"Ahn Cheol-soo and Jin Jung-kwon Criticize Moon Administration for 'Gangster Culture' and 'Quasi-Fascism'"

Jin Joong-kwon: "Daekkaemun and Moonppa, Actually Quasi-Fascism"

Former Dongyang University Professor Jin Joong-kwon (left) and Ahn Cheol-soo, leader of the People’s Party (right). Photo by YouTube channel 'Ahn Cheol-soo' broadcast screen capture.

[Asia Economy Reporter Heo Midam] Ahn Cheol-soo, leader of the People’s Party, and Jin Joong-kwon, former professor at Dongyang University, held a dialogue on the 17th diagnosing the current situation of the Moon Jae-in administration. They expressed feeling "devastated" over the former Minister of Justice Cho Kuk incident and characterized the culture of the government and ruling party as a "gangster culture."

Former Professor Jin appeared on Ahn’s YouTube channel that day and said about the "Cho Kuk incident," "It was shocking. People I thought were looking at the same place as me were actually looking somewhere completely different," adding, "I was shocked and very scared by the fact that people who once shouted for justice and equality in the past activist circles lived like that."

Former Professor Jin said, "In the past, they would have at least admitted their mistakes, but now that the 'Cho Kuk White Paper' has come out, they say it’s not their fault but the system’s fault," and added, "It’s regrettable that justice is being destroyed by people who once shouted for 'justice'."

Former Dongyang University Professor Jin Joong-kwon (left) and Ahn Cheol-soo, leader of the People’s Party (right). Photo by YouTube channel 'Ahn Cheol-soo' broadcast screen capture.

Meanwhile, Leader Ahn defined the current administration’s culture as a "gangster culture." He said, "Don’t we judge everything based on whether someone is on our side or the opposing side rather than right or wrong?" and questioned, "Unfortunately, our government and ruling party seem to think and act more in a gangster culture way rather than valuing any ideology or principles."

He continued, "I felt devastated (about the Cho Kuk incident)," and pointed out, "Someone I met in Germany said, 'It’s politics for politicians to fight for the interests of their supporters, but in Korea, the opposite phenomenon happens where supporters fight for the interests of politicians, which is hard to understand.'"

Also, former Professor Jin mentioned the reason support for the Democratic Party of Korea remains is due to the "presidential approval rating." He said, "There is still a solid support rate of over 40%, and a significant part of this support is because President Moon is perceived as a friend of former President Roh Moo-hyun," adding, "President Roh and President Moon have fundamentally different philosophies."

He continued, "Many people still view President Moon through the aura of former President Roh, and that needs to be removed," and said, "The current hardcore Moon supporters, called 'Ddaekae-moon' and 'Moon-ppa' (extreme supporters of President Moon), are actually a form of quasi-fascism. They chase and collectively ostracize those who express dissent, but President Moon called such behavior 'seasoning that enriches democracy.' That shocked me. Former President Roh would never have allowed that."

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