"Women Not Serving in the Military Have Only Three-Quarters of the Rights," Ham Ik-byeong... Choo Mi-ae Asks, "Is Supporting Yoon's Dictatorship Your Dream?"

People Power Party, Suspension of Ham Ik-byeong Recruitment Amid Past Remarks Controversy

Former Minister of Justice Choo Mi-ae. [Photo by Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Heo Midam] On the 5th, former Minister of Justice Chu Mi-ae criticized Dr. Ham Ik-byeong, who was appointed and then had his appointment canceled as a co-chairman of the People Power Party's joint election campaign committee.

In a post on her Facebook on the same day, former Minister Chu pointed out Ham's past remarks, saying, "A man born from a woman's body propagated the theory that 'women should only enjoy three-quarters of the rights of men and that dictatorship is better than democracy.'"

She continued, "He says he supports Yoon Seok-yeol's prosecutorial dictatorship according to his usual beliefs, but will that dream really come true?" she questioned.

Earlier, the People Power Party announced that they had recruited Ham as a co-chairman of the joint election campaign committee, but then withdrew the appointment, stating, "The decision will be postponed until there is sufficient explanation from Ham regarding his statements and public acceptance thereof."

In a 2014 interview with Monthly Chosun, Director Ham stated, "Since women do not bear the duty of national defense, I think they should exercise only three-quarters of the rights," and added, "If they want to enjoy rights without duties, that is more despicable than a thief. Among major countries in the world, countries with military service obligations include Korea, Taiwan, and Israel, but Korea is the only one that exempts women." He further said, "However, women who have given birth to two children can be an exception," and added, "This is not a capitalist logic but a thorough calculation."

He also said, "Why is dictatorship wrong? Plato also advocated dictatorship," and "The idea that dictatorship is always bad is also a dogma."

In response, the Democratic Party raised voices of criticism. Shin Hyun-young, spokesperson for the Democratic Party's election campaign committee, issued a statement saying, "Ham, who was expelled from broadcasting for praising dictatorship and making misogynistic remarks, has returned as a co-chairman of the People Power Party's presidential candidate Yoon Seok-yeol's joint election campaign committee," and criticized, "Ham is a figure who drew criticism for absurd remarks such as praising dictatorship and saying that women should have restricted voting rights because they do not bear the duty of national defense."

She added, "Ham's remarks were extremely serious as they sowed discord between women and men in their 20s," and sarcastically said, "Yoon, who used to write the character '왕 (king)' on his hand, seems to have liked Ham's archaic claim to restrict women's voting rights."

Jo Seung-rae, senior spokesperson for the election campaign committee, also issued a statement criticizing Ham as "a delusional person obsessed with the illusion of a 'good dictatorship' who shares the same governance view as candidate Yoon." He said, "However, the people are not subjects of governance but sovereigns," and "It is shocking that candidate Yoon recruited someone who denies the fundamental principles of democracy as a co-chairman of the joint election campaign committee."