200
Rebecca MacKinnon
engaging in offensive yet relatively common behavior.
34 South Korean government,
industry, and society at large were by 2003 already beginning to feel the cost of sophisticated cyber attacks.
35 A 2006 poll revealed that 85 percent of South Korean high
school students were under stress from cyber bullying.
36 Real-ID requirements on
Internet platforms and enhanced surveillance capabilities were touted by policymakers
as a solution to social problems and crimes that the Internet had enabled, amplifi ed,
and exacerbated.
However, South Korean human rights activists argue that since the current president, Lee Myung-bak, took offi ce in 2008, government measures have had an increasingly adverse impact on free expression and privacy. The ruling party, they say, has
used media and communications laws to maximize its own political advantage, resulting in a marked “ chilling effect ” on political speech.
37 Measures include deletion or
“ temporary blocking ” of Internet postings that criticize the government and powerful
individuals, and prosecutions of individuals for dissemination of information characterized as “ false communication using electronic communication facilities for the
purpose of derogating public interest. ”
38 Laws against dissemination of false information, combined with the real-name registration requirement for all Internet services
with more than 100,000 visitors per day, have resulted in the identifi cation and prosecution of a number of Internet users for speech that is supposed to be protected under
international human rights norms. Examples include the arrest of a teenager who
proposed a student strike on a popular forum, and the arrest of the infl uential economic commentator known as “ Minerva ” for posting articles critical of the government ’ s currency policy.
39 The man who wrote pseudonymously as “ Minerva, ” Park
Dae-sung, was identifi ed by government investigators because the Internet portal
Daum was required by law to hand over records of the account holder ’ s real identity
and National ID number. He was eventually acquitted, but only after spending fi ve
months in jail. Human rights groups argued that his experience has had a chilling
effect on other citizens who might otherwise be motivated to post critiques of government policies online.
40 In December 2010, South Korea ’ s Constitutional Court ruled
that the telecommunications law banning the spread of false information was unconstitutional, citing unclear defi nitions in the law of terms such as “ false ” and “ public
interest. ”
41 While this ruling was hailed by digital rights groups as a major victory,
other laws, including the real-ID requirements, remain in force.
While the Internet initially had a politically disruptive and democratizing effect on
South Korean politics, enabling a political insurgent to win election in 2002 by circumventing political narratives promoted by mainstream broadcast and print media,
the Internet has been used by the current regime as part of its efforts to chill dissent
and marginalize critics.
42 Scholar Kwang-Suk Lee describes this process as an evolution
from a dictatorship reliant on centralized, hierarchical control to a democracy whose
political establishment seeks, through laws passed by a democratically elected
Rebecca MacKinnon
engaging in offensive yet relatively common behavior.
34 South Korean government,
industry, and society at large were by 2003 already beginning to feel the cost of sophisticated cyber attacks.
35 A 2006 poll revealed that 85 percent of South Korean high
school students were under stress from cyber bullying.
36 Real-ID requirements on
Internet platforms and enhanced surveillance capabilities were touted by policymakers
as a solution to social problems and crimes that the Internet had enabled, amplifi ed,
and exacerbated.
However, South Korean human rights activists argue that since the current president, Lee Myung-bak, took offi ce in 2008, government measures have had an increasingly adverse impact on free expression and privacy. The ruling party, they say, has
used media and communications laws to maximize its own political advantage, resulting in a marked “ chilling effect ” on political speech.
37 Measures include deletion or
“ temporary blocking ” of Internet postings that criticize the government and powerful
individuals, and prosecutions of individuals for dissemination of information characterized as “ false communication using electronic communication facilities for the
purpose of derogating public interest. ”
38 Laws against dissemination of false information, combined with the real-name registration requirement for all Internet services
with more than 100,000 visitors per day, have resulted in the identifi cation and prosecution of a number of Internet users for speech that is supposed to be protected under
international human rights norms. Examples include the arrest of a teenager who
proposed a student strike on a popular forum, and the arrest of the infl uential economic commentator known as “ Minerva ” for posting articles critical of the government ’ s currency policy.
39 The man who wrote pseudonymously as “ Minerva, ” Park
Dae-sung, was identifi ed by government investigators because the Internet portal
Daum was required by law to hand over records of the account holder ’ s real identity
and National ID number. He was eventually acquitted, but only after spending fi ve
months in jail. Human rights groups argued that his experience has had a chilling
effect on other citizens who might otherwise be motivated to post critiques of government policies online.
40 In December 2010, South Korea ’ s Constitutional Court ruled
that the telecommunications law banning the spread of false information was unconstitutional, citing unclear defi nitions in the law of terms such as “ false ” and “ public
interest. ”
41 While this ruling was hailed by digital rights groups as a major victory,
other laws, including the real-ID requirements, remain in force.
While the Internet initially had a politically disruptive and democratizing effect on
South Korean politics, enabling a political insurgent to win election in 2002 by circumventing political narratives promoted by mainstream broadcast and print media,
the Internet has been used by the current regime as part of its efforts to chill dissent
and marginalize critics.
42 Scholar Kwang-Suk Lee describes this process as an evolution
from a dictatorship reliant on centralized, hierarchical control to a democracy whose
political establishment seeks, through laws passed by a democratically elected