Lee Jun-seok "Kim Gun-hee's MeToo remarks do not constitute secondary harm"
Kim Ki-hyun "Comments made in private... not appropriate"
On the afternoon of the 16th, the MBC program "Straight," which covers the '7-hour phone call' content of Kim Geon-hee, spouse of Yoon Seok-yeol, the People Power Party's presidential candidate, is being broadcast on the electronic billboard at the MBC building in Sangam-dong, Seoul. [Image source=Yonhap News]
[Asia Economy Reporter Heo Midam] Controversy is growing after Kim Gun-hee, wife of Yoon Seok-yeol, the People Power Party's presidential candidate, described former Chungnam Governor Ahn Hee-jung as "pitiful." On the 18th, the People Power Party leadership said the remark was "inappropriate" but emphasized that it was a "private conversation."
Kim Ki-hyun, the floor leader of the People Power Party, appeared on CBS Radio's 'Kim Hyun-jung's News Show' and addressed Kim's disparaging remarks about the 'Me Too' movement, saying, "That was not a discussion held in a public setting but just a private conversation. At that time, she had not even joined our party, and it was not a situation where our party could control it."
He added, "Now that she has become a public figure, she should have been more cautious than when she was a private individual. I think it was inappropriate."
Regarding the ruling party's criticism of Kim's recorded remarks as 'political interference' and 'Choi Soon-sil Season 2,' he said, "I don't understand why that is considered interference. Isn't it natural for a husband to ask about current affairs over dinner after work?"
About the party supporters' reactions to the recording reports, Kim said, "I don't think it's appropriate to ask about their reactions, but from what I heard, many people felt she was like some Cinderella from a faraway country. But after talking this time, they might have thought, 'She's just like me,' or 'She's an ordinary woman you can see around you every day.'"
Meanwhile, he also insisted that the recording file of Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party's presidential candidate, involving insults toward his sister-in-law should be aired. Kim said, "Can someone who reveals such familial disgrace between brothers and sisters-in-law become president? Especially since it is an objective fact that he has four prior convictions, then the candidate's own voice should also be aired for fairness between the ruling and opposition parties."
Kim Ki-hyun, floor leader of the People Power Party, is delivering opening remarks at the floor strategy meeting held at the National Assembly on the 18th. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@
Earlier, MBC's 'Straight' program released on the 16th a recording of Kim's phone conversation with a reporter from the YouTube channel 'Seoul Voice.'
In the recording, Kim said about the Me Too issue in the progressive camp, "The Me Too movement first broke out during the Moon Jae-in administration, and they said they would catch them. Why would they want to catch them?" She added, "Honestly, I feel sorry for Ahn Hee-jung. My husband (Yoon Seok-yeol) and I are very much on Ahn Hee-jung's side."
In response, Kim apologized for her Me Too remarks in a written statement sent to 'Straight,' saying, "I regret the inappropriate words that came out during the criticism of some progressive figures involved in sexual exploitation, and I apologize to the public."
However, Kim Ji-eun later issued a statement through the Korea Sexual Violence Counseling Center demanding "a sincere apology from Kim Gun-hee," saying, "The thoughtless words you uttered have become the seeds of secondary harm, and I am still suffering from malicious comments."
However, Lee Jun-seok, leader of the People Power Party, argued that "secondary harm is unlikely to be established." On the same day, appearing on News Tomato's 'No Young-hee's News in Cider,' he said, "Since (Kim) had a private phone conversation, I think the expression 'secondary harm' is hard to establish. I don't think any remarks damaged Kim Ji-eun's reputation."
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