The Democratic Party of Korea's election campaign committee plans to file a complaint against media outlets that reported Lee Jun-seok, the Reform Party's presidential candidate, for his 'sexually violent remarks' without alteration on the 30th. The candidate raised concerns over explicit comments allegedly made by Lee Jae-myung's eldest son in the past during a televised debate, accusing some media of quoting this and thereby defaming Lee Jae-myung.
Park Kyung-mi, the Democratic Party spokesperson, noted, 'The misogynistic expressions spread rapidly and are gnawing away at our society,' and added, 'Hateful expressions, akin to trash, spread through unfiltered reporting, leading to secondary and tertiary harm to the public.' She also mentioned, 'There have been attempts to distort the people's will calling for the punishment of insurgent forces in the presidential election.'
The spokesperson stated, 'If we do not eradicate hate speech, we cannot guarantee that such incidents will not be repeated,' and added, 'The Democratic Party will hold Lee Jun-seok, as well as all actions that amplify and reproduce this, firmly accountable.'
◇Lee Jun-seok aims to shift focus to 'moral verification' at the last minute
The Reform Party believes that the controversy surrounding the remarks of Lee Jae-myung's eldest son, Dong-ho, will become a key variable in the final stages of the election and continues its offensive. Political analysts suggest that since Lee Jun-seok made explicit comments in a televised debate watched by the entire nation, it is unlikely to positively affect his approval ratings. However, the Reform Party is also expecting a kind of 'noise marketing,' as they believe it could shift the existing polling scenario of 'Lee Jae-myung vs. Kim Moon-soo' to 'Lee Jae-myung vs. Lee Jun-seok.'
Lee Jun-seok appeared on YTN radio on the morning of the same day and stated regarding the explicit expression referring to women's bodies used during the presidential candidate debate on the 27th, 'That statement is indeed closer to something that actually happened. Lee Jae-myung did not make a frank statement and instead attacks the messenger with remarks like 'expulsion of Lee Jun-seok from the National Assembly.'' He continued, 'This is a fragmentary glimpse of how Lee Jae-myung would conduct politics if he becomes president.'
The People Power Party launched a coordinated attack. Kweon Seong-dong, the floor leader, wrote on Facebook the same day, 'Lee Jae-myung and his family have made TV news completely unsuitable for youth viewing.' He further stated, 'If Lee Jae-myung's eldest son's comments are like this, what would happen if we cited the insults Lee Jae-myung directed at his sister-in-law or the curses that actress Kim Bu-sun claimed he directed at her, or the verbal abuse Kim Hye-kyung hurled at Lee Jae-myung's nephew during the debate?'
◇'Concerned about losing control over conservative reform' distancing from pro-Han Dong-hoon faction
At the party level, they have also established the 'Lee Jae-myung family corruption investigation team.' Given that Lee Jae-myung is on trial for various criminal allegations, the strategy is to maximize the issue of 'morality' concerning family matters. However, the pro-Han faction is focusing on criticizing Lee Jun-seok's remarks. There is a high possibility that if the People Power Party loses the presidential election, Lee Jun-seok might face off against them in the subsequent 'reorganization of the conservative political scene.'
Han Dong-hoon, former leader of the People Power Party, remarked on the 29th regarding Lee Jun-seok's debate remarks, 'I believe most of the public will resonate with the notion that this was very wrong.' Kim Jong-hyuk, a former senior member of the pro-Han faction, also stated, 'It’s incredibly shocking,' adding, 'I’ve seen cases where politicians lose the political capital they have amassed over decades in an instant; this remark will certainly be recorded among the worst.'