Chairperson Park Ji-hyun's Cry for Help... "Democratic Party Must Change to Find Hope in the Dark Winter of the Yoon Government Era"

"If the Democratic Party Does Not Change, Where Can We Find Hope?"

On the 24th, eight days before the June 1 local elections, Park Ji-hyun, co-chair of the Democratic Party's Emergency Response Committee, held a press conference at the National Assembly Communication Office to make a final public appeal to rally support. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

[Asia Economy Reporter Naju-seok] Park Ji-hyun, Co-Chair of the Emergency Response Committee of the Democratic Party of Korea, appealed on the 25th, "Please become the warm sunlight that dispels the dark winter created by the Yoon Seok-yeol government." Even with local elections imminent, the reason the Democratic Party must be strict regarding sexual misconduct issues is to provide hope to those living through a dark period of division and conflict. She expressed a solemn sentiment, unable to withdraw calls for reform despite criticism of internal strife within the party.

On this day, through social media (SNS), Chair Park opened by saying, "The era of President Yoon Seok-yeol and Representative Lee Jun-seok may be just a slightly uncomfortable time for some. But to me, the Yoon Seok-yeol government's rule is like a dark winter filled with hatred, discrimination, division, and conflict."

She said, "I, who used to operate anonymously under the name 'Chujeokdanbulkkot' (Tracking Team Fire), found the courage to remove my mask because of a single-minded determination to overcome this long dark winter," adding, "The Yoon Seok-yeol government's daily denial of structural gender discrimination and insistence that abolishing the female quota system is fairness is truly unbearable pain." Chair Park stated, "For some, regime change may be nothing more than temporarily stepping down from the 'power' they once enjoyed, and for others, 'ruling' may simply be regaining a lost position," but she emphasized, "However, for us, stopping the expansion of the era of President Yoon Seok-yeol and Representative Lee Jun-seok is about reclaiming the light of life."

She continued, "(This) is about creating a reason for survival," and said, "For us, winning the local elections holds exactly this meaning."

Chair Park lamented, "Shamefully, the walls within our party are no lower than those of Yoon Seok-yeol and Lee Jun-seok," adding, "The hateful and discriminatory language directed at me for pledging to discipline sexual violence was no different from that of Lee Jun-seok supporters, and our party’s tendency to protect its own and show leniency seemed even stronger than theirs." She continued, "What hurt the most was not the frenzied abusive remarks aimed at me," but "our party’s appearance, which has become accustomed to that frenzy and where no one dares to stand against it."

She said, "At the very least, if we are the 'Democratic Party,' we must protect victims from perpetrators," and "We must not conceal the truth of incidents, nor delay investigations and disciplinary actions due to elections."

Chair Park stated, "Those siding with perpetrators disparaged the act of revealing the truth as 'internal strife.' They inflicted indiscriminate secondary harm on victims," and "The Democratic Party remained silent in the face of this violence."

She expressed, "If our party does not reflect and change, where and how can we find hope?" and "The cry that our party must reflect and change is a desperate plea that we must live safely and with dignity." She concluded, "I earnestly appeal to the people," and said, "Please join us in becoming the warm sunlight that dispels the dark winter created by the Yoon Seok-yeol government."