Korea’s Ruling and opposition parties announce divided opinions on recent Line Yahoo incident

Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, speaks during a meeting of the Supreme Council at the National Assembly on May 8. By Park Min-kyu

The main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) has resumed its "pro-Japanese traitorous government" offensive against the Yoon Suk-yeol government in the wake of the recent Line Yahoo incident. Cho Kuk, leader of the Rebuilding Korea Party, will visit Dokdo on May 13 and make a statement criticizing the Yoon government's diplomacy with Japan.

DPK leader Lee Jae-myung, who is on vacation for medical treatment, shared a media report on social networking services (SNS) on the 10th that a media report that a map showing Dokdo is Japanese territory was used in a civil defense education video, writing, “Is this a mistake?” The next day, Lee shared a report on SNS that Japan‘s Chief Cabinet Secretary Takeaki Matsumoto, who issued an administrative directive to Line Yahoo, is a descendant of Hirobumi Ito, and wrote, “Where is the Korean government?” The same day, he also wrote, “Hirobumi Ito: Conducted invasion of Korean territory / Grandson of Hirobumi Ito: Conducted invasion of the Korean cyber territory Line / Government of the Republic of Korea: Doing nothing.”

When the ruling People’s Power Party (PPP) criticized Lee, DPK spokesperson Han Min-soo countered on the 12th, saying, "“I am surprised at the ruling party’s behavior of criticizing only the opposition party without saying anything about the Japanese government. DPK lawmakers Cho Seung-rae and Lee Yong-sun, who are the opposition secretaries of the National Assembly's Science, Technology, Information, Broadcasting and Communications Committee and the Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee, held a press conference and demanded the National Assembly to hold a standing committee.

The Rebuilding Korea Party also joined forces. Hwang Un-ha, floor leader of the party, criticized at a press conference on the day, saying, “Why is the Foreign Ministry keeping its mouth shut? Are you willing to be disgraced by the traitorous regime?” he criticized.

On the other hand, the PPP leader Chu Kyung-ho told reporters at the National Assembly, “I understand that (the government) is also making efforts to ensure that there are discussions that do not go against the interests of the Korean company,” adding, “We (the party) will also quickly listen to the positions of the government and the company and actively support them so that there are no acts that go against its interests.”

PPP spokesperson Ho Jun-seok said in a commentary, "Politicians should avoid following others blindly and encouraging anti-Japanese sentiment for political gain." About Japan, he said, “The ruling PPP is concerned about the recent situation in which the Japanese government appears to be exerting unjustified pressure based on a biased view.” Ho met with reporters the day before and asked, "Did singing ‘Jugchangga’ in 2021 help solve the problem?"

“Jugchangga“ is a song based on the Donghak Peasant Revolution, which was shared on SNS by Cho Kuk in July 2019 to criticize the Japanese government's trade retaliation, including export regulations.

※This article has undergone review by a professional translator after being translated by an AI translation tool.