'Fairness' Chanted 37 Times by Moon... 2030 Turning Away Saying "No Youth Sympathy"

President Moon mentions 'fairness' 37 times at Youth Day ceremony
BTS attends as youth representatives... 20s and 30s "Lack of understanding of youth anger"
Opposition "No qualification to mention fairness"... Political criticism floods in

President Moon Jae-in is waiting to deliver a commemorative speech at the 1st Youth Day ceremony held on the morning of the 19th at the Green Garden of the Blue House / Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Ga-yeon] Allegations of 'preferential leave' during the military service of Minister of Justice Choo Mi-ae's son, Seo Mo (27), and other 'unfairness' controversies surrounding the Moon Jae-in administration continue. President Moon emphasized 'fairness' at the Youth Day event and attempted to console the younger generation, but he was criticized for failing to empathize with the anger of young people. When the opposition parties also voiced such criticism, the Blue House stated that it "does not see the value in responding."

At the first Youth Day commemorative ceremony held on the 19th at the Blue House's Greenhouse, President Moon said, "The government deeply feels the high demand for fairness from young people and will definitely respond to it," adding, "We will further strengthen efforts to investigate military service corruption, tax evasion, and eradicate violence in the sports world."

He continued, "When the older generation was accustomed to unfairness, it was always the youth who raised issues and sought fairness in our society. Our government also wanted to be with the youth and is making progress step by step toward a fair, just, and equal society," emphasizing, " It will take more time until fairness becomes a culture in our society. There may be trial and error or conflicts. However, we need the conviction that we must walk the path of fairness. Whenever unfairness appears, we must work together step by step to resolve it."

He added, "The innovative DNA that our youth possess can exert greater power only with the belief in a 'fair society.' We will promote government policies from the perspective of youth and with their hearts so that they can unfold their dreams and take on challenges based on opportunities and fairness," repeatedly stressing fairness.

President Moon mentioned 'fairness' a total of 37 times that day. Members of the globally popular group BTS attended as youth representatives. Although he did not specifically mention Seo's military leave allegations, his remarks were interpreted as being conscious of the surrounding controversy.

President Moon Jae-in is receiving the 'Gift for 2039,' which contains musical achievements and messages from BTS, at the 1st Youth Day Commemoration Ceremony held at the Blue House's Green Garden on the morning of the 19th. Photo by Yonhap News

Although President Moon expressed his intention to listen to the anger of young people, criticism arose among those in their 20s and 30s that he "failed to empathize with the youth's anger."

This year, anger among young people has spread due to incidents such as the sexual harassment accusation against the late former Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon, the controversy over the conversion of Incheon International Airport Corporation employees to regular positions, and Seo's military leave allegations. Therefore, it was pointed out that it was inappropriate to present globally successful idols as youth representatives.

While President Moon spoke about 'fairness,' he ignored the voices of young people such as examinees, university students, and job seekers who are angry about 'unfair issues.'

Office worker Kim Mo (29) said, "Do you think it makes sense to say you empathize with the anger of young people by bringing BTS? BTS members are indeed successful and hardworking young people, but I think it does not match at all with the gist of the commemorative speech, which said 'we understand the anger over repeated unfair controversies.'"

Kim added, "The ones who are currently angry and raising their voices are ordinary citizens, not celebrities. They are citizens who go to the military while attending university and obsess over every single qualification while preparing for employment," and said, "We need to properly listen to why young people are angry."

Some also criticized the exclusion of female voters' voices. Lee Mo (23), a student at a university in Seoul, said, "Although the military service issue is the biggest controversy now, controversies such as secondary victimization related to the former Mayor Park incident continue endlessly," pointing out, "However, there was no mention of this incident. The youth representatives were only successful male idols."

Lee added, "Until now, women in their 20s and 30s were considered a core support base for President Moon. Various polls showed that sexual misconduct by high-ranking officials affected support, but there was no mention for young women," adding, "I am always greatly disappointed. Instead of just verbally calling for fairness and understanding, there needs to be sincere efforts to empathize."

President Moon Jae-in is delivering a commemorative speech at the 1st Youth Day ceremony held at the Green Garden of the Blue House on the morning of the 19th. Photo by Yonhap News.

As a result, criticism continued in the political sphere. On the 20th, spokesperson Kim Eun-hye issued a written statement saying, "In the Moon Jae-in government, where selective justice and investigations are rampant, fairness is a mask of lies and hypocrisy," and criticized, "They have no right to talk about fairness."

She continued, "In a situation where the regime continues to fully defend unfairness, even if fairness is shouted 1,000 times instead of 37, it will only sound like an empty echo to young people," urging, "Fairness that is not implemented is fake. Prove fairness with convincing measures to the people who are disillusioned by the absurdity and irrationality of Choo Mi-ae, Yoon Mee-hyang, and Lee Sang-jik."

People Power Party lawmaker Heo Eun-ah also wrote on her Facebook that day, "How many young people truly felt genuine fairness from the word 'fairness' mentioned 37 times?" and pointed out, "It confirmed the gap between a regime pretending to be fair and young people fighting for fairness."

Former Dongyang University professor Jin Joong-kwon said, "To talk about fairness after the Cho Kuk and Choo Mi-ae incidents, it seems like living in a different world," adding, "The fairness the president talks about is 'If there is a dad chance, there should be a mom chance equally.'"

A senior Blue House official said at a meeting with reporters that day, "We spoke about fairness that is not just verbal but actually materialized," and regarding the opposition's criticism that they "have no right to talk about fairness," said, "We do not see the value in responding."

Meanwhile, the ongoing 'unfairness issues' appear to have affected the decline in government approval ratings.

According to a poll conducted by Realmeter on the 14th, commissioned by YTN, surveying 2,521 voters nationwide over five days from the 7th, President Moon's positive approval rating was 45.6%, down 2.5 percentage points from the previous week. The negative approval rating rose 1.9 percentage points to 50.0% during the same period.

By age group, the 20s showed the lowest positive rating at 36.6%, and by occupation, housewives (39.5%) and students (34.0%) had the lowest positive ratings. A Realmeter official analyzed, "As allegations involving Minister Choo's son surfaced, it affected the support among groups sensitive to military service issues."