Heated Debate in Government Questioning
Both Vice Chair Kim Young-joo and Others Reprimand
"An Min-seok Asked Inappropriate Questions, Han Dong-hoon Should Respond Politely"
Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker An Min-seok and Minister of Justice Han Dong-hoon engaged in a heated exchange. After criticizing Minister Han's attitude, An eventually demanded an apology but was refused. Minister Han, citing past incidents where An sent abusive text messages to constituents, criticized him by saying, “It is inappropriate to try to teach others.”
On the 8th, during a government questioning session at the National Assembly, An asked Minister Han, "Are you running in next year's general election?" Han replied, "I have said several times that I will fulfill my duties." When An asked again, "Are you going into politics?" Han responded, "That is not a question to be asked during government questioning," and countered, "Are you running?"
Afterwards, both sides showed emotional reactions. When An criticized Han's manner of answering, Han responded, "I’m not sure if you actually asked a question, but I hope we can have constructive questions and answers here." An then criticized, "In history, I have never seen a minister who fights with lawmakers like Minister Han."
An, in a conciliatory tone, said, "Actually, today I wanted to give the minister a polite opportunity to apologize for his rude remarks, insulting comments toward fellow lawmakers, and a series of disrespectful attitudes," but Han retorted, "It’s strange to hear that from you, Representative An."
Angered by this response, An accused, "Did you come to the National Assembly to fight?" and "Do you think the people are a joke?" Han countered, "That is a question that disappoints the people," and "You are someone who has made strange abusive remarks to the people, aren’t you? It is inappropriate to use government questioning as a platform to lecture others."
When An pressed again for an apology, Han said, "You are someone who sent abusive messages to the people in your constituency. I think it is inappropriate for someone like you to come here and try to teach others."
In the past, An was involved in controversy after it was revealed that he sent abusive text messages to a private business operator in his constituency. He explained the incident as a misunderstanding, saying, “It was mistakenly sent to a junior colleague.”
After this verbal dispute, An requested Kim Young-joo, the Deputy Speaker of the National Assembly presiding over the plenary session, to "give a warning and receive an apology." Kim responded, "It was not an appropriate question for Representative An to ask about Minister Han’s political candidacy," but added, "Although it was not an appropriate question, Minister Han should respond politely to the questioning lawmaker." However, whether Minister Han violated Article 13 of the National Assembly Witness Examination Act regarding defamation will be reviewed with the Secretariat.
Having failed to receive an apology even through the Speaker, An said, "I felt deeply uncomfortable and offended by the minister’s provocative and insulting remarks toward a lawmaker," and explained, "The essence is that Minister Han is moving toward a political path, so I demanded an apology for his series of remarks and attitude." He added, "Minister Han did not apologize," and concluded his questioning by saying, "Since I did not receive an apology, I will end my inquiry."
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