KNCCO (Chairperson: Ju Gyeong-Sun) and its 11
member organizations will hold a “Rally for a Class Action Lawsuit, Punitive
Damages and Funds for the Promotion of Consumer Rights”, as the 2019 Consumer
Movement, at 11:30 a.m. on August 29 in front of the National Assembly. The rally
will focus on President Moon’s campaign promises, i.e. introducing a class
action lawsuit, punitive damages and providing funds for the promotion of consumer
rights.
Korean consumers have been involved in, and have
suffered from, a variety of incidents in recent years. These include but are not
limited to the radon-emitting mattress incident, BWM engine fires, the KT
network blackout and the Kolon Invossa incident in 2018 and 2019, as well as the
2011 humidifier sterilizer scandal, 2015 Homeplus data breach and the 2017 hazardous
sanitary napkin scandal. What we require are not the ad-hoc arrangements
offered by the government, but fundamental solutions for protecting and
promoting consumer rights.
We demand a class action lawsuit system since, if
a small group files a suit against a corporation on behalf of the consumers
damaged by that corporation’s willful misconduct or gross negligence, the
claims of the absent parties can also be resolved. We need punitive damages
which are assessed in order to punish the
defendant for their outrageous conduct or intentional illegality, and to
prevent under-compensation of the plaintiffs. We therefore request funds for
the promotion of consumer rights, in order to protect consumer rights by offering
financial support to victims; for example, by assisting those who have suffered
due to the unfair dealings of corporations with high litigation costs. We, the consumer
advocacy groups, will employ our best effort to enact the related laws during
this session of the National Assembly by working with legal experts.
