Byeon Chang-heum "Women don't eat breakfast with strangers because of makeup"... Controversy over misogynistic remarks

Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport nominee Byeon Chang-heum is attending the confirmation hearing held at the National Assembly on the 23rd, responding to questions from lawmakers. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Chun-hee] Candidate for Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Byeon Chang-heum is facing controversy after stating that "women do not eat breakfast with people they do not know because of makeup." This follows previous instances where he showed backward human rights sensitivity, such as derogatory remarks about Kim from Guui Station, and now he is being criticized for revealing misogynistic gender sensitivity.

On the 23rd, during the confirmation hearing for the Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport held at the National Assembly, Byeon responded this way while explaining the context of his remark about shared dining rooms in shared housing during his tenure as president of Seoul Housing and Communities Corporation (SH Corporation). He was asked by Jo O-seop, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, to clarify his comment, "Poor people cook and eat at home; who would be crazy enough to buy meals?"

Byeon explained the remark by saying, "In our culture, people do not eat breakfast with strangers," and "especially for women, because of makeup and such, eating breakfast together is very delicate, so if you design it assuming breakfast together, does it really fit the culture?" He added that "a program should be created to select residents who are close enough to share breakfast with each other." This revealed a backward gender sensitivity that perceives women only as beings concerned with appearance labor.

He continued, "For those with lower economic ability, buying breakfast is also a financial burden, so designing it solely as buying breakfast is problematic," and expressed frustration that his words were unfairly exaggerated as "poor people should not eat out."

Jo O-seop actively defended Byeon's remarks. Regarding Byeon's response, Jo said, "This was a discussion about how to make the space efficient for residents considering the real situation," and showed an understanding attitude, saying it was sufficiently explained.

Nominee for Minister of Land, Infrastructure and Transport Byeon Chang-heum is apologizing for remarks related to Kim from Guui Station while visiting the Justice Party's hunger strike site, where they have been fasting for 12 days in front of the National Assembly main building on the 22nd, urging the enactment of the Serious Accidents Punishment Act. However, Kim Mi-sook, mother of the late Kim Yong-gyun and director of the Kim Yong-gyun Foundation, and Lee Yong-gwan, father of the late PD Lee Han-bit, who are also on hunger strike, reportedly responded that "the victims of the remarks are the bereaved families of Kim from Guui Station" and "there is no reason for us to receive an apology." / Photo by Yoon Dong-ju doso7@

However, when Jin Sun-mi, Chair of the Land, Infrastructure and Transport Committee, requested an explanation about Byeon's expression, saying "there is concern it could promote prejudice against women," Byeon replied, "The intention was to properly assess user demand when designing or constructing facilities in rental housing," and expressed regret, saying, "I regret that it was misunderstood otherwise."

In response, Chair Jin urged, "I ask that related departments of the Ministry of Land, Infrastructure and Transport and affiliated public institutions take the lead and actively provide opportunities for gender sensitivity education so that organizational culture can improve."

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