December 15, 2025: Professor Lee is surrounded by three unidentified individuals near her laboratory after proctoring an exam. [Photo=Committee for the People's Livelihood]

The civic group Committee for the People's Livelihood (Seominwi, Secretary-General Kim Soon-hwan) announced on the 11th that they have filed a police complaint against the university administration of Hansei University, the Korean University Professors Union (KUPU) affiliated with the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU), and officials from the Yoido Full Gospel Church, alleging irregularities in appointments and human rights violations within the university.

The individuals accused in the complaint filed by Seominwi with the Seoul Metropolitan Police Agency include university officials such as the President, Provost, and Chairman of the Board of Hansei University, as well as union executives, including the KUPU branch president and the Korean University Employees Union branch president at Hansei University. Additionally, the senior pastor and the chairman of the presbytery of Yoido Full Gospel Church, the founding body of Hansei University, were also included in the complaint.

In its complaint, Seominwi claimed, "There are suspicions that seven professors, including Professor A who holds a leadership position, were promoted during the full professor evaluation in the first half of 2024, despite their research achievements falling short of the standards. Their promotion was allegedly made by extending the period for evaluating research performance from six years to twenty years."

Furthermore, the group also raised suspicions of improper appointments due to procedural violations during the new recruitment evaluation conducted in January 2025, stating that "a professor who was a former pastor was promoted to a tenured associate professor just one year after being hired."

Seominwi characterized these actions as abuses of power involving the university, the union, and the foundation.

While the primary issues in this case revolve around appointment-related suspicions between the university administration and the union, claims of human rights violations within the campus have also emerged.

According to the complaint, "On December 15th of last year, Professor Lee felt threatened by three unidentified individuals near her laboratory after she finished proctoring an exam," and submitted video evidence to support these claims.

In the video footage, the professor recounted the situation, saying, "I was on my way back to my lab after the exam supervision, but the men kept insisting I let them in to check something. Three of them wanted to enter my lab. I don't think I can continue working here. I was so scared."

Seominwi expressed suspicion that the university authorities had passively observed the situation. Regarding Yoido Full Gospel Church, Seominwi pointed out their inappropriate involvement, such as consistently showing indifference to the alleged irregularities within the university and notifying the school to discipline professors who participated in protests.

In response to these allegations, Hansei University stated, "Hansei University operates its school in accordance with regulations agreed upon by its members and through lawful procedures." However, the university did not provide any further specific details regarding the factual basis of the complaint.

Reporter Lim Yo-hee