Conservative College Student Group 'Sinjeondaehip' Poster
"Those Who Threw Molotov Cocktails Came to Power... Thought Freedom of Expression Would Be Allowed" Criticism
Kim Tae-il, Chairman of Sinjeondae Association, is reading aloud a large poster criticizing the Moon Jae-in administration at the fountain in front of the Blue House in Jongno-gu, Seoul, at 10 p.m. on the 9th. / Photo by Sinjeondae Association
[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Juhyung] "President Moon Jae-in, Your Excellency, I am sorry."
From the 9th to the 10th, over two days, posters containing this 'letter of apology' were posted in the National Assembly Members' Office Building in Yeouido, Seoul, and at 100 universities nationwide. Although these posters took the form of letters of apology, their main content was a satire and criticism of the Moon Jae-in administration's authoritarian attitude. The conservative-leaning student organization 'New National University Student Representatives Council' (Sinjeondaehoe), which created the posters, also held a performance reading the letter of apology at the fountain in front of the Blue House.
Sinjeondaehoe explained the reason for writing the posters, saying, "Now the president has sued a young man for insult. The reason was that he distributed leaflets criticizing the president." They added, "This young man was investigated for 22 months and persistently harassed, and his mobile phone was confiscated for three months. When the issue became controversial, the lawsuit was belatedly withdrawn, and we post this letter of apology in response."
They continued, "University students believe that the Moon Jae-in administration has destroyed the lives of the 2030 generation," and criticized, "The Moon Jae-in administration dismantled the fair order of the Republic of Korea."
President Moon Jae-in is designating a reporter who raised their hand among the journalists after delivering a special speech on the 4th anniversary of his inauguration at the Chuncheon Briefing Room of the Blue House on the 10th. / Photo by Yonhap News
The group mentioned incidents such as the 'Cho Kuk scandal' and the allegations of special leave privileges during the military service of former Minister of Justice Choo Mi-ae's son, saying, "To resist such injustice, we held candles and posted these posters. We thought that this level of freedom of expression would be tolerated because those who threw Molotov cocktails and posted posters throughout their university days came to power." However, they added, "It was a misconception. All criticism, whether in comments, posters, or leaflets, was suppressed."
They bowed their heads, saying, "We apologize for telling the truth. We apologize for having different opinions. We apologize for wanting freedom of expression," and "We deeply apologize for offending Your Excellency the President."
Sinjeondaehoe's posters were posted at 100 universities nationwide, including Kyung Hee University, President Moon's alma mater, Seoul National University, KAIST, and Pusan National University.
Earlier, Kim Jeongsik, the head of 'Turning Point,' distributed leaflets criticizing President Moon near the fountain at the National Assembly in July 2019. The leaflets claimed that the ancestors of President Moon, the late former Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon, and Yoo Si-min, chairman of the People’s Livelihood Foundation and former Roh Moo-hyun Foundation, were pro-Japanese collaborators. The back of the leaflet contained defamatory phrases such as "Dog of North Korea" and "Moon Jae-in's bright red identity."
The Yeongdeungpo Police Station in Seoul filed charges against Kim for insult in December of the same year and conducted an investigation.
At that time, the police did not specify who the complainant was, but according to multiple media reports, it was said that President Moon filed the lawsuit through his legal representative. Under current criminal law, insult is a complaint-based offense, and prosecution can only proceed if the victim files a complaint.
President Moon emphasized in February 2017, when he was a presidential candidate, during an appearance on JTBC's current affairs program 'Ssulzun' that "Criticism of those in power is the people's freedom." / Photo by JTBC Broadcast Capture
This sparked criticism from some quarters accusing President Moon of 'double standards.' Previously, when he was a presidential candidate in 2017, he appeared on a broadcast program and stated, "The people have the right to criticize those in power." About two years later, filing a lawsuit for insult against an individual citizen was seen as contradictory to that statement.
As the controversy grew, President Moon announced through the Blue House that he would withdraw the lawsuit against Kim. On the 4th, Blue House spokesperson Park Kyung-mi stated at a briefing in the Chuncheon Press Center, "President Moon has instructed to withdraw the intention to punish regarding the insult charge related to the leaflet distribution in 2019."
She explained the reason for the president's decision to withdraw the lawsuit, saying, "(The president) governs the country by the mandate of the sovereign people," and "He accepted the opinion that it is necessary to endure insulting expressions and instructed the withdrawal of the intention to punish in this matter."
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