Won Jong-geon, the second recruited talent of the Democratic Party of Korea, is leaving the press conference room after finishing a press conference at the National Assembly on the 28th. As the 'Me Too' allegations spread mainly through online communities, Won said, "I will return my qualification as a recruited talent of the Democratic Party." Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@
[Asia Economy Reporter Shinwon Yoon] Won Jong-geon (27), the second recruited talent of the Democratic Party of Korea, returned his recruited talent status amid the Me Too controversy, while his ex-girlfriend A, who exposed the issue, continued to reveal additional allegations against Won.
On the 28th, A disclosed the diary entries she wrote daily during the period she dated Won in an interview with 'Ilyo Shinmun'.
The diary contained entries stating that after Won broke up with A in February last year, he verbally abused her with sexual insults such as "If you think I had sex with another guy (ex-boyfriend), I get really pissed off," and "I want to get you pregnant and make you mine for life."
According to A, Won had unprotected sex without her consent, and a week later, A received gynecological treatment. In July of the same year, Won requested to film their sexual encounter, and when A refused, he secretly recorded it, as noted in the diary.
Additionally, A claimed that during their relationship, Won often said, "You can't meet a celebrity like me anywhere else."
Won Jong-geon, the second recruited talent of the Democratic Party of Korea who was accused in the Me Too controversy, is leaving the press conference room after announcing on the 28th at the National Assembly Jeongron-gwan in Yeouido, Seoul, that he will voluntarily return his status as a recruited talent. [Image source=Yonhap News]
Due to Won's repeated violent behavior and personality differences, A broke up with him and only realized after the breakup that his actions constituted dating violence. At the end of 2019, she visited two sexual violence counseling centers, the Sunflower Center and Women’s Hotline, for consultations.
Two counselors who consulted with A at the time offered to help her hire a lawyer if she decided to file a complaint against Won. However, fearing exposure of her identity and hearing that dating violence cases often result in dismissal or light punishment, she chose not to proceed with legal action.
Recently, upon hearing the news of Won joining the Democratic Party and running for a local constituency, A judged that it was inappropriate for such a person to enter politics and exposed Won’s dating violence behavior online.
Earlier, on the 27th, A posted on an online community claiming that Won forcibly attempted to have sex with her and treated her like a sex object. She presented four photos showing bruises on her lower body and screenshots of KakaoTalk conversations as evidence.
As the controversy spread, Won held a press conference on the 28th, the day before, and announced his intention to return his recruited talent status to the party while explaining the controversy. He stated, "Just the fact that this controversy arose has caused trouble for the party. I sincerely apologize for that," and refuted the claims by saying, "The posts are not true. Though I had many faults and made mistakes in my youth, I did not live recklessly."
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