"One Person Filed 2,166 Information Disclosure Requests"... Hwaseong City Government Employees' Union Calls for Protection Measures

Staff report heavier workloads and mental distress amid repeated requests
Plans one-person protests and proposals to amend the law

The Hwaseong City Branch of the Gyeonggi Regional Headquarters of the Korean Government Employees' Union called for measures to protect staff and improve the system, saying that repeated information disclosure requests from a particular requester have increased the workload of the public officials handling them.

A member of the Korean Government Employees' Union stacks tissue boxes in a symbolic performance to show the volume of information disclosure requests. Photo provided by the Hwaseong City Branch of the union's Gyeonggi Regional Headquarters.

The Hwaseong City Branch held a press conference at 11 a.m. on November 4 in the lobby on the first floor of the main building of Hwaseong City Hall, with the Gyeonggi Regional Headquarters organizing the event. Attendees included officials from the government employees' union, heads of city and county branches across Gyeonggi Province, and representatives of civic groups.

According to the branch, one particular requester submitted 2,166 information disclosure requests between January 1 and October 26 this year. The branch estimated that public officials handling the requests had to review more than 20,000 items, as each request contained an average of 10 sub-items.

The branch said that staff handling the requests have complained of mental stress and helplessness as they continue to collect materials, review whether information should be disclosed, and process objections. It argued that this workload is also affecting administrative services for ordinary citizens.

The branch claimed that the requests were an example of the information disclosure system being abused as a means of harassing public officials, and announced plans for a joint response. At the site, members also staged a symbolic performance, stacking 2,000 boxes of facial tissues to highlight the scale of the requests.

The branch plans to hold rotating one-person demonstrations by union members during weekday lunch breaks for four weeks after the press conference. It will also conduct public outreach near Dongtan Station, Byeongjeom Station, and the Hyangnam 2 Rodeo Street area, and deliver a proposal on amending the Information Disclosure Act to lawmakers representing local constituencies.

The main demands include preventing the abuse of information disclosure requests for the purpose of harassment, establishing standards for responding to repeated and excessive requests, and setting up a protection system that includes legal and psychological support and special leave for affected public officials.

Choi Taeseong, head of the Hwaseong City Branch, said, "This campaign is not about denying citizens' legitimate right to know. It is about correcting conduct that abuses the purpose of the system to harass public officials, and protecting the livelihood and health rights of public-sector workers. We will work together to amend the law and improve the system so that administrative services can properly serve citizens."

Meanwhile, according to materials distributed by the branch, Hwaseong City filed a complaint with the police against the requester on October 22 on charges including obstruction of the performance of official duties. The materials did not include the requester's position or details of the requests.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.