A Supreme Court judge and outspoken advocate of judicial reform yesterday said he would dispute a decision by the body’s screening committee to dismiss him from the court after a poor performance review.

Benedict Seo Gi-ho, a former judge in the Northern District Court of Seoul, said he was informed on February 10 that he was deemed “unqualified” for reappointment to the court.

A review of all judges’ performance is mandated by Korean law every 10 years.

Seo said he believed the decision was retaliatory for criticisms of the Lee Myung-bak’s administration made on Twitter.

“The assessment is unfair. I don’t think that I have done wrong in my duties [over the last] 10 years,” he told ucanews.com yesterday following a Mass held in his honor at the Catholic Youth Center in Seoul.

Seo had previously criticized the government’s move to regulate judges’ use of social networks such as Twitter and Facebook, claiming it was a restriction on freedom of expression.

The judge had also used Twitter to criticize President Lee and the Korea Communications Standards Commission’s announcement that it would begin monitoring social networks.

“I will take legal action, such as petitioning the Constitutional Court, to correct the court’s decision,” Seo said.

Father Stephen Hyun Woo-seok, who celebrated yesterday’s Mass, praised his resolve in pursuing judicial reform.

“I support his great courage. All of us will voluntarily support him for judicial justice,” he said during his homily.

Meanwhile, judges from other district courts in Seoul held meetings on February 17 to discuss the need for greater transparency in the decision-making process of the Supreme Court and a review of the procedure to file complaints.

“Many colleagues have sympathized with me on the Supreme Court’s inadequacy in its decision-making process for the reappointment.”

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