The application for a provisional injunction against the airing of “Snowdrop” is dismissed, still air as planned
The Court said, “It’s hard to say that the public will blindly accept the drama”.
The court has refused to accept an application from civic groups demanding to ban the airing of JTBC’s drama “Snowdrop,” which has been embroiled in controversy over history distortion.
The 21st Department of Civil Agreement at the Seoul Western District Court (Chief Judge Park Byung-tae) dismissed an injunction filed by the civic group World Citizens’ Declaration against JTBC on Dec 29th. The World Citizens’ Declaration filed for an injunction demand, saying, “’Snowdrop’ can actively glorify the National Security Agency employees who have tortured and murdered numerous democratization figures for no reason, teach distorted historical views to generations who have not experienced such historical experiences.”
In response, JTBC countered, “Snowpiercer is a creation that shows the personal narratives of those who were used and sacrificed by powerful people,” adding, “The historical distortion and denunciation of the democratization movement pointed out by the applicant will be largely resolved in the future drama development process,” adding that the content of the drama is far from any kind of history distortion or dictatorship advocacy.
Upon hearing both sides’ claims, the court judged, “Even if the content of ‘Snowdrop’ is based on a distorted view of history, as claimed by the applicant side (the World Citizen’s Declaration), it is difficult to say that the people who encounter this drama will blindly accept it.”
The court also believed that the screening of “Snowdrop” did not directly infringe upon the applicant’s rights. The court ruled, “There is no prestigious legal provision for us to recognize the ‘benefit of applicants who want to inherit the spirit of the democratic uprising and to unite across borders with the people resisting state violence’ as claimed by creditors. Even if we view this as a personal right derived from the Constitution, it is difficult to say that applicants’ personal rights are violated unless the drama’s content directly targets the applicants.”
The court then added, “An Applicant cannot arbitrarily apply for a ban on screening on behalf of the general public for fear of infringing upon their personal rights.”
Set in Seoul 1987, “Snowdrop” tells the love story of Su-ho (Jung Hae-in), a prestigious university student who suddenly jumps into the dormitory of a women’s university wounded, and female college student Young-ro (Jisoo), who hides and takes care of Su-ho amidst the serious surveillance and crisis. The drama, which had been controversial since the production stage for “disparaging the democratization movement”, became more controversial after episode 1 was broadcast on Dec 18th.
More than 355,000 people agreed to the Blue House National Petition, which was uploaded on Dec 20th, to stop its airing.
As the controversy spread, JTBC released episode 5 ahead of time, which contains the content that Su-ho came to South Korea as a special arrangement by the South and North Korean governments to continue the regime, and Young-ro felt betrayed after discovering Su-ho’s identity.
