Kim Du-gwan "Are We Locusts?" Sharp Criticism... Camp Won Dismissed Over 'Trash' Controversy

"Regarding the 'Jipdan Sseuregi' remark, 'Meaning was misinterpreted as a mistake'
'Message team leader and SNS team leader were immediately dismissed'"

Kim Du-kwan, a candidate running for the next leader of the Democratic Party of Korea at the August 18 National Party Members' Convention (Party Convention), argued, "The convention format, where candidates are busy but party members only get to listen to one speech, must be changed." Regarding the statement, "A group that has turned from collective intelligence into 'collective garbage' cannot seize power," Kim's camp said it was a "messaging team mistake."

On the morning of the 22nd, Kim criticized the convention format on Facebook. He wrote, "Are we a swarm of locusts? We should not just have one speech in a day and be done; it is important to operate over two days." He added, "We should not treat party members like machines that just cast votes without communication or judgment, even before listening to speeches," and said, "Let's make our Democratic Party's convention a festival where the collective intelligence of the people gathers."

Democratic Party of Korea candidates for party leader Kim Du-kwan (from left), Kim Ji-soo, and Lee Jae-myung are posing for a commemorative photo at the 1st National Party Members' Convention Candidate Fair Election Pledge Ceremony held at the National Assembly on the 15th. Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

In his initial post, he said, "A group that has turned from 'collective intelligence' into 'collective garbage' cannot and should not seize power," but he later confirmed it was a "practical mistake" and deleted the content. Kim's campaign announced, "The 'garbage remark' posted on Facebook was a misrepresentation of the candidate's intent and was mistakenly posted by the messaging team," adding, "The candidate was informed of this and immediately ordered the deletion of the post, and the messaging team leader and SNS team leader were dismissed."

In a phone interview with Asia Economy, Kim's camp said, "There was a standard not to use personal insults or below-the-belt expressions during the primary, but this time it was not properly checked," and added, "The person in charge used an excessive word."