"Prejudice Against Women, Pathetic Level of Gender Equality Awareness"
Ahn Cheol-soo, the People's Party candidate for Seoul mayor, is speaking at a candidate invitation debate held on the 17th at the Korea Broadcasting Hall in Mokdong, Seoul, hosted by the Korea Journalists Association, the Broadcast Journalists Association, and the Korea PD Federation. Photo by the National Assembly Press Photographers Group
[Asia Economy Reporter Kang Juhee] Ahn Cheol-soo, the People's Party candidate for Seoul mayor, sparked controversy on the 22nd by referring to Park Young-sun, the Democratic Party candidate, as an 'ajumma,' prompting the Democratic Party to raise their voices in criticism, saying, "The level of awareness of gender equality is pathetic."
Choi In-ho, the chief spokesperson, criticized in a written briefing that afternoon, "Candidate Ahn made a below-standard, thoughtless remark by calling Democratic Party candidate Park Young-sun 'an ajumma who owns an apartment in Tokyo,'" adding, "He belittled a female politician."
He continued, "When criticized that the term 'ajumma' is derogatory toward women, Candidate Ahn tried to evade responsibility by saying, 'I am a house-less ajeossi (middle-aged man),'" and pointed out, "His response is really childish. Instead of sincerely apologizing for his mistake, he acted as if saying 'I am also an ajeossi' means there is no problem."
Spokesperson Choi remarked, "Even though Park has served four terms as a member of the National Assembly, been the floor leader, and a minister, to Candidate Ahn, female politicians seem to be nothing more than 'ajumma,'" and questioned, "If the opposing candidate were male, would he have used the expression 'Tokyo ajeossi'?"
He added, "This shows what kind of prejudice Candidate Ahn holds against women and how pathetic his awareness of gender equality is," demanding, "He must immediately apologize for his misogynistic and sexist thoughtless remarks."
Earlier, in an interview on the YouTube broadcast 'Lee Bong-gyu TV' released that day, Candidate Ahn said, "I live in a rented apartment in Sanggye-dong and have no land. An ajumma who owns an apartment in Tokyo is fully beatable," referring to his competitor Park as 'ajumma,' which sparked controversy.
As criticism spread that this was a 'misogynistic remark,' Candidate Ahn hurriedly tried to contain the situation by telling reporters after attending the policy agreement ceremony of the Citizens' Coalition for Economic Justice (CCEJ) that afternoon, "I am a house-less ajeossi."
Meanwhile, Candidate Park revealed that she disposed of the Tokyo apartment owned by her husband, which had become a subject of controversy, in February.
On the previous day (the 21st), Park explained on Facebook, "My husband was forced out of his company after President Lee Myung-bak took office in 2008 and went to Japan, where he found a job and lived, so he bought an apartment there," adding, "That apartment was disposed of in February. The property declaration includes assets as of the end of last December because that is when the declaration was made."
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