'Sex Worker Derogation' District Councilor Reported to Daegu Mayor and Jung-gu Office Chief... "Payment of Self-Sufficiency Funds is Illegal"

During the closure process of Jagalmadang, Daegu City provides support funds to victims of prostitution...
Councilor Hong Jun-yeon receives 'Gender Equality Obstacle Award' amid controversy over offensive remarks and party expulsion

[Asia Economy Yeongnam Reporting Headquarters Reporter Dongwook Park] A district council member who has consistently claimed that the payment of self-sufficiency funds to 'victims of prostitution' during the closure of the red-light district 'Jagalmadang,' once considered a disgrace of Daegu, has filed a complaint with the prosecution against Daegu Mayor Kwon Young-jin and Jung-gu District Mayor Ryu Gyu-ha.

On the 25th, Hong Jun-yeon, a member of the Daegu Jung-gu Council, along with Moon Seong-ho, the representative of the civic group 'Dangdangwi,' and lawyer Oh Myung-geun, visited the Daegu District Prosecutors' Office and submitted a complaint accusing Mayor Kwon, District Mayor Ryu, and three other Daegu city officials of violating national subsidy laws.

They claimed, "Daegu City tolerated illegal prostitution, caused the fraudulent receipt of subsidies, and neglected their duties, thereby committing illegal acts," adding, "Paying a total of 1.27 billion KRW to 90 women involved in prostitution, with up to 20 million KRW per person, is a clear illegal act." They also explained the reason for the complaint by stating, "The sources of the self-sufficiency support funds must also be disclosed."

In 2018, during a plenary session of the Jung-gu Council, Councilman Hong sparked controversy by stating about Daegu City's policy to support the self-sufficiency of women involved in prostitution, "Those who earned money easily without sweating from a young age receive 20 million KRW, and there is no guarantee they will stop prostitution."

After continuing such remarks, he faced strong protests from women's groups in the Daegu area and was expelled from the Daegu City Party of the Democratic Party on February 14 of last year. On March 11 of the same year, he was also dishonored by receiving the 'Obstacle to Gender Equality Award' from officials of the Daegu Women's Rally Organizing Committee.

Meanwhile, Daegu's Jagalmadang, which began as a Japanese-style brothel district in 1909, became a representative red-light district in Korea by the late 1990s, with about 70 establishments and over 600 women working there, but declined after the enactment of the Prostitution Prevention Act in 2004.

Daegu City enacted the 'Jagalmadang Self-Sufficiency Support Ordinance' in 2016 and, after closing the area, has been developing residential facilities such as apartments and parks around the vicinity in the form of private development. The name 'Jagalmadang' is said to have originated from the painful history that the ground was covered with gravel to prevent women involved in prostitution from escaping because of the sound of stepping on gravel.