepreneurship - in partnership with a domestic bank, but the plan was abruptly canceled due to NIS pressure.
He added he believes his plan to open a store on a university campus in April for charity purposes was thwarted due to their intervention. "Power is short-lived, but the truth goes on forever," he said during the press conference. "I bet that not only the NIS head but also President Lee Myung-bak must be fully aware of this."
Baek Seung-hyun, the lawyer who represents Park, urged the government to withdraw the lawsuit.
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