In this Thursday, Feb. 14, 2013 photo, Roh Hoe-chan, a lawmaker of the minor opposition Progressive Justice Party, speaks during a press conference at the National Assembly in Seoul, South Korea, Roh known for criticism of the Samsung conglomerate has forfeited his seat in parliament after the Supreme Court ruled he violated communications laws by publishing incriminating wiretaps of conversations between Samsung officials on the Internet. (AP Photo/Yonhap, Bae Jae-man) KOREA OUT
February 15, 2013 - 12:58 AM
SEOUL, South Korea - A South Korean lawmaker known for criticism of Samsung has forfeited his seat in parliament after the Supreme Court ruled he violated communications laws by publishing incriminating wiretaps of conversations between Samsung officials on the Internet.
South Korea's top court upheld a lower court's conviction of lawmaker Roe Hoe-chan and a suspended prison sentence.
Roh published transcripts of conversations between an aide to Samsung Electronics Co. chairman Lee Kun-hee and Lee's brother-in-law that were recorded by national intelligence agency wiretaps. The conviction disqualifies Roh from being a lawmaker.
Usually South Korean lawmakers are protected by an immunity that allows them to speak freely in the National Assembly.
At issue was whether such immunity applied to the lawmaker's actions in cyberspace. The court ruled that it did not.
News from © The Associated Press, 2013