Criticism Continues Over Sim Sang-jung's Flood Recovery Certification Photo
Civilians React: "Did She Just Go to Take Photos?" "Disappointing"
A photo of Sim Sang-jung, leader of the Justice Party, visiting a flood recovery site in Anseong-si, Gyeonggi-do, together with fellow Justice Party lawmakers / Photo by Sim Sang-jung Twitter capture
[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Ga-yeon] After Sim Sang-jung, leader of the Justice Party, visited the flood recovery site in Anseong, Gyeonggi Province, and posted a commemorative photo, criticism arose that "taking commemorative photos at a disaster site was inappropriate." As the controversy spread, Leader Sim deleted the photo.
On the 7th, Leader Sim posted five photos taken at the flood recovery site on her Facebook, stating, "Today, Justice Party lawmakers and party officials supported flood recovery work at the landslide-affected farms in Juksan-myeon, Anseong City."
The photos showed Leader Sim and fellow lawmakers, including Representative Ryu Ho-jeong, moving household items and taking a break while drinking coffee during the flood recovery work.
Leader Sim said, "Visiting disaster sites is always delicate. I was worried that I might only cause inconvenience without being of practical help in the urgent recovery site," adding, "I worked hard with the hope of offering even a small comfort to the devastated victims."
She continued, "We dug out the soil filling the houses repeatedly, pulled out household items, and found photos of parents and siblings that had been kept for a lifetime from the muddy ditch floor," explaining the situation on site. "We shared the kimbap we prepared and the ramen that was carefully cooked together, sharing our hearts with the victims."
She added, "There is great concern as heavy rain is forecast again over the weekend before the flood damage is even repaired. Just as citizens overcame COVID-19 through patience and solidarity, it would be good to share small sincerity and encouragement to give courage to the flood-affected residents," and "Emergency recovery work can be done by local governments, but road restoration and damage support should be supported by the central government. The Justice Party will do its best in the National Assembly so that the victims can regain their daily lives as soon as possible."
Sim Sang-jung, leader of the Justice Party, faced criticism for posting a photo taken at a flood recovery site, which was deemed inappropriate. As the controversy grew, Representative Sim deleted the photo. Photo by Sim Sang-jung Facebook capture
Regarding the post, some netizens expressed support and encouragement in the comments, while others criticized, saying, "Taking commemorative photos at a disaster site was inappropriate." Since it was a place to help flood victims, there were calls to refrain from 'showy' promotional photo shoots.
Netizen Kim said, "Please don't bring a camera when doing this kind of work," adding, "If you really did a good deed, those who received help would post their gratitude without such promotion."
Another netizen, Sim, said, "It's not admirable at all. Lawmakers are not paid with taxpayers' money to dig with shovels there," and criticized, "I hope you fulfill your given role. As a lawmaker, you should spend that time investigating, thinking about, and solving why such disasters happen, how to handle them, and how to prevent them in the future."
Netizen Hwang also said, "I think taking commemorative photos is possible, but the timing could be problematic," adding, "If you post it as a memory after a few months when the situation is settled, the reaction might be better, but given the timing, criticism is natural."
Other netizens responded with comments such as, "Photos are not appropriate. If you want to boast, why not do it until full recovery is achieved," "Please stop taking commemorative photos at disaster sites. People with this kind of mindset pretending to be 'cool' look bad," "Taking photos while claiming to do flood recovery is not flood recovery. If you are going to do it, go quietly and do it," and "Really disappointing."
As the controversy spread, Leader Sim deleted all the photos on the 9th. Currently, only the text remains on Leader Sim’s Facebook.
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