Judge’s Facebook posting to be reviewed

By Kim Rahn

The Supreme Court will hold a disciplinary ethics committee Tuesday to review whether senior judge Choi Eun-bae violated the codes of conduct by writing a post on his Facebook account critical of President Lee Myung-bak’s push for the free trade agreement with the United States.

Chief Justice Yang Sung-tae has disapproved of the judge’s Facebook comment in which President Lee was called “pro-American to the core.”

It is to be seen how the committee will decide as the court hasn’t set a guideline for judges on their use of social network service (SNS) tools.

“Judges should always reflect on themselves whether their remarks and behavior will affect public trust in the court. If a judge fails to gain public respect, his or her ruling will have no authority,” Yang said in a forum held at the Seoul Central District Court, Friday.

Yang’s remark was not on the script for the speech but impromptu, a court official said. “Yang was furious when he learned about Choi’s status update. His speech was a warning to all judges,” he said.

Choi’s comment posted on Nov. 22, which he later deleted, read: “Lee and other senior bureaucrats engaging in FTA negotiations with the U.S. are pro-American to the core. They betrayed this country and the public on Nov. 22, 2011. I’ll not forget the day.”

The committee will review whether Choi’s remark was in violation of the Law on Public Servant’s Ethics, which requires judges and other civil servants to remain politically neutral. “It will also review whether SNS use by judges should be regarded as private activity or public,” the official said.

Regarding the row, Choi said on his Twitter, “I don’t think it was wrong to disclose my opinion in my SNS space where I share my opinions and feelings with people I like or people who want to talk to me.”

“I always keep the ethics law, judges’ political neutrality and fairness in mind. My Facebook activity was not against these regulations,” he said.

Afterward, the number of Choi’s followers rose to more than 17,000 from 30.