Faded 'Julie Mural'... Is It a Setback or an Opportunity for Yoon?

Yoon Urges Restraint in Overreaction
Political Circles Turn Away, Some Analyze as Favorable for Approval Ratings

A mural defaming Kim Keon-hee, wife of presidential candidate Yoon Seok-yeol, painted on the exterior wall of a bookstore in Jongno-gu, Seoul, has sparked controversy. On the morning of the 30th, a building official painted over the mural's text with white paint to erase it. The photos show before and after.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy reporters Naju-seok and Park Joon-yi] Amid the controversy over the ‘Julie mural’ defaming the spouse of former Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-yeol, which has shaken the political sphere, former Prosecutor General Yoon is showing an active yet restrained response to avoid overreaction. There is also analysis that this controversy may actually work to Yoon’s advantage.

Choi Ji-hyun, spokesperson for former Prosecutor General Yoon, said in a phone interview with this outlet, "It is clearly a criminal act legally and politically motivated," but added, "Even without taking legal action, I believe the public will see it and understand well on their own." This represents a compromise that neither damages nor abandons the two values of ‘freedom of expression’ and ‘excessive personal defamation.’

The political perspective is also leaning toward supporting former Prosecutor General Yoon. Early in the controversy, voices from ruling party members and others in the political sphere sought to highlight the allegations, but now the focus has shifted to pointing out the problems with the mural itself. It is criticized for touching on the spouse’s private life unrelated to the candidate’s capabilities and containing sexual disparagement. Ko Yong-jin, senior spokesperson for the Democratic Party of Korea, stated after the party’s supreme council meeting, "The Democratic Party respects freedom of expression, but we agreed that expressions containing elements of personal infringement, and furthermore, personal destruction, should be restrained." On the same day, Democratic Party lawmaker Jeon Jae-soo criticized on the radio, calling it "clear social violence" that "cannot be justified by any words."

There is also analysis that such negative attacks will work in favor of former Prosecutor General Yoon. The previous day, Lee Jun-seok, leader of the People Power Party, mentioned the family controversy surrounding Yoon and predicted, "If he responds according to the facts, it will be a positive factor for his approval rating."

In this situation, the recent decline in Yoon’s approval rating is showing signs of slowing down. In a public opinion poll conducted by Realmeter on June 26-27 commissioned by OhmyNews, Yoon’s approval rating recorded 27.5%, down 0.3 percentage points from the previous survey conducted on June 12-13 (based on 2,058 adults, with a 95% confidence level and a sampling error of ±2.2 percentage points; see Realmeter website). The fact that the approval rating did not fall further appears to be influenced by news that Yoon is preparing to join a political party early next month.

Meanwhile, the building owner, Ms. Yeo, who directly installed the mural, appeared on the radio on the same day to deny any problem, saying it was simply satire. It was confirmed that Ms. Yeo erased the problematic phrase from the mural that morning.