Na Kyung-won "Pro-Japanese are more on their side"... Criticizes 'IlNabe' Pro-Japanese Frame Through Memoir

Na Kyung-won Criticizes 'Pro-Japanese Collaborator' Comments
Last Year's Memoir Reflects on Political Intent Behind 'Pro-Japanese' Attacks

Na Kyung-won, People Power Party Seoul Mayor Primary Candidate Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Han Seung-gon] Na Kyung-won, a candidate for the People Power Party's Seoul mayoral primary, responded to accusations of being "pro-Japanese" by saying, "There are more pro-Japanese people on the other side." This statement has brought renewed attention to her remarks last year in her memoir, where she claimed that the "pro-Japanese frame" against her had political motives. In the memoir, Na expressed discomfort over being called "Nabe," a derogatory nickname combining one character from former Japanese Prime Minister Abe's surname and her own surname.

She criticized the pro-Japanese controversy surrounding her, saying, "Domestically, opposition factions and the media label me as 'pro-Japanese,' but in Japan, I am actually seen as an 'anti-Japanese politician.'"

On the afternoon of the 1st, during a TV debate for the People Power Party's Seoul mayoral primary hosted by TV Chosun, in a segment called "More Malicious Comments than No Comments," Na read comments such as "You attended the Japan Self-Defense Forces event and the Emperor's birthday, but don't you explain that?" "Is it Heo Kyung-young or Heo Kyung-won?" and "Another public enemy running for Seoul mayor," then smiled and said, "Because I fight at the forefront, I always seem to be the main target of comment attacks."

She then mentioned the pro-Japanese controversy, saying, "I think this is a challenge we need to overcome now. There are more pro-Japanese people on the other side, but I believe the wise citizens will now forget about it." Regarding criticism of her unfavorable image, she retorted, "Looking at the polls, I am not the candidate with the highest unfavorable rating."

In August last year, former Japanese Prime Minister Shinzo Abe (安倍晋三) entered the Japanese Prime Minister's Official Residence wearing a mask.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

The pro-Japanese controversy surrounding Na is not new. In November last year, in her memoir Testimony of Na Kyung-won, she criticized the malicious coined term "Nabe," saying, "'Nabe' is an unavoidable related search term for 'politician Na Kyung-won' on portal sites," and called it a malicious portmanteau mixing her surname with one character from former Japanese Prime Minister Abe's surname.

Na pointed out that the "pro-Japanese frame" targeting her is a powerful and easy weapon used to attack politicians, social leaders, and celebrities, saying, "There is no weapon as easy and strong as the 'pro-Japanese frame' to attack politicians and social leaders or celebrities. If one shrinks back due to temporary negative public opinion and media attacks, more persistent attacks begin."

She added, "Losing a few elections should not lead to seeking answers in the wrong places. That is a lack of courage in politics," and insisted, "We must have confidence in what we believe is right."

In the memoir, Na also referred to the "fast-track clash incident" during the 20th National Assembly, calling it "an indelible stain in our political history," but also evaluated it as "giving energy to our party, which was fragmented after the impeachment crisis."

Na expressed her frustration over the "pro-Japanese attacks." In an interview with Kyunghyang Newspaper last month, she said, "I would do various things to win elections... but I was attacked in all sorts of ways just because I was labeled a pro-Japanese politician."

She continued, "Once, I was attacked because of the socks I was wearing, and when I wrote 'Long live the Republic of Korea,' they twisted it to 'Long live the pro-Japanese Republic.' I believe the level of our citizens is not like that. I think there are some such forces. They mislead the patriotism of the people for political purposes to expand their support base," reiterating that the "pro-Japanese frame" against her has political motives.

Oh Shin-hwan, People Power Party Seoul mayoral primary candidate (from left), Cho Eun-hee, Na Kyung-won, and Oh Se-hoon are posing ahead of the four-person joint vision debate held on the 1st at TV Chosun in Jung-gu, Seoul. [Image source=Yonhap News]

Meanwhile, a poll released on the 1st showed that in a hypothetical unification race for the opposition's Seoul mayoral candidate, Ahn Cheol-soo, leader of the People’s Party, leads both People Power Party candidates Na Kyung-won and Oh Se-hoon by a wide margin.

According to a survey conducted by PNR Research on 804 Seoul citizens aged 18 and over on the 28th of last month, commissioned by Money Today, Gyeongnam Maeil, and the Future Korea Research Institute, Ahn led Na in a one-on-one race with 42.4% to 26.2%.

Ahn showed superiority over Na across all regions, genders, and age groups. While People Power Party supporters preferred Na, other supporter groups showed higher support for Ahn. Ahn also led Oh with 41.1% to 26.1%.

In the People Power Party primary, Na Kyung-won had 26.9% support, and Oh Se-hoon had 26.2%, showing a close race. By age group, Na led in the 40s, while Oh led among those aged 18 to their 20s.

In the Democratic Party primary, Park Young-sun led with 43.1%, ahead of Woo Sang-ho's 18.3%. The margin of error for this survey is ±3.5 percentage points at a 95% confidence level. For more details, refer to the Central Election Poll Deliberation Commission website.