Yoon Hee-sook: "The Gadeokdo Party Line Must Be Unified Is Anachronistic... Thorough Review of Validity Needed"

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Ji-eun] Yoon Hee-sook, a member of the People Power Party, responded to the ruling party's criticism that the party line was divided over the 'Gadeokdo New Airport' by saying, "(The party line) always being unified is an outdated notion."

On the 23rd, Yoon said on Facebook, "Then should we go back to the old days when lawmakers were lined up in a row under the name of the party line to play the role of a rubber stamp?"

She pointed out, "To the opposition party criticizing that national infrastructure projects are dominated by political logic, a Supreme Council member criticized some opposition lawmakers' support by saying, 'The opposition party is split in half. It's worse than a student council.' Is excluding and almost expelling politicians who made claims different from the party line and enforcing discipline the democracy you 'fought for' in the past?"

Yoon criticized, "The history of democratization of political parties in our country is a difficult process of abolishing the regionalism-linked autocratic presidential system and shifting from top-down decision-making to bottom-up," adding, "The criticism of being 'split' denies the democratic process where individuals carefully consider their best options and eventually come together, showing an outdated notion that 'it must always be one.'"

She emphasized, "I will also contribute my opinions with the belief that I can help form the party line," and added, "The estimated construction cost of Gadeokdo Airport, roughly 10 trillion won, is fully funded by the central government without any burden on local governments because the airport is a nationally important facility. While the wishes of local residents are important, the key is how the air route system is planned at the national level and what role will be assigned within that system."

Yoon said, "The problem is that the global aviation industry has been reorganizing worldwide since the outbreak of COVID-19," and added, "Whether the airport will be activated or whether peppers will be dried on the runway depends on airlines opening routes, and it is inappropriate to hastily finalize plans by recklessly estimating air demand in the current situation."

She stressed, "Above all, it is time for the government to take a stance for the people who are fed up with political airports being built every election," and added, "If it is not for election purposes, it is time to make a firm promise to the people to carefully examine the validity."

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