President to Continue Legal Procedures against Media

The damage suit President Roh Moo-hyun filed seeking 30 billion won against lawmaker Kim Moon-soo and four media outlets, including the Dong-A and Chosun dailies, for raising allegations related to Roh’s real-estate speculation is expected to resume.

The 26th Department of Civil Affairs Agreement (chief judge: Park Dong-young) at the Seoul Central District Court said on Tuesday that it has set the date for preparation of pleas for June 24 at 4 p.m. and that it notified the proxies of the plaintiff and the defendant.

President Roh filed a suit last August, but proposed to stop the lawsuit procedures last September, saying, “If proceeding with a lawsuit occurs during a president’s tenure, impartiality may be questioned.” However, the court said, “The court will proceed the lawsuit unless President Roh discontinues it,” stating, “The reason President Roh pressed for a stop in lawsuit procedures doesn’t fall under the reason for stopping a lawsuit according to the Civil Proceedings Act.”

The court conducted legal proceedings, including accepting a warrant of attorney from lawmaker Kim, on Oct 24 after the proposal for stoppage of lawsuit was accepted.

President Roh filed a suit insisting that “Lawmaker Kim has been continuing acts of slander totally different from fact for months, and relevant media outlets have been one-sidedly reporting the lawmaker’s unreliable assertions, so my honor was largely discredited.”

Sang-Rok Lee myzodan@donga.com