On the morning of the 10th, at the first small meeting room of the National Assembly building, participants including victims of the unresolved T-MEP incident and attending parliament members raise placards and shout slogans. /Courtesy of Jeong Jae-Hwon.

The communicating president, please end the overlooked pain now!

On the morning of the 10th, at the first small meeting room of the National Assembly members' hall, victims of the settlement issue shouted loudly while holding placards with this message during the 'T-MEP (TMON and WeMakePrice) policy forum for resolving the crisis.' This forum was organized to review follow-up measures and responses from relevant agencies of the Strategy and Finance Committee and the Ministry of Trade, Industry and Energy, while also listening to the testimonies of the T-MEP corporations. It was the first policy proposal event related to the T-MEP crisis since the new government took office last month.

Victims' corporations and consumers, including the Black Umbrella (Emergency Response Committee for the T-MEP crisis), attended the forum to convey their policy proposals and demands. Numerous officials from government agencies, including the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, the Financial Services Commission, the Financial Supervisory Service, and the Fair Trade Commission, also attended to discuss each department's position and improvement measures.

On the morning of the 10th, at the first small meeting room of the National Assembly building, attended by Joo Jeong-Yeon (left), the consumer representative of the Black Umbrella Committee, and Shin Jeong-Gwon, the representative of the Black Umbrella Committee. /Courtesy of Jeong Jae-Hwon.

Joo Jung-yeon, a consumer representative of the Black Umbrella response committee, said, "Since the beginning of the crisis, we have consistently demanded four things: a precise investigation of the damage scale, including the amount of damage and the number of victims; prompt confiscation investigations by the Qoo10 Group; policies for pre-relief and post-support for victim protection; and the establishment of a system to prevent recurrence. However, none of them have been implemented properly."

She added, "Of the 100 measures promised by each department in the previous government, only five have been properly implemented. Attempting to communicate with various departments has limited the victims, who have not experienced administration, in their efforts to recover. As a result, consumers who still have not received refunds are ultimately preparing for class action lawsuits."

Park Su-min, a representative of a company affected by the T-MEP crisis, said, "We experienced a settlement delay crisis just six months into starting our business. The government’s support method for victims was loans, which resulted in even more debt akin to sales proceeds. In the end, we ended up with additional liabilities."

Mr. Kang Man, a representative of another affected company, said, "We have not received a total of more than 2 billion won, and we have been barely surviving through loans. To repay the interest, I had no choice but to sell goods at a loss of up to 20%. Currently, the victims are bearing the responsibilities of the perpetrators."

On the morning of the 10th, at the first small meeting room of the National Assembly building, attended by the representatives of the victim companies, Kang Man (from left), Lee Joon, and Park Soo-Min. /Courtesy of Jeong Jae-Hwon.

Lee Joon, a representative of another affected company, noted, "Last month, the repayment rate approved for TMON's rehabilitation plan was only 0.75%. The court approval proceeded without any refunds for consumers being addressed," adding, "The design of the rehabilitation system itself revolves around the perpetrators, while the rights of the victims are outside the system."

Shin Jeong-kwon, a representative of the Black Umbrella response committee, said, "Currently, there is no government organization dedicated to online economic activities, and multiple ministries are involved. Despite this, online economic activities continue to operate within the existing system, and they remain exposed to potential risks in the future."

He suggested, "It is estimated that there are currently more than 110,000 affected corporations and about 300,000 to 400,000 affected consumers. Policies should be categorized into short-term and long-term based on difficulty and urgency, and those that can be sufficiently implemented at this stage should be promoted within a reasonable time frame."

Officials from government agencies attending the forum listened closely to the presentations from victims and provided direction for future measures.

Kim Hyun-dong, the director of the Market Policy Division of the Ministry of SMEs and Startups, said, "We will comprehensively review the overall structure of the online sales support project for small businesses that has been criticized. Additionally, we will consider reducing the current policy loan interest rate of 2.5% based on the base rate and other factors."

On the morning of the 10th, at the first small meeting room of the National Assembly building, attended by Kim Hyun-Dong (from left), the Director of the Small and Medium-sized Venture Business Department’s Market Policy Division, Jeong Seon-In, the Director of Digital Finance at the Financial Services Commission, Byeon Jae-Eun, the Director of Electronic Finance at the Financial Supervisory Service, and Park Jong-Bae, the Director of Consumer Policy at the Fair Trade Commission. /Courtesy of Jeong Jae-Hwon.

Jeong Seon-in, the head of the Digital Finance Division of the Financial Services Commission, noted, "We requested the cooperation of credit card companies and payment gateway companies, but the actual experience in the field was insufficient. We will organize the feedback from today’s forum, consult with the relevant divisions, and carefully review additional measures."

Byeon Jae-eun, the director of the Electronic Finance Supervision Bureau of the Financial Supervisory Service, stated, "We plan to expand on-site inspections for electronic financial operators that do not comply with management guidelines, such as T-MEP. We will also meticulously investigate individual electronic financial operators to identify vulnerable management early, similar to corporate credit evaluations."

Park Jong-bae, the head of the Consumer Policy Division at the Fair Trade Commission, said, "We are supporting victims' lawsuits through consumer resources, but we recognize the criticism that our resources are insufficient. In the future, it seems necessary to push for the establishment of a separate public fund for victim relief based on legal grounds."

Kim Dong-a, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, who hosted the forum, said, "In the new government, the National Assembly will not be a bystander but will play the roles of a practical mediator and guardian."

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