The National Assembly decided to file a complaint against three people, including Kim Beom-suk, chair of the Coupang Inc. board, who expressed an intention not to attend a hearing, on charges of violating the National Assembly's Act on Testimony and Appraisal.
Lawmakers of the Democratic Party of Korea on the Science. ICT. Broadcasting. and Communications Committee said in a statement on the 15th that they would "review and pursue legal action, including filing complaints," against Chair Kim and former Coupang CEOs Park Dae-jun and Kang Han-seung. They also decided to push for a parliamentary investigation into the Coupang personal information leak.
The Science, ICT, Broadcasting and Communications Committee will hold a hearing on the Coupang personal information leak on the 17th. But the key witnesses—Chair Kim, former CEO Park, and former CEO Kang—all submitted a written statement explaining his absence, knocking Kim out even before it began.
In a written statement explaining his absence, Chair Kim said, "As the chief executive officer (CEO) of a global corporations operating in more than 170 countries worldwide, I inevitably cannot attend the hearing due to official business schedules."
Following the hearing, the Science, ICT, Broadcasting and Communications Committee immediately pulled out the option of a parliamentary investigation, putting pressure on Coupang. Unlike a hearing, a parliamentary investigation allows the issuance of writs to compel witnesses to accompany officials.
Ruling party members of the Science, ICT, Broadcasting and Communications Committee said in a statement, "Through the hearing and the subsequent parliamentary investigation, we will fully uncover Coupang's security management system, the structural causes of repeated incidents, and whether they are evading responsibility," adding, "In the face of a massive incident in which the personal information of 33.7 million people was leaked, Coupang's de facto responsible officials refused the National Assembly's request to appear as witnesses. This is a clear violation of the National Assembly's Act on Testimony and Appraisal. The National Assembly will not tolerate anyone who ignores the law."