First Day of Government Questioning... Choo Mi-ae Denies, Government and Ruling Party Defend, Opposition Launches Fierce Attack (Summary)

Choo Mi-ae "My Son's Military Service Never Received Any Special Treatment" Rebuttal
Jung Se-kyun "No Need for Dismissal"...Ruling Party "Baseless Political Attack"
Opposition Focuses on Choo Mi-ae Allegations..."Emperor Service, Public Anger Boiling"

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporters Kim Hyemin and Jeon Jinyoung] At the first government questioning session of the 21st National Assembly's regular session on the 14th, questions focused on allegations of special treatment during military service for Minister of Justice Choo Mi-ae's son. Minister Choo denied all facts, stating, "I never made a phone call myself, nor did I order anyone to do so," while the government and ruling party actively defended her. Opposition parties such as the People Power Party and the People's Party launched fierce attacks against Minister Choo, claiming, "He received special favors that ordinary soldiers could not receive."

◆ Choo Mi-ae: "Not a trace of special treatment... Opposition's accusations are too mean-spirited"… During the government questioning at the National Assembly that day, Minister Choo repeatedly denied that she made any phone calls herself or ordered her aides to do so to extend her son's military leave. At the time, Minister Choo's aide, when she was party leader, is suspected of having requested an extension of her son's leave from military officials three times in June 2017.

When asked whether her aide had called her son's military unit, Minister Choo replied, "I do not know." She explained that she did not confirm it because even making phone contact with related parties could raise suspicion. In response, Rep. Jeon Juhye of the People Power Party pointed out, "People naturally think that if an aide assisting the party leader made the call, it must have been under orders." She consistently denied this, saying, "It was a special situation during the regime change and transition period, so the aides could not pay attention to personal matters or meet me," and "The party leader's office and the lawmaker's office were separated, and there was no possibility of conversation or orders."

Minister Choo also stated that she did not contact the Ministry of National Defense's civil affairs office in June 2017 to extend her son's leave. She emphasized, "If I had enormous power as the party leader at the time, wouldn't I have told my son not to serve in the military? There was no reason to use shortcuts or force anything for a leave extension," and "My son, who was ill, received appropriate medical treatment, and in that process, he never received even a trace of special treatment."

When opposition lawmakers accused her son, who did not return to his unit immediately after leave, of "desertion and using 'mom's chance' unless properly explained," she retorted, "He is not a deserter, and it seriously damages the honor of my son who fulfilled his military duty even after surgery," adding, "Is it really necessary to say that? Isn't it too mean-spirited?"

Regarding Rep. Hwang Hee of the Democratic Party revealing the real name of the duty soldier who informed about the aide's phone call, she defended, "The duty soldier has already given interviews to the media. The real name was inevitably disclosed to impeach the credibility of the testimony," but expressed distress over her son's real name being revealed, saying, "I think he was quite hurt emotionally."

[Image source=Yonhap News]

◆ Chung Sye-kyun: "No need to dismiss Choo Mi-ae"... Ruling party calls it "political offensive"= Prime Minister Chung Sye-kyun and the Democratic Party supported Minister Choo's position and actively defended her.

When asked by Rep. Yoon Jae-ok of the People Power Party whether he planned to recommend Minister Choo's dismissal to President Moon Jae-in, Prime Minister Chung said, "I believe what Minister Choo said on Facebook is true, so I have no particular other thoughts," and flatly stated, "I have not found any reason for dismissal yet."

He added, "She seems to feel unfair about the current situation," and emphasized, "The prosecution is investigating, so she should take responsibility according to the investigation results." He further stated, "The prosecution should conclude the matter fairly and swiftly, and both ruling and opposition parties should discuss urgent state affairs well and cooperate. That is my personal belief about the path we should take."

Regarding the opposition's suggestion to establish a joint investigation team with the military prosecution, citing doubts about the fairness of the Eastern District Prosecutors' Office's investigation, Prime Minister Chung dismissed it, saying, "Is it such a big national interest issue that requires forming an investigation team? The Eastern District Prosecutors' Office can handle the investigation sufficiently."

Ruling party lawmakers who participated in the questioning that day refrained from questioning the allegations related to Minister Choo and instead framed it as a political offensive by the opposition. In particular, Kim Jong-min, a Supreme Council member of the Democratic Party, warned, "Politically inflating such allegations may be beneficial in the short term, but if the opposition continues indiscriminate political offensives, they will not win the next election."

Rep. Jung Cheong-rae described the allegations related to Minister Choo as "a political conspiracy created by political soldiers and political prosecutors who love former President Park Geun-hye, the party that follows Park, and the Taegeukgi faction," and "a historical reaction by those who love former President Park, who was impeached by the People Power Party," causing commotion in the chamber.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

◆ Choo Mi-ae, Choo Mi-ae, and again Choo Mi-ae... Opposition's focused attack= Lawmakers from the People Power Party and the People's Party who participated in the questioning devoted almost all their time to allegations of special treatment for Minister Choo's son. They particularly emphasized that her son benefited because "his mother was the party leader of the ruling party," rallying public opinion.

Rep. Jeon Juhye of the People Power Party read comments, saying, "Active-duty soldiers, reservists, and parents who sent their sons to the military are furious after seeing Minister Choo's son's emperor-like service." She fiercely attacked, stating, "Ordinary soldiers can get scolded for filing such complaints. Because she was the ruling party leader, an unprecedented extension of sick leave was granted," and "The truth of the emperor-like service is that he could take sick leave not recorded in the records using 'mom's chance.'"

Rep. Park Soo-young of the same party criticized, "Have you thought about the position of other mothers? Ordinary mothers cannot exert external pressure and swallow it with tears."

Rep. Lee Tae-gyu of the People's Party sharply criticized Minister Choo's claim that "her son is being treated like a criminal," saying, "It's not about whether it is a crime or illegality, but a moral issue and a point that can be socially criticized," and added, "The public is interested in whether Minister Choo's son received special treatment compared to other ordinary citizens."

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