Ham Se-woong on 'Bangul' Controversy... Park Won-seok: "Is This Appropriate for a Religious Elder?"

"Amumal Daejanchi is Amumal Daejanchi no matter who says it"

Senior opposition figure Father Ham Se-ung sparked controversy by saying that "men with bells are worse than a single woman," targeting President Moon Jae-in and former Prime Minister Lee Nak-yeon. Former Justice Party lawmaker Park Won-seok criticized this, saying it is not something a religious figure and elder should say.

On the 1st, Park posted on his social media, "Regardless of whose side one takes, is such a standard or expression really appropriate for a religious figure and elder?" he said.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

Father Ham attended the book launch event of former Minister of Justice Choo Mi-ae held at the Jogyesa Traditional Culture and Arts Performance Hall in Jongno-gu the day before, where he claimed, "President Moon Jae-in, Prime Minister Lee Nak-yeon, secretaries, and ministers were all men. Their failure to embrace the determination and decisiveness of women led to the Yoon Seok-youl prosecutorial dictatorship."

In response, former lawmaker Park said, "Authoritarianism is not only a problem of dictatorship or the conservative camp, and nonsense remains nonsense no matter who says it," adding, "It is a natural right and virtue for citizens to participate in politics and express opinions, but their weight is equal to that of other fellow citizens."

He continued, "I deeply respect the historic contributions and roles in fighting dictatorship and achieving democratization, and I fully agree that the role of respected elders in society is necessary. However, imposing narrow partisan standards on politics and meddling in matters like telling others what to do should not be claimed as the role of democratization elders nor warrant special treatment," he said.