A lawyer and former lawmaker disciplined by KBA for sexual remarks

Kang Yong-seok, 46, a lawyer and politician-turned-media celebrity, was not punished for defamation charges on his comment degrading female anchors that he made when he was a lawmaker. However, he was not exempt from punishment for undermining the dignity of lawyers. The trouble started when he sued a reporter who covered his story for defamation charges.

The Korean Bar Association (KBA) said on Monday, “We confirmed our disciplinary action of 10 million won (9,010 U.S. dollars) in fine to Mr. Kang who undermined the dignity of lawyers with the conviction in the criminal trial.”

When Kang was a lawmaker of the formerly ruling Grand National Party, he had a dinner in Mapo-gu, Seoul, or his constituency, with a group of college students who participated in the national college student debate competition hosted by the parliamentary speaker in July 2010. He said to a female student who wanted to become an anchor, “If you want to succeed as an anchor, you have to give everything. Can you do that?” After that, he was sued by some 150 members of the Korean anchors’ association for defamation charges. As he denied his comment and sued the reporter who covered his story, the reporter sued him back for the charges of false accusation.

Kang was convicted for insult and false accusation charges in the first and second trials, with probation. However, the Supreme Court reversed and remanded the case back to the Seoul Western District Court last year, saying that although his comment was inappropriate, victims were not targeted and the case is not serious enough to punish him for insult charges. The lower court ruled a fine of 15 million won (13,520 dollars) only for false accusation charges.