Handonghun, Direct Hit at 'Amkeot' Minju "Expel Hate Speech from Public Discourse"

"'This is the Democratic Party, you fool' is better understood by the people"

Han Dong-hoon, Minister of Justice, said on the 24th regarding the speculation about his successor candidates, "I am a public official, and it is not appropriate for me to comment on who will take my place."

On the same day, during his visit to HD Hyundai Heavy Industries Ulsan Shipyard for a legal policy field visit, when reporters asked about the successor minister, Han said, "I have no knowledge of that." When asked about the simultaneous demands for his candidacy and restraining remarks from the political circles, he repeated his previous stance, saying, "I have nothing special to say."

Minister of Justice Han Dong-hoon is answering questions from the press on the morning of the 24th during his visit to HD Hyundai Heavy Industries in Dong-gu, Ulsan.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

Regarding a question about Representative Choi Kang-wook, who recently caused controversy by posting a message (It's Democracy, stupid.) justifying his inappropriate remark "설치는 암컷" (literally "Installation is female") and received party sanctions, Han delivered a direct blow targeting both the Democratic Party and Representative Choi. He emphasized that such 'hate speech' is unacceptable under the freedom of expression, which is the core and foundation of democracy. Han said, "People or groups who publicly use racist or misogynistic hate speech are expelled from the democratic public discourse, which is a global rule." He added, "This is the Democratic Party. Stupid. I think this will help the public understand better."

Regarding the issues related to foreign workers, the purpose of his visit to Ulsan, Han said, "The shipyard is currently short-staffed and unable to send ships out, which is regrettable," and emphasized, "We will do our best to supply manpower, including expanding the E-7-4 (skilled technician) visa for the development of the Republic of Korea." He continued, "We will introduce an incentive system focused on foreigners who adapt well to Korea to create a long-term coexistence structure, and provide exceptional benefits to outstanding science and technology talents for Korea's future," adding, "We will receive recommendations for long-term residence-qualified foreigners from local governments and companies."

Referring to the necessity of establishing the Immigration and Immigration Management Agency as a control tower for foreigner-related issues, he said, "We are preparing a bill with members of the People Power Party," and requested, "The National Assembly should also fully sympathize." He added, "In ten years, countries that lead the world will be those that induce voluntary contributions from foreigners while managing domestic concerns arising from foreign influx well," and said, "I hope our country becomes such a nation." Minister Han has been promoting the establishment of an immigration agency as a national-level solution to population issues, including attracting foreign workers amid the ultra-low birthrate crisis, and has also expressed great interest in nurturing outstanding science and technology talents.

Minister of Justice Han Dong-hoon is visiting HD Hyundai Heavy Industries in Dong-gu, Ulsan City on the morning of the 24th, engaging in conversation with foreign workers.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

On the same day, Minister Han visited HD Hyundai Heavy Industries, toured the shipbuilding site, and held conversations with company officials and foreign workers. The meeting was attended by Lee Sang-gyun and Noh Jin-yul, CEOs of HD Hyundai Heavy Industries; Kim Du-gyeom, Mayor of Ulsan; National Assembly members Lee Chae-ik and Kwon Myung-ho; Lee Mu-deok, Chairman of the In-house Partner Association; and Choi Geum-sik, Chairman of the Busan Shipbuilding and Marine Equipment Industry Cooperative. At the meeting, shipbuilding industry representatives requested ▲ easing wage requirements for shipbuilding skilled workers (E-7-3) ▲ allowing new companies to employ shipbuilding skilled workers (E-7-3) ▲ establishing separate job categories in the shipbuilding sector. Minister Han said he would actively review the difficulties faced by the shipbuilding industry and, considering the urgency of the matter, promised to promptly proceed with adding shipbuilding job categories.

In the afternoon, Minister Han moved to Ulsan National Institute of Science and Technology (UNIST), where he personally experienced semiconductor and new material energy analysis equipment used for regional company analysis support. Afterwards, he held a meeting with President Lee Yong-hoon, National Assembly members Lee Chae-ik, Seo Beom-su, and Kwon Myung-ho, foreign faculty members, and students to hear about the visa difficulties faced by outstanding foreign talents in the science and technology field.

Minister Han said, "Ulsan's industrial base, from automobiles, petrochemicals, refining, shipbuilding, to recently secondary batteries, is science and technology," and added, "From the perspective of national interest and practicality, we plan to grant exceptional benefits to outstanding science and technology talents, and we will reflect various opinions from the field in the soon-to-be-announced 'Science and Technology Outstanding Talent Visa System Improvement.'" He also said, "For skilled technicians, we will provide stepwise incentives, but we will respond strictly to foreigners who do not comply with the rule of law. We will also promote the establishment of the Immigration and Immigration Management Agency to achieve a balanced immigration policy."