Category: Politics-Korea

Considering the Blue House’s very strong response to Yoon’s comments I think it is an indication they are worried about being investigated if he does win the Presidency:

President Moon Jae-in on Thursday demanded an apology from main opposition presidential candidate Yoon Suk-yeol for remarks that he will launch a probe into alleged corruption of the current administration if he is elected. 

Moon expressed “strong resentment” over Yoon’s remarks and criticized the candidate for attacking the current administration with “groundless” allegations, according to Park Soo-hyun, senior secretary for public communication.

It was rare for Moon to directly respond to remarks by Yoon. To maintain political neutrality ahead of the March vote, the presidential office has kept a low profile over allegations raised by Yoon or other presidential candidates. 

Yoon made the remark in an interview with the JoongAng Ilbo daily published Wednesday, saying he will launch an investigation into “deep-rooted evils” of the Moon Jae-in administration if he wins the March 9 presidential election.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link, but Yoon is clearly trying to rally the conservative base before the election that is upset that the Moon administration jailed the two former conservative Presidents. For the good of the country though Yoon if elected needs to stop the political prosecution of former Presidents.

The fact that Yoon Suk-yeol is joining in to namedrop for President Roh Moo-hyun could be interpreted that he is getting desperate because I can’t image Roh supporters voting for a conservative candidate:

Ahn also stressed his connection with Roh, saying the former president’s first legislative constituency was in Busan, Ahn’s hometown, and he was one of eight civilians invited to Roh’s inauguration ceremony. 

His remarks came after his main rivals Lee Jae-myung of the DPK and Yoon Suk-yeol of the main opposition People Power Party (PPP) namedropped the late president. 

On Sunday, Lee visited Bongha Village in Gimhae, South Gyeongsang Province, where Roh is buried. While paying tribute to the former president, the former Gyeonggi Province governor got emotional at one point. 

“To establish the world where human beings live is a dream of Roh Moo-hyun, (President Moon Jae-in) and Lee Jae-myung,” he said during the visit. 

Lee also wrote in a guestbook that he will build a world without foul play or privilege.

On Saturday, Yoon paid a visit to a naval base on Jeju Island, a project launched by Roh that faced a strong backlash from residents and activists as well as his supporters, who feared that the base could set off a regional arms race and damage the island’s environment. The construction of the Jeju base was completed in 2016.

Praising Roh’s decision to build the naval base to bolster self-reliance in national defense, Yoon also got emotional, saying that he has Roh’s agony and determination engraved in his heart. Yoon paused for a moment to compose himself. 

Korea Times

You can read more at the link, but ROK Heads likely remember that President Roh was elected on a platform that included anti-Americanism, often clashed with the former Bush administration, and was pro-North Korea. Considering all the money Roh allowed to be funneled into North Korea it is arguable that Roh could be considered the father of the North Korean nuclear bomb.

Roh often claimed how he wasn’t corrupt, but after his presidency he committed suicide to protect corrupt family members. Former President Lee Myung-bak is still jailed because he was the one that launched the investigation into Roh’s family that uncovered the corruption that led to his suicide. The Korean left never forgot and once President Moon was elected, investigations were opened to go after Lee and imprison him.

How Yoon Suk-yeol thinks he will get votes from the group of people that still support Roh is beyond me.

Leave it to Korea’s leftists to claim that if Yoon Suk-yeol wins the South Korean presidency that it would be anti-democratic and a coup d’etat by the Korean right:

Professor Emeritus Byun Hyung-yoon of Seoul National University along with 130 members of a civic group calling for the formation of a democratic reform government stated on Jan. 28 that “an ahistorical and antidemocratic force is attempting to overturn the times,” adding that “citizens of the candlelight movement of 2017 who devoted themselves to ensure the survival of Korean democracy today should step forward again and protect [democracy] through their votes.” (………….)

Kim Dong-chun, a professor at Sungkonghoe University, recently posted the following message on Facebook: “From the very outset, Moon Jae-in and the Democratic Party were little prepared and had no blueprint for bringing about proper change in this society. Nevertheless, we mustn’t allow them to be defeated by the People Power Party and reactionaries.

We may not like Moon, but that’s no reason to cynically go along with a reactionary coup d’etat. As for the zeitgeist in the presidential election, we’re unfortunately past the stage of discussing that. We have to stop the coup.”Some will no doubt dispute Kim’s view that putting another party in power through an election is a coup d’etat. Coup or not, we have to persuade the public if we’re to stop it.

Hankyoreh

You can read more at the link, but this opinion piece in the Hankyoreh gives people an idea of how the Korean left thinks, if they win elections it is democratic, but if they lose its an undemocratic coup.

It must be a slow news day if the media is reaching this much to throw shade on Lee Jae-myung’s wife:

The wife of ruling party presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung has come under fire over allegations aides to her husband ran her errands, including picking up packs of beef and getting drug prescriptions and leaving them at her door.

Kim Hye-kyung, the wife of the Democratic Party (DP) presidential nominee, issued an apology Wednesday, five days after SBS TV first reported the claims, saying she took full responsibility for what transpired as she should have drawn a line between personal and official business.

Yonhap

You can read more a the link, but unless there is more that comes out I can’t imagine this is going to sway a Korean voter one way or another.

The real question is whether the U.S. military wants or needs another THAAD battery in South Korea considering it is a very finite asset:

Main opposition presidential candidate Yoon Suk-yeol pledged Sunday to deploy additional units of the U.S. THAAD anti-missile system in South Korea following North Korea’s launch of an intermediate-range ballistic missile earlier in the day.

Yoon of the conservative People Power Party wrote the words “Additional THAAD deployment” on his Facebook page and did not elaborate.

The candidate has previously expressed support for the controversial missile defense system, which China has condemned as a threat to its national security.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link.

Here is the latest attempt to bring down Yoon Suk-yeol’s campaign through criticisms of his wife:

The latest fodder emerged Sunday during MBC TV’s airing of recordings of phone calls between Yoon’s wife, Kim Keon-hee, and a reporter for a liberal YouTube channel, in which Kim claimed she was a “spiritual” person who preferred discussing the meaning of life with “dosas,” or gurus, to visiting nightclubs.

Kim’s remark received attention because she has previously been reported to have close ties to shamanism and introduced certain shamans to her husband.

Then, local newspaper Segye Times reported Monday that a shaman introduced by Kim has been exercising undue influence over Yoon’s campaign while working as an adviser for a subunit named “Network Headquarters.”

The PPP scrambled to dispel the allegations, saying the person in question is not a shaman but a Buddhist figure who has made several visits to the campaign but has never been appointed an adviser nor had any sway in the campaign.

On Tuesday, the party announced the dissolution of the Network Headquarters, saying the decision was made by Yoon.

When asked to address the claims, Yoon expressed disbelief.

“I was introduced to him by a party official and we introduced ourselves, but I know him to be a monk,” the candidate told reporters Monday. “I saw the article about (him being involved in) my schedule and public messaging, but it’s a truly absurd story.”

Yoon’s opponents have likened his wife to Choi Soon-sil, a confidante of former conservative President Park Geun-hye, who was also accused of having ties to shamanism and running state affairs from behind the scenes.

Yonhap

You can read more at the link, but the comparison to Choi Soon-sil is ridiculous when Choi was essentially a lobbyist collecting money from Samsung for her sports foundation in return for influence over then President Park. The shamanism claims was just sensationalism added to the story by the media. What is going on now with the claims against the Yoon campaign is likely the same thing. With that said his Kim Keon-hee needs to be careful what she says to the media because they will use anything she says in or out of context to damage her husband’s campaign.

The Chinese are not going to be happy with Yoon’s foreign policy platform:

Yoon Suk-yeol, the presidential candidate of the main opposition conservative People Power Party (PPP), vowed, Monday, to “rebuild” Korea’s alliance with the U.S. to deal more effectively with both North Korea’s nuclear threats and other regional security and economic cooperation issues. 

He also said he would expand South Korea’s role in U.S.-led multilateral initiatives, including the Quadrilateral Strategic Dialogue, widely known as the “Quad.”

“I would focus on bolstering a comprehensive and strategic alliance with the United States based on the shared values and principles of freedom, democracy, the market economy, constitutionalism and human rights,” Yoon said during a press conference on his diplomacy and security policy pledges at party headquarters in Seoul.

“I will pursue open cooperation to expand common interests with related countries in the region by participating in working groups for vaccines, climate change and new technology under the Quad, a partnership between the U.S., Japan, Australia and India.”

Korea Times

You can read more at the link, but Yoon is not planning on joining the quad formerly. He also says he is willing to provide full economic support to North Korea if they denuclearize which we all know isn’t happening.