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Case on School Teachers’ Establishment or Joining of Political Party and Political Organization [2018Hun-Ma551, April 23, 2020] In this case, the Court decided that in relation to Article 65 Section 1 of the State Public Officials Act, which prohibits elementary and secondary school teachers from participating in organizing a political organization or from joining it, the part regarding ‘No school teachers under Article 19 Section 1 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act among the public educational officials provided in Article 2 Section 2 Item 2 of the State Public Officials Act may participate in organization of or join other political organizations,’ violates the Constitution. However, the Court ruled that in relation to Article 22 Section 1 Item 1 of the Political Parties Act, which prohibits elementary and secondary school teachers from participating in organizing a political party or from joining it, the part regarding school teachers under Article 19 Section 1 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act among the public educational officials provided in Article 2 Section 2 Item 2 under the State Public Officials Act, and the part regarding ‘No school teachers under Article 19 Section 1 of the Elementary and Secondary Education Act among the public educational officials in Article 2 Section 2 Item 2 under the State Public Officials Act may participate in organization of or join any political party’ from Article 65 Section 1 of the State Public Officials Act do not violate the Constitution. Background of the Case The Complainants are elementary and secondary teachers. On May 29, 2018, the Complainants filed a constitutional complaint over the part regarding ‘public educational officials provided in Article 2 Section 2 Item 2 under the State Public Officials Act’ from Article 22 Section 1 Item 1, and the part regarding ‘teachers in private schools’ provided in - 37 -

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2018Hun-Ma551

Judgment

Question Presented: Whether prohibiting elementary and secondary schoolteachers from establishing and joining political parties unreasonably infringes on their right to freedom of association. Whether the ban on elementary and secondary schoolteachers creating or being members of “other political organizations” as stated in Article 65(1) of the State Public Officials Act is clear and meets the balancing test set up by the court to justify a restriction on political rights.

Alleged Acts: The complainants—a group of schoolteachers—alleged that provisions of the “State Public Officials Act” and the “Political Parties Act” preventing schoolteachers from joining political parties and other political organizations infringed on their constitutional freedoms to “establish and join a political party.”

Procedural history: Complainants filed a complaint with the Constitutional Court on May 29, 2018, claiming that the relevant provisions of the Acts had infringed upon their freedoms to establish and join a political party.

Summary: The Court found that some of the complaints were inadmissible because the complainants did not file their complaints less than a year after they were appointed as teachers, in accordance with the law. Those complaints were struck by the Court. Art. 22(1) of the Political Parties Act states that “(1) Anyone who has the right to elect members of the National Assembly is entitled to become either a promoter or a member of political party, notwithstanding the provisions of other statutes that prohibit him/her from joining political party or engaging in political activity due to their status as a public official or others . . . this shall not apply to any of following persons. . . . 2. Teachers in private schools excluding the school teachers provided in Article 14 (1) and (2) of the Higher Education Act.” Article 65(1) of the State Public Officials Act also states that “(1) No public official may participate in organizations of or join any political party or other political organizations.” The Constitutional Court had ruled in two previous cases that these provisions prohibiting public officials from joining political parties did not violate the Constitution. The Court’s reasoning was twofold. First, the Court found that the purposes of public official neutrality and educational neutrality were legitimate State concerns. Second, the Court held that the provisions were valid under the least restrictive principle because the teachers could still support a political party in a personal capacity by voting in elections. Using a balancing test, the Court found that the public interests of official neutrality and educational neutrality outweighed the private political interests of educators. The Court accordingly found against the complainants on this issue. However, six of the nine justices voted to strike the “other political organizations” provision of Article 65(1) of the State Public Officials Act as unconstitutional for its ambiguity, though the justices disagreed on whether the provision infringed on the teachers’ freedoms of expression and association. In the first opinion, three justices discussed how the phrase was ambiguous enough to have a “chilling effect” on the teachers, who could be subjected to arbitrary rulings regarding their membership in certain organizations. These justices declined to comment on whether the provision violated the teachers’ freedoms of political expression and association. A second group of justices agreed that the provision was unconstitutional because the phrase was too ambiguous to distinguish between “political organizations” and “non-political organizations” and that such a lack of clarity infringed on the teachers’ freedoms of political expression and association. These justices held that the provision did not promote a politically neutral education, which could be accomplished through less restrictive means (e.g., monitoring the teachers’ activities) and instead becomes excessively restrictive. Therefore, the “other political organizations” provision failed the judges’ balancing test and was struck down.

Conclusion: Some of the complaints were immediately dismissed. The “other political organizations” provision of the State Public Officials Act was struck down as unconstitutional due to its ambiguity/lack of clarity.

Legal Issue(s)

Freedom of association and assembly
Voters' Rights

Applicable Law(s): Article 22(1)—(2) of the Political Parties Act Article 2(2)(2) of the State Public Officials Act Article 65(1) of the State Public Officials Act

Region: Asia-Pacific

Country: South Korea

Language of Decision

English

Court: Constitutional Court

Election Type: Review of law

Date of decision: Apr 23, 2020

Geolocation

Latitude: 37.75623977073077

Longitude: 127.71972566843036

: Geolocation

Primary Documents

2018Hun_Ma551.pdf
English
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