"You're Noisy"...Jindo Governor Who Spoke of "Importing Virgins" Now Hurls Profanity at Resident

Ruling party expels Jindo Governor Kim Heesoo over "importing women" remark

Kim Heesoo, governor of Jindo County in South Jeolla Province, who previously stirred controversy with remarks about Sri Lankan and Vietnamese women, has once again come under fire, this time for using profanity during a meeting with county residents.

According to Yonhap News on February 9, Governor Kim used profanity while talking with local residents about issues such as road construction during a conversation with residents held that day at Gunnae Middle School in Gunnae-myeon. When a petitioner raised his voice, Governor Kim reportedly said, "Ah, that guy is noisy too," then immediately stood up and hurled insults, saying, "You son of a ××" (profanity).

Controversy over remark about "importing Vietnamese virgins"

Kim Heesu, Jindo County Governor. Jindo County

This is not the first time Governor Kim has faced criticism for inappropriate remarks. On February 4, at the Gwangju-South Jeolla administrative integration "On-site Town Hall Meeting" held at the Haenam Culture and Arts Center, he argued, "When Gwangju and South Jeolla are integrated, if legal measures to address population extinction cannot be properly implemented, we should import some young virgins from places like Sri Lanka or Vietnam and get rural bachelors married." The remarks were broadcast live in real time via a YouTube livestream.

As the controversy grew, Governor Kim issued an apology, explaining that his comments were made "to point out the structural problems of severe population decline in rural and fishing villages and the weakening of the foundations for marriage and childbirth, and to stress that industrial revitalization alone cannot solve the problem of population extinction, so active institutional measures are needed at the level of the integrated Gwangju-South Jeolla local government and the state."

He went on to say, "I intended to say that we need to increase the inflow of unmarried foreign women in order to encourage rural men to marry and thereby enhance the sustainability of rural areas, but I made the mistake of using the word 'import,' which was an inappropriate choice of wording," adding, "I would like to once again apologize to anyone who may have been hurt by my remarks."

Meanwhile, the Democratic Party of Korea decided unanimously at its Supreme Council meeting that day to summarily expel Governor Kim. An official from Jindo County told Yonhap News, "It seems rough language was unintentionally exchanged while talking with the petitioner," and added, "We are sorry that such unfortunate incidents have occurred one after another."