Heo Sik (66), chairman of the Incheon Metropolitan Council, who caused controversy by circulating a newspaper disparaging the May 18 Democratic Uprising to fellow council members, has lost his position as chairman.
On the 24th, the Incheon Metropolitan Council held a plenary session and passed a motion of no confidence against Chairman Heo, jointly proposed by 18 council members, to hold him accountable for violating the duty to maintain the dignity of local council members under the Local Autonomy Act. The motion was approved with 24 votes in favor, 7 against, and 2 abstentions.
The plenary session was presided over by First Vice Chairman Lee Bong-rak in place of Chairman Heo. Before the vote, Heo made a personal statement requesting re-endorsement from fellow council members and then left the meeting room.
Originally, the council planned to deliberate and decide on the no-confidence motion against Chairman Heo the previous day. However, Heo, who was in charge of conducting the plenary session, refused to put the motion on the agenda himself, claiming it was illegal, resulting in the motion not being processed.
Since the inauguration of the first Incheon Metropolitan Council in 1991, this is the first time a no-confidence motion has been passed, forcing a chairman to step down. Although Heo has lost his position as chairman, he retains his status as a council member and will continue his legislative activities for the remaining two years and five months.
The People Power Party, the majority party in the Incheon Metropolitan Council, plans to discuss the election of the next chairman. To prevent a prolonged vacancy in the chairman position, it is reported that they will nominate a successor to serve the remaining term of the 9th council’s first half chairman by June and elect them at the plenary session next month.
Earlier, on the 2nd, Heo distributed a special edition newspaper on the May 18 Democratic Uprising from a particular media outlet to the offices of all 39 fellow council members, sparking controversy. The 40-page newspaper contained content disparaging the May 18 Democratic Uprising, such as claims that "the May 18 was an insurrection led by the DJ faction and North Korea" and that "a significant number of May 18 merit recipients are unrelated to the May 18 event."
Heo, who was affiliated with the People Power Party, left the party on the 7th after the Incheon City Party Ethics Committee announced it would hold a meeting to discuss disciplinary action against him regarding the May 18 disparagement controversy.
However, he refused calls for resignation from civic groups as well as council members from both the Democratic Party and the People Power Party. Heo explained, "When I told fellow council members that such a newspaper existed, many asked for it, so I passed it along for their reference. There was no other intention."
On the 15th, it was revealed that Heo again shared a photo and link of an article about the "North Korean military involvement theory in May 18" in the council members’ group chat, prompting the Gwangju Metropolitan Council’s May 18 Special Committee to issue a statement urging his resignation as chairman.
Additionally, on the 12th, the Incheon Regional Solidarity and Incheon Peace and Welfare Solidarity filed a police complaint against Heo for violating the Special Act on the May 18 Democratic Uprising. The Special Act stipulates that anyone who disseminates false information using newspapers or other publications related to May 18 may face imprisonment of up to five years or a fine of up to 50 million won. The complainants argued that the prohibited acts under the Special Act include distributing already published newspapers.
Since his inauguration in July 2022, Heo has been embroiled in multiple controversies over his remarks. Last year, he caused a stir by stating at official events that "Incheon education is subtly teaching communism" and that "children in Michuhol District constantly use profanity."
In 2022, he also posted a derogatory comment on his SNS referring to police officers opposing the Ministry of the Interior and Safety’s establishment of a 'Police Bureau' as "police ragamuffins," which drew protests from the Incheon Police Workplace Council.
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