"Moon Jae-in XX, Eradicate the Left!" The Raw Face of Korean Politics Revealed in the 'Julie Mural' [Han Seung-gon's Political Notebook]

Controversy Over 'Julie Mural' in the Heart of Jongno, Seoul
Conservative Groups Also Bring Up 'Nanbang Yeolsa' Painting
Nearby Merchants Complain "Can't Do Business Due to Protests"
Crowds Gather in Front of Mural, Intense Conflict Between Progressives and Conservatives
Criticism That It Causes 'Political Hatred' and 'Political Fatigue'

Near the Julie mural, a conservative YouTuber and a Sewol-related official are confronting each other while streaming on YouTube. Photo by Seunggon Han hsg@asiae.co.kr

[Asia Economy Reporter Han Seung-gon] "What did the Moon Jae-in administration do!", "Who is Julie!", "Why is the Sewol ferry here again!"

The so-called 'Julie’s Man' mural that appeared in the heart of Jongno-gu, Seoul on the 28th of last month has been widely criticized for exposing the raw face of Korean politics. It has been condemned as violence based on misogyny. Although some argue it is merely freedom of expression, legal circles counter that it constitutes a human rights violation.

The Korean Women Lawyers Association issued a statement on the 30th regarding the Julie mural exhibition, saying, "Hatred and mockery of women are violence and human rights violations, not freedom of expression." The association emphasized, "The person who created the mural claims political freedom of expression and continues the exhibition after only deleting the mural’s text. However, this can only be seen as an attack and infringement on an individual’s personal rights beyond political freedom of expression."

Meanwhile, some view the Julie mural as revealing the ideological conflicts between progressives and conservatives in our society without any filter. In front of the controversial Julie mural, which has sparked debates about 'misogyny' and more, there has been criticism that instead of healthy discussions based on mutual respect, people refuse to listen to the other side simply because they support a particular political party.

Furthermore, some incidents even escalated into physical altercations, showing a glimpse of the extreme ideological confrontation in our society. From the 28th to the 30th of last month, when the Julie mural became widely known and various conflicts erupted, we reviewed 72 hours of key scenes including citizens’ voices.

A conservative YouTuber, who claimed to be merely someone selling Dalgyal, showed a bundle of eggs. Photo by Han Seung-gon hsg@asiae.co.kr

◆ "I’m just here to sell eggs.", "You can’t move the car in front of the Julie mural.", "I’ll just lie down here."

"I’m just an egg seller.", "I don’t know about politics." A man in his late 40s standing in front of the Julie mural kept repeating these words. When asked, "Then how much is a tray of eggs?" he turned his head away. When asked again about the price of a tray of eggs, he said, "16,000 won."

His answer that he was an egg seller was incorrect. According to the Korea Agro-Fisheries & Food Trade Corporation (aT) agricultural product distribution information, the average price of a tray of eggs (30 medium-sized eggs) last year was 5,267 won, and recently it has been traded at 8,500 won.

Considering that he was selling directly in front of the Julie mural rather than at a large supermarket, the consumer price without middle margins should have been even lower. If he actually sold at that price, it would have been an enormous profit. Of course, he is not an egg seller.

"Get out of here!", "What’s there to see!" He was a conservative-leaning YouTuber holding a selfie stick for live streaming in one hand and a megaphone in the other. This YouTuber voiced critical opinions against progressive forces and blocked citizens approaching the mural.

Another man in his early 40s lay down in front of a vehicle parked in front of the Julie mural, making it impossible to tow the car forcibly. As a result, the Julie mural could barely be seen through the gaps between cars. From the perspective of conservative citizens, this effectively blocked the controversy surrounding the 'Julie mural' related to former Prosecutor General Yoon.

Photo by Seunggon Han hsg@asiae.co.kr

◆ "Why is the Sewol ferry here again!" Progressive-Conservative, 'Counter YouTube Live Broadcast'

"Who is Julie!", "Julie, let me play too!", "This is a violation of women’s rights!"

Citizens expressed various opinions. Calls for moral verification continued. A man in his 60s raised his voice, saying, "Since Yoon Seok-youl is running for president, thorough verification is necessary." He emphasized, "I think it’s misogyny." A man in his 50s angrily said, "It’s tough because of COVID-19, why talk about politics here?"

The scene was truly chaotic. Amid this, a person related to the Sewol ferry disaster appeared on site and filmed the conservative YouTuber, while the conservative YouTuber also broadcasted the Sewol-related person, creating a kind of 'counter YouTube live broadcast' situation.

The progressive-conservative conflict on site spread online as well. The conservative YouTuber’s real-time broadcast chat was filled with messages criticizing progressive forces nonstop. The progressive broadcast chat was the same. With tense atmosphere, fierce criticism of each other unfolded. Online exchanges of arguments and loud voices using megaphones in front of the Julie mural offline took place.

As a kind of 'counterattack' against the Julie mural, conservative groups brought out a painting presumed to be of actress Kim Bu-seon. Photo by Seunggon Han hsg@asiae.co.kr

Some conservative citizens shouted and criticized, "Why is the Sewol ferry here again?" During this, the Julie mural was still obscured by vehicles brought by conservative YouTubers, making it hard to see properly. Citizens supporting the Moon Jae-in administration or with progressive leanings continued to engage in heated debates with conservative citizens.

The political world was also abuzz over the 'Julie mural.' Former lawmaker Kim Kyung-jin, who served as former Prosecutor General Yoon’s external cooperation spokesperson, appeared on CBS’s 'Kim Hyun-jung’s News Show' on the 30th and criticized, "It is political violence, terrorism, and an inhumane act that should never be done." He added, "Anyone can assume that the intention of posting that picture was to insult Yoon Seok-youl, the current opposition presidential candidate. It can only be evaluated as an act to politically benefit the ruling party."

Choi Jae-hyung, a presidential candidate from the People Power Party, criticized on his Facebook on the 29th, "We must not tolerate acts that regress democracy under the name of freedom of expression." He continued, "I heard news that a mural defaming Yoon’s family was hung. I cannot contain my anger." He pointed out, "This is low-quality slander, political violence, and character assassination under the guise of freedom of expression."

Meanwhile, a painting presumed to depict actress Kim Bu-seon, who claimed to have had a secret meeting with Gyeonggi Province Governor and leading presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung, also appeared among conservative groups. Conservative-leaning citizens who saw this shouted, "Put up more pictures!", "Who is that! Isn’t that Kim Bu-seon!" The Julie mural was obscured by the painting presumed to be Kim’s, making it hard to see properly.

Among citizens, there was criticism that this was a lowly political act that inevitably evokes specific individuals for political claims.

Someone wrote defamatory remarks about President Moon Jae-in on the Julie mural. Photo by Seunggon Han hsg@asiae.co.kr

◆ "Moon Jae-in XX", "Eradicate the Left!" The 'Julie Mural' Now... Stained with 'Hate Speech'

"You may freely enjoy the 'Wall of Wailing' and freedom of expression."

On the morning of the 31st, a building official where the mural was painted said this. Following the removal of controversial phrases such as 'Julie’s men' and 'Julie’s dream! The First Lady’s dream!' on the 30th, anyone was allowed to graffiti on the mural. As a result, citizens flocked and began writing messages expressing their political leanings with paint and lacquer spray.

The problem was that most of the mural was filled with vulgar insults and baseless slanders. When a progressive-leaning YouTuber rewrote the controversial phrases like 'Julie’s men,' supporters of former Prosecutor General Yoon erased them again with black lacquer spray. Earlier, graffiti defaming President Moon Jae-in such as "Moon Jae-in XX" appeared over Julie’s face.

Additionally, phrases full of criticism such as "Jae-myung Bu-seon," "Let’s have a special prosecutor for Druking," "Eradicate the left," and "Where are feminists and women’s groups?" were also written on the mural.

On the 31st, a Twitter user also announced plans to paint another 'Julie mural' in Cheongju, Chungbuk. The user posted on Twitter, "Soon, I will paint the Julie’s man mural in Cheongju. I have a feeling it will cause a nationwide uproar (Oh no, Yoon’s husband)." Along with the post, a photo showed a man climbing a ladder and painting on a wall that looked like a container box.

While fierce conflicts escalated among the political world and citizens centered around the mural, young people who saw this showed little interest. A young person in their 20s said, "What’s the big deal about that?" and "I’m not really interested in the Julie mural." A worker in their 40s said, "The presidential election is less than a year away, but showing only this kind of scene makes people dislike politics." He added, "I think it’s the responsibility of politicians starting from our generation that young people feel disgusted with politics." A self-employed person in their 50s briefly said, "We need more productive discussions. What on earth is that?"