By Ko Dong-hwan
Korea’s Constitutional Court has ruled that saying “You are f---ing crazy” in English may be derogatory but not defamatory.
The ruling came after two men from an apartment building in Gyeonggi Province argued in May last year over the watering of flowers at a nearby garden. Lee, 62, and his neighbor, 43, sued each other for physical violence and false accusation.
The pair clashed again days later, after the neighbor failed to address Lee respectfully ― a social norm in Korea when there is a large age difference.
But when an apartment warden approached, the neighbor changed his tone and used honorifics to address Lee. The neighbor’s sudden change frustrated Lee and he said to himself: “You are f---ing crazy.”
The neighbor heard it and sued Lee for defamation. But prosecutors rejected the filing because, while admitting Lee’s criminality, it was hard to indict him based on the circumstances.
The issue was then referred to the Constitutional Court.
The court ruled unanimously, saying:
“‘F--ing’ elaborates ‘crazy,’ like ‘very,’ while ‘crazy’ has many meanings like ‘unnatural,’ ‘absurd’ or ‘passionate.’
“Whether the expression was defamatory or not must be decided based on the speaker’s motive and the incident’s whereabouts.”
The court said that in the particular setting, the level of harshness in Lee’s expression could be interpreted as no more than “You are very nonsensical.”
“Besides, Lee’s comment was not enunciated aloud,” the court said. “It was only picked up by the neighbor, who reiterated it aloud and only drew attention from the warden. It is deniable that the comment was heard openly by the public.”