Ithanhee: "We Must Break the Structure That Allows Winning Elections Through Hatred of Opponents"

"The Core is Diversity... Reform the Nomination System to Enhance Diversity and Create a Multi-Party Phase"

Lee Tan-hee, member of the Democratic Party of Korea./Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

[Asia Economy Reporter Koo Chae-eun] On the 28th, Lee Tan-hee, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, stated, "Just looking at the recent controversy over President Yoon Seok-yeol's curse words, dozens of interpretations arise from a voice file that is less than 5 seconds long. All of this is related to the nomination system, and behind it lies the election system," adding, "Let's end the bipartisan hate politics through political reform."

He particularly elaborated, "It is about breaking the structure where politics is fully focused on demonizing the opposing political forces to evoke hatred towards them, and winning elections based on the opponent's hatred."

On the same day, Lee appeared on KBS Radio's 'Choi Kyung-young's Strong Current Affairs' in the morning and cited the election of Seoul Mayor Oh Se-hoon in last year's April 7 by-election as the basis for his argument. He said, "Mayor Oh risked his political life opposing free school meals about 10 years ago. Without foresight and as a leader, he would lead the country backward, yet such a person was re-elected," adding, "The reason was just one: because the Democratic Party could not do well."

He continued, "At that time, I felt the problem of Korea's bipartisan hate politics, thinking 'In this structure, even dead politicians can come back to life,'" and added, "The priority in our country's politics is always focused on evoking hatred towards the opponent. Issues related to the future of the Korean community such as low birthrate, regional extinction, economic disparity, climate crisis, and citizen safety are all secondary."

Lee said, "The key keyword to improving hate politics is diversity, and we need to create a multi-party system phase. The highlight is how to change the parliamentary election system," adding, "Surprisingly, there was almost no disagreement between the ruling and opposition parties. There was an agreement that 'we should create a breakthrough first.'"

He went on, "There will definitely be an opportunity within the People Power Party as well," adding, "During the president's five-year term, nothing productive was done, and after it ended, repeated cases of imprisonment occurred. The People Power Party naturally has awareness of this problem."

Regarding the general election in the year after next, Lee said he would engage in a lawful struggle to meet the legal deadline for electoral district delimitation. He said, "According to the election law, electoral districts must be delineated 13 months before the parliamentary election, but the National Assembly has never complied with the law," adding, "I want to make sure this is followed. I will conduct a lawful struggle to have the decision made 13 months in advance through public discussion involving numerous politicians, experts, and citizens."

Meanwhile, Lee chaired a discussion titled 'Why Political Change Now?' held on the 27th.