Kim Yong-min "Text Bombing Should Naturally Be Encouraged... Expression of the People's Will"

Kim Yong-min, Supreme Council Member of the Democratic Party of Korea, is presenting his policy platform as a candidate at the 2021 Extraordinary National Delegate Conference held at the Central Party Office in Yeouido, Seoul on the 2nd.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Soyoung] Kim Yongmin, a Supreme Council Member of the Democratic Party of Korea, said, "It is naturally encouraged for those who actively express their opinions to do so." He defined the recent 'text bomb' from the party's hardline supporters known as 'Munpa' as an active expression of opinion, suggesting that this atmosphere should rather be further spread.

On the 3rd, Kim appeared on CBS Radio's 'Kim Hyunjung's News Show' and emphasized, "(The text bomb) shows that people are thirsty for communication with politicians and want to express their opinions in this way."

However, he added, "Mutual respect is necessary in the process," and said, "Receiving one-sided abusive or defamatory messages is very difficult for the recipients. Therefore, I think there needs to be some consideration because we are members of the same party."

He continued, "There is no guarantee that they are party members. Many are ordinary citizens," and claimed, "I am also one of the people who receive many such messages. So, attributing the text bomb issue solely to party members is a different matter."

He also said, "In fact, sending messages itself is a tiring task," and added, "Repeatedly sending messages or sending various ones is not easy, but those who do so are truly thirsty for communication, and politicians should listen to them."

Meanwhile, regarding the criticism that Kim, who defends the text bomb, filed a damages lawsuit against former Dongyang University professor Jin Joongkwon, who called him a "Cho Kuk follower," Kim drew a clear line, saying, "These are completely different issues."

He argued, "Public statements can constitute defamation or insult, but sending messages to individuals to criticize or slander them does not, in principle, constitute a crime. Therefore, whether a lawsuit can be filed or not is completely different."

Regarding his decision to abandon the appeal after losing in the first trial, he said, "I thought a lot about whether to appeal, but I decided not to prolong the trial and escalate the controversy. In fact, I was confident of winning."

Finally, Kim said, "The text bomb issue can be resolved very naturally," and added, "If we do our job well, the number of messages expressing such complaints can decrease."

Earlier, on the 28th of last month, Kim had stated about the text bomb controversy, "They may be called hardline supporters, but I think they are supporters who actively express their opinions," and added, "Of course, in a democratic society, such active expression of opinion should be encouraged."

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