Yang Yi-won-young: "Citizens' Party's 'Greenwashing'? Call it what you want... I will play a role for those who have fought"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Cheol-eung] "The Greenwashing of the Deobureo Citizen Party? I know it can be seen that way. Nevertheless, the reason I want to enter the National Assembly is to establish people with power in front of those who have fought together on the ground for 20 years, so that we can speak and I can fulfill my role. I am willing to endure criticism."

This is the statement of Yang I-won-young, Secretary General of the Energy Transition Forum and a prominent environmental activist. He was recruited as the 9th candidate on the proportional representation list of the 'Deobureo Citizen Party,' a coalition party led by the Democratic Party of Korea. The party is being criticized as a satellite party since the Democratic Party did not form an alliance with the Green Party and others. During the coalition party formation process, there may be unfavorable views toward Secretary General Yang, who has criticized the Democratic Party and supported the Green Party. There are also criticisms that the Democratic Party is merely building a pretext to emphasize the value of 'environment' in the coalition party.

In a phone interview with Asia Economy on the 25th, Secretary General Yang said he is "well aware" of such criticisms. He stated, "Regardless of the purpose for which Deobureo Citizen Party selected me, I thought the National Assembly is the appropriate place to realize the values we aim for." He added, "For example, I can call related public officials to a sit-in protest against nuclear power plants, and I can talk to the president of Korea Hydro & Nuclear Power not only about nuclear power but also about irregular workers' issues. That is enough. I do not think about personal position at all."

The Deobureo Citizen Party is purely for election purposes. Former Basic Income Party leader Yong Hye-in and former Transition Era leader Jo Jeong-hoon, who were on the proportional representation list, plan to return to their original parties after the election. Secretary General Yang has not yet decided on his party affiliation. He said, "I had to make a decision in a very short time, and I will have to consider the party going forward," adding, "The criterion for now is simply a place where I can form a minimum force that can work together while aiming for green values."

There is also an encouraging aspect in the proportional representation nomination results of the Deobureo Citizen Party. The Democratic Party recruited Lee Kyung-soo, former Deputy Director of the International Thermonuclear Experimental Reactor (ITER), last month, and placed him 18th on the Deobureo Citizen Party list. Secretary General Yang, who strongly opposes nuclear fusion power, received a much higher position than this Democratic Party recruit who stands at the opposite end.

On the other hand, he is also concerned about the poor conditions of the civic movement camp. Secretary General Yang said, "Although the regime has changed, civic society activists are still in extremely poor conditions, unable to receive even minimum wage or severance pay," adding, "It is natural for those who work for public values to fiercely criticize the Democratic Party's 'tricks.' However, I think we need to consider this along with the situation that something must be done in practical politics. I hope it is not seen as 'all or nothing.'"

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.