"Women Dislike Hardship"... Park Ji-hyun's Experience of Gender Bias Within the Democratic Party

"Joined saying 'Cannot give the regime to Yoon Seok-yeol and Lee Jun-seok'"

Former Emergency Committee Chairperson of the Democratic Party, Park Ji-hyun, revealed the 'prejudice against women' she felt within the Democratic Party during last June's local elections. She also raised concerns about the need to normalize the Democratic Party, stating, "The current Democratic Party is not a party to be proud of."

On the 31st of last month, Park shared on her social media (SNS) a review titled 'Nationwide Book Talk Special Edition at Chungbuk National University,' where she said, "Before the last local elections, when the election countermeasures committee was being formed, I raised an issue upon seeing that all major positions except mine were filled by male candidates. Then, a male lawmaker responded, 'Women (lawmakers) dislike these tough tasks.'"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

She explained, "Seeing such a statement made without any hesitation, I shared the awareness that strong prejudice against women exists within the party, and that unfair and discriminatory treatment based on this is happening so naturally."

During the Q&A session of the book talk, when asked about her 'criteria for choosing a political party,' Park said, "The biggest concern when joining the Democratic Party was the consecutive power-related sexual crime scandals involving three metropolitan governors: Ahn Hee-jung, Oh Keo-don, and Park Won-soon. Nevertheless, I chose the Democratic Party because I was truly desperate. I could not hand over power to candidates like Yoon Seok-yeol or Lee Jun-seok, who blatantly deny structural gender discrimination and argue that the Ministry of Gender Equality and Family should be abolished."

She added, "That’s why I made up my mind and joined the Democratic Party. If you are looking for a new party to join, I want to ask you to join me in the Democratic Party. I am truly sorry that the current Democratic Party is not a party to be proud of, but the Democratic Party has a 70-year history and is a party that has created the living history of democracy. If we work together to normalize the Democratic Party, it can improve and change our lives."

Park Ji-hyun’s book talk at Chungbuk National University was held on the 24th of last month in collaboration with 'Ure,' a feminist club at Chungbuk National University.