South Korea
Man arrested for undermining economyPosted Feb 15 2009
Park Dae-sung, a South-Korean blogger also known as “Minerva,” was arrested Jan. 7 on charges of undermining his country's financial markets with his dire predictions. Dae-sung’s site garnered more than 40 million page views while criticizing the government's economic policies.
In some 200 postings on bulletin boards in a popular Internet portal last year, Minerva denounced the government's handling of the economy and made predictions, largely negative, for the future. His writings were sprinkled with jargon that suggested he was an economic expert, and his identity was a hot topic of discussion in South Korea. But the 31-year-old has no formal economic training, only a communications degree from a junior college.
Minerva's arrest instantly fueled a furor over freedom of speech, as critics blasted the government and prosecutors attempting to suppress basic civil rights.
But prosecutors said Minerva went too far in saying in an online discussion that the government had banned major financial institutions and trade businesses from purchasing U.S. dollars in an apparent move to shore up the local currency, calling it inaccurate information that disrupted the foreign exchange market.
South Korea has a lively online community, and Park has thousands of fans. He was lionized in the South Korean news media as the “online oracle” and the “Internet president of the economy,” according to the Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ).
“I wrote articles to help those people alienated from the government . . . who have suffered from the financial crisis,” Park told reporters after his arrest.
Park faces a maximum five-year prison term or a 50 million won ($36,360) fine if convicted. He is seeking bail, which was initially denied last week, AP reported.
More information
- The Washington Post
- International Freedom of Expression Exchange