Former Democratic Party lawmaker Choi Kang-wook, who recently sparked controversy by using the expression "설치는 암컷" (loosely translated as "the females are causing trouble") while criticizing the Yoon Seok-yeol administration at a book concert, has drawn strong criticism from Democratic Party lawmaker Yoon Young-chan, a member of the non-mainstream factional group 'Principles and Common Sense,' who said, "A warning alone is not enough; a disciplinary committee at the party level must be convened."
On the 22nd, Yoon said on SBS's "Kim Tae-hyun's Political Show," "The Secretary-General has issued a stern warning, but in our party, such warnings have mostly been verbal," expressing his view.
On the 19th, at a book concert hosted by lawmaker Min Hyung-bae, former lawmaker Choi criticized the Yoon Seok-yeol administration, saying, "In George Orwell's Animal Farm, female animals rarely cause trouble like this," which sparked controversy. The party leadership issued a warning, and Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung indicated disciplinary action by stating, "We will respond strictly without tolerance to inappropriate remarks," but no specific disciplinary measures have been announced yet.
Yoon said, "In the case of Kim Nam-guk (an independent lawmaker), if we had responded strongly at the early stage, we might have extinguished the fire quickly, but it eventually went to the Ethics Committee, and it was the Democratic Party that blocked the expulsion decision at the Ethics Committee," adding, "Therefore, these issues should not end with words but must be followed through with action for the party's discipline to be properly maintained."
Even after the party leadership's warning, former lawmaker Choi posted on his social media, "This is democracy, you fool," without apologizing. Regarding this, Yoon said, "He seems to believe that his statements have meaning and that his intentions are not wrong, but the problem is how the public perceives and accepts those remarks," adding, "There has already been backlash from various women's groups, hasn't there? In that sense, I think careful consideration is necessary."
From Innovation Committee Chair Kim Eun-kyung's derogatory remarks about the elderly, former Democratic Party leader Song Young-gil's "young punk" comment, to former lawmaker Choi's "female" slur, Yoon pointed out that the fundamental reason the Democratic Party is struggling with verbal controversies is because it is skewed toward its "hardline supporters." He said, "Our party's personnel do not view things from the perspective of the general, reasonable, and rational public but only consider our hardline supporters, which causes a significant bias in their standards of judgment," adding, "When addressing specific supporters or hardline party members, the intensity of remarks inevitably becomes very strong."
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