Why Are Yeo Lawmakers Apologizing One After Another to Representative Yoon Mee-hyang?

'Embezzlement of Donations' Yoon Mi-hyang Fined in First Trial
Lee Jae-myung "I Even Had Doubts" Apologizes
Ruling Party City Councilor Files Human Rights Complaint, Calls Lee Jae-myung 'Secondary Victimizer'

[Asia Economy Reporter Kang Juhee] Starting with Representative Lee Jae-myung, some members of the Democratic Party of Korea have been consecutively expressing apologies to independent lawmaker Yoon Mee-hyang. Yoon, who was prosecuted on charges of embezzling funds donated to the Justice and Memory Foundation (Jeonguiyeondae), was sentenced to a fine in the first trial on the 10th.

Among the eight charges brought against her, only the charge of embezzlement in the course of duty was partially acknowledged. The mentions of Yoon by Democratic Party lawmakers are interpreted as a kind of public opinion campaign highlighting that the prosecution's investigation into Representative Lee, which is being carried out on all fronts, is excessive.

Yoon, originally from the Democratic Party, was expelled in 2021 after a party caucus meeting due to suspicions of real estate name trust. In the opposition camp, there is a widespread perception that since most of Yoon's charges resulted in acquittals, the prosecution made an excessive indictment.

Assemblywoman Yoon Mee-hyang is leaving after the first trial sentencing hearing for the 'Justice Network Donation Embezzlement' case at the Western District Court on the 10th.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

On the 11th, Representative Lee posted on Facebook, "How unfair it must have been for someone whose entire life was denied and who became a demon. Even I, who was equally targeted by the prosecution and fake news, doubted..." and apologized to Yoon, saying, "I am sorry. I was wrong. I will pull myself together again."

Afterwards, Representative Kim Doo-kwan posted an 'Apology Letter to Representative Yoon Mee-hyang' on Facebook, saying, "I could not protect you until the end. I am sorry," and Representative Woo Won-shik also left a message expressing "deep consolation to Representative Yoon, who must have suffered the pain of having her entire life denied."

However, within the ruling party, criticism arose that this was a 'secondary harm' against the grandmothers who were victims of the Japanese military sexual slavery and who raised embezzlement suspicions against Yoon. On the 14th, Lee Jong-bae, a Seoul city council member from the People Power Party, filed a complaint with the National Human Rights Commission of Korea (NHRCK) regarding Representative Lee's apology to Yoon.

The city council member criticized, "There were vivid testimonies from the comfort women grandmothers who were thoroughly exploited as a means of making money by Yoon and suffered horrific human rights violations," and said, "Representative Lee's apology is a secondary harm to the comfort women victims and a clear human rights violation."