"Moon Administration... Almost Everything Is Double Standards" Jin Joong-kwon, Hong Se-hwa, Kang Jun-man, Choi Jang-jip... Will 'Moon Criticism' Continue This Year? [Han Seung-gon's Political Notebook]

Criticism of the Current Government through Jin Joong-kwon SNS, Hong Se-hwa Column, Kang Jun-man Books, and Choi Jang-jip Lectures

President Moon Jae-in Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Han Seung-gon] "When I saw the words 'I'm sorry. Thank you' written to the children in the Sewol ferry guestbook, I understood the meaning of 'I'm sorry,' but how should I understand the word 'Thank you'? I still haven't found a rational way to interpret the meaning of that word." (Jin Joong-kwon, former professor at Dongyang University)

"I don't really understand why President Moon came to power. I can't see what kind of national governance philosophy he has, what political philosophy he holds, or what future blueprint he envisions." (Hong Se-hwa, former leader of the Progressive Party)

"Is what is happening now truly the political responsibility that the government, which claims to have been entrusted with power by the candlelight protests, is showing, as the president says? I believe the essence of the Cho Kuk incident lies in the moral qualifications of the person appointed as the head of judicial administration (Minister of Justice)." (Choi Jang-jip, emeritus professor at Korea University)

"I started to list the Moon Jae-in administration's examples of double standards one by one but stopped halfway through. Almost everything was double standards, so there was no need to point them out." (Kang Jun-man, professor at Jeonbuk National University)

Former Dongyang University Professor Jin Joong-kwon Photo by Yonhap News

It appears that the harsh criticisms from progressive commentators and professors who criticize the current administration, including President Moon Jae-in, will continue this year as well. The aforementioned figures, including former professor Jin, voiced daily criticisms last year targeting President Moon's governance philosophy and more.

Former professor Jin continued his critiques on various social issues through posts on his Facebook page every day. In the case of Hong Se-hwa, former leader of the Progressive Party, he criticized President Moon's political philosophy through newspaper columns and interviews.

Professor Kang Jun-man of Jeonbuk National University expressed criticism through his books, while emeritus professor Choi Jang-jip of Korea University criticized the Moon Jae-in government and the Democratic Party for damaging democracy through various lectures and papers.

If President Moon's governance and political philosophy and the ruling Democratic Party's trajectory remain similar to last year, the consensus is that their harsh criticisms toward the current government will inevitably continue.

Former Jinbo Shindang Leader Hong Sehwa [Image Source=Yonhap News]

◆ Hong Se-hwa: "Stop playing the comfortable king and return to the solemn position of president"

In particular, Hong has recently criticized the government and ruling party several times. On November 19, he criticized President Moon for not communicating with the people in a column titled "Our President is a Kind King" published in the Hankyoreh newspaper.

Hong said, "Let's look back to when we held candlelight protests four years ago. What has changed today? Other than the faces of the president, ministers, and lawmakers? Now, even the word 'chaebol reform' no longer comes up, education reform seems to have been abandoned and has long been outside of interest. The real estate problem has worsened, and irregular workers are only on a one-way street to becoming the 'precariat.'"

After posting this column, Hong received harsh criticism from supporters of President Moon. Regarding this, Hong said in a recent interview with Shindonga, "Because people immediately react if their thoughts differ even slightly, I no longer pay attention. However, the intention behind that article was to urge him to stop playing the comfortable king and return to the solemn position of president, but I don't think that message was well conveyed."

He added, "If you are the highest leader of the country, you must express your will, discuss, persuade, promote, and break through on issues where public opinion is divided. You must be prepared to be criticized. But as politics becomes fandom-driven, critical voices are completely ignored."

◆ Jin Joong-kwon: "My struggling is sending a warning signal"

Former professor Jin explained his criticisms of the Moon Jae-in government and various political issues in an interview with a media outlet. He said, "Many people, probably those on the progressive side, might wonder 'Why is he struggling like that? Why is he struggling without reason?' But my struggling is sending a warning signal that our society's condition is not positive but negative."

In particular, Jin emphasized that he will act like the phrase from 'The Irish pilot who predicted his own death': 'I do not love those I fight for, nor do I hate those I fight against.' This means he is not criticizing the Moon government for any political or personal reasons.

Meanwhile, Jin sarcastically linked Hong's interview article on Facebook, saying, "Teacher Hong Se-hwa has opened fire on the 'Demudalgun' who are destroying democracy." (Note: 'Demudalgun' is a derogatory term for pro-Democratic Party supporters.)

Choi Jang-jip, Honorary Professor at Korea University
[Photo by Yonhap News]

◆ Choi Jang-jip: "Korean democracy is in crisis... the political failure of the so-called 'ppa' faction"

Also, Choi Jang-jip, a progressive political scientist and emeritus professor of political science and diplomacy at Korea University, wrote in a paper titled "Rethinking Korean Democracy" published in late June last year in the Seoul National University Korean Politics Research Institute's journal 'Korean Political Studies' that "The emergence of the Moon Jae-in government after the candlelight protests was expected to be a turning point for Korean democracy entering a new stage, but now Korean democracy is in crisis," defining "this crisis as stemming from the political failure of the elite group of the student activist generation and the so-called 'ppa' faction allied with them."

Professor Choi analyzed the so-called 'Moonppa' (a derogatory term for people who blindly support President Moon Jae-in) as "a political movement centered on strong cohesion and aggressiveness that passionately follows a specific politician," stating, "A virtually organized majority leads public opinion through internet social media, attacking dissenting opinions or criticisms, effectively restricting freedom of the press."

He continued, "They have more influence than party leaders and mobilize groups during candidate nominations and election processes, exerting influence," arguing that "as a result, they play a negative role in party politics and election processes."

Professor Choi also pointed out the moral discrepancy of the activist faction. He criticized, "Even if progressive politicians advocating reform claim to be moral reformers themselves, in reality, they fail to approach the high moral standards and norms they set. The student activist group, which emerged as a new political class, has become the problem itself rather than the solution."

Professor Kang Jun-man, Jeonbuk National University
[Photo by Yonhap News]

◆ Kang Jun-man: "Moon Jae-in administration... almost everything is 'double standards'"

Also, Professor Kang Jun-man of Jeonbuk National University criticized in his book "Power Changes People's Brains," published on October 26 last year, saying, "I stopped midway while listing the Moon Jae-in administration's examples of 'double standards' because almost everything was double standards."

He added, "There are administrations that forget the obvious fact that 'the level of conservatives determines the level of progressives, and the level of progressives determines the level of conservatives' and govern the country targeting enthusiastic supporters, and the Moon administration is one of them."

Some citizens urged progressive figures, including former professor Jin, to continue voicing critical opinions.

A company employee in his 50s, Mr. Kim, said, "Jin Joong-kwon and Kang Jun-man are actually progressive figures, but their critical opinions need to be listened to carefully." He added, "I think criticism will continue this year as well, and I hope the government and ruling party listen."

President Moon Jae-in [Photo by Yonhap News]

Another company employee in his 40s, Mr. Lee, said, "Looking at progressive figures like Jin Joong-kwon, it seems they actually have affection," emphasizing, "I think they criticize with the thought of wanting them to do better." He added, "Constructive criticism is painful but helpful; I hope they take it to heart."

On the other hand, some say there is a problem because there are no alternatives to the criticism. A company employee in his 30s, Mr. Kim, said, "Jin Joong-kwon criticizes the current government almost daily. This can only be seen as simply disliking President Moon Jae-in," criticizing him.

Meanwhile, a public opinion poll showed that President Moon's approval rating for his national governance has remained in the 30% range for five consecutive weeks. Negative evaluations approached 60%.

According to a survey conducted by Realmeter on December 28?30 on 1,501 people nationwide at the request of 'Traffic Broadcasting' (tbs) (confidence level 95%, margin of error ±2.5 percentage points), announced on the 31st, President Moon's approval rating (positive evaluation) rose 0.2 percentage points from the previous week to 36.9%.

Negative evaluations increased by 0.1 percentage points from the previous week's record high of 59.8% since inauguration. Party support rates showed a close race within the margin of error. The People Power Party recorded 30.4%, down 3.4 percentage points from the previous week, and the Democratic Party rose 0.6 percentage points to 29.9%. Following were the People's Party at 8.1%, Open Democratic Party at 6.7%, and Justice Party at 5.8%.

Realmeter analyzed, "The court's suspension of the two-month disciplinary action against Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-youl, delays in securing COVID-19 vaccines, and President Moon's direct negotiations with Moderna for vaccine procurement influenced the results."

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