The Seoul High Court (Image courtesy of Yonhap)
SEOUL, Aug. 20 (Korea Bizwire) — A court on Wednesday ordered the foreign ministry to drop a lawsuit against broadcaster MBC over former President Yoon Suk Yeol’s controversial remarks caught on a hot mic during his visit to the United States in 2022.
Under the compulsory mediation, or “decision in lieu of conciliation,” the Seoul High Court ordered the Ministry of Foreign Affairs to withdraw the lawsuit and instructed MBC to consent to the decision.
Under South Korean law, a compulsory mediation can be ordered by a court when no settlement is reached during a mediation process in a civil lawsuit. It becomes final if neither party files an objection within two weeks.
The former president’s remarks, which experts say are difficult to discern due to background noise, were subtitled by MBC to make it sound like the president used vulgar language when mentioning then U.S. President Joe Biden.
Yoon’s office later argued there was no mention of Biden and claimed the word he used was in reference to the South Korean National Assembly.
“Considering the nature of the remarks, the freedom of the press and expression along with the social costs and side effects of the dispute, it is desirable that the issue be settled amicably by withdrawing the lawsuit,” the court said in a statement.
The court added the evidence provided by the foreign ministry was not sufficient to prove the news report was false.
In January 2024, a lower court ordered broadcaster MBC to correct its report, with the broadcaster challenging the decision.
(Yonhap)
