3) Hate Speeches During the Election Process A) Pattern of Hate Speeches During the Two Election In the First Half of 2022 According to international human rights norms, such as Article 20(2) of the UN Covenant on Civil Rights and Article 4 of the Convention on the Elimination of Racial Discrimination, their interpretation guidelines, and overseas legislative examples, etc., hate speech can be defined as expressions that shows the effect of justifying, encouraging or reinforcing discrimination by ① insulting, humiliating, belittling, intimidating, or ② propagating or inciting discrimination and violence against individuals and groups on the basis of gender, disability, religion, age, region of origin, race, sexual orientation, etc. In other words, hate speech is an expression that implies 'hostility' such as insults, belittling, and ridicule targeting minorities,501) or even if it is not an extreme and low-level expression, it can be seen as an expression that has the function of ‘incitement’ that can make discrimination and hatred a matter of course to the general audience and make them participate in discrimination, hostility, and violence against minorities. Hate speeches toward social minorities is more serious than general insult speeches in that it can be a mechanism to promote and justify discrimination. Hate speech itself can be said to be a form of discrimination, and it can also be said to be a precursor to discrimination. There were two elections in 2022. Through the 20th Presidential Election on Mar. 9 and the 8th National Simultaneous Local Election and re-election on Jun. 1, the President, regional and local government heads, superintendent of education, regional and local council members, and 12 members of the National Assembly were elected. Before the election, the National Assembly Legislative Research Service presented an opinion that despite the expansion of political opinions through various media outlets, such as mobile, online, and one-person media, there is a problem of false information and hate speech being easily circulated.502) The Commissioner of the NHRCK, on May 18, asked that all political parties, candidates, campaign workers, and ordinary citizens participating in the 8th local elections to 501) In Korea, there are many regulations protecting the socially underprivileged under the current law, but it is difficult to find an example that explicitly defines the expression ‘minority.’ However, minorities with discriminatory attributes stipulated in Article 2 of the National Human Rights Commission of Korea Act may be subjected to hate speech. 502) National Assembly Legislative Research Service, 2022 Issue of the Year, Dec. 30, 2021. 207