Kim Ji-eun asks South Chungcheong Province to drop litigation cost claim against her

Kim Ji-eun, the victim of sexual violence committed by former South Chungcheong Province Governor Ahn Hee-jung, has formally asked the provincial government to waive its claim for litigation costs against her. The request comes after courts recognized the province's liability for state compensation over Ahn's assault — making it unjust, she argued, to burden the victim with those costs.

Kim said Monday on X, formerly Twitter, that she had filed an official civil complaint with South Chungcheong Province through the National Sinmungo public petition system Tuesday. She asked the province to refer the matter to its litigation review committee to deliberate on whether to drop the cost claim.

She also asked the province to suspend collection until a decision is reached, and to inform her whether the case would be referred to the committee and when any review would be scheduled. If the province chose not to refer the case, she asked it to explain its reasons and legal basis.

Kim, who served as Ahn's personal secretary, came forward in March 2018 to say she had been raped and sexually assaulted by him through the abuse of his authority, helping ignite South Korea's #MeToo movement. Ahn was subsequently convicted on charges including sexual intercourse with a person under his supervision, sexual harassment through abuse of occupational authority, and forced indecent conduct. In September 2019, the Supreme Court upheld a sentence of three years and six months in prison.

Kim's sexual assault was recognized the following year as an occupational injury, and a civil court later found South Chungcheong Province liable for damages. However, because the court did not award the full amount she had sought, Kim is required to bear a portion of the litigation costs.

Kim issued a statement Friday saying she had received court documents bearing the name "South Chungcheong Province" — a petition to confirm the amount of litigation costs — just as she was slowly rebuilding her daily life after years of isolation.

She said that over more than five years of civil proceedings, she had been forced to repeatedly describe and prove what had happened to her. "It took more than two years just to find a medical institution willing to conduct a physical assessment, and I was hospitalized in a closed psychiatric ward to go through the evaluation process," she said. "But South Chungcheong Province denied even those results." The province was ultimately found liable for damages, yet Kim said she continues to struggle with her livelihood and medical treatment to this day.

"South Chungcheong Province was my workplace — a local government that should have protected its workers," she said. "The litigation costs the province is claiming are money I desperately need to sustain my livelihood, continue my treatment, and rebuild a life that has fallen apart." She added that every hour spent on legal procedures was time taken away from her recovery, and called on the province to drop the cost claim.

Kim cited South Chungcheong Province's own rules on litigation affairs as the basis for her demand. Those rules allow the province to waive litigation costs when requiring the other party to bear them would be inappropriate in light of the public interest or the protection of socially vulnerable people.

Kim has asked the province to refer her case to its litigation review committee to deliberate on waiving the cost claim, while separately filing an objection with the court over the amount assessed. She has asked the province to suspend collection while those procedures are under way.

"It is also true that civil litigation for sexual violence victims still carries more symbolic than practical value, given the time and costs involved," Kim said. "If even a local government found liable for state compensation pursues litigation costs from the victim, it will be hard to readily recommend the same path — civil litigation — to other victims."

South Chungcheong Province said the petition to confirm the litigation cost amount and the actual collection of those costs are separate procedures, explaining that the court first determines the sum before the province separately decides whether to pursue recovery. Whether to refer the matter to the litigation review committee is still under review.