Lee Jae-myung Responds Directly to 'Military Service' Criticism... "Candidate Kim Is Like an Older Brother, Thank You"

Candidate Kim Du-kwan: "Thank you for understanding the hardships of disability"

[Asia Economy Reporter Minji Lee] Lee Jae-myung, a presidential candidate from the Democratic Party of Korea, revealed a photo of his twisted arm injured during his time as a child laborer on the 17th. This was a direct response to attacks criticizing him for not fulfilling his military service obligation due to his disability.

On that day, Lee posted on SNS, "Even as I grow older and become more comfortable, it is difficult to completely shake off the sorrow of disability," and recalled, "Looking at this picture suddenly brought back memories of my childhood."

He wrote, "My mother silently endured seeing me wear only long-sleeved shirts even in the middle of summer to hide my left arm, which was twisted due to growth plate damage caused by being pressed in a press machine," and added, "I cried silently inside feeling my mother’s hand stroking my bent elbow."

Lee continued, "It was only after meeting my wife and well past my thirties that I finally wore short-sleeved shirts," and added, "It took many years to overcome the inferiority complex caused by my disability."

Lee also expressed gratitude toward candidate Kim Du-kwan. Earlier, Kim posted on SNS a 'Military Service One Team' poster featuring himself and candidates Lee Nak-yeon, Chung Sye-kyun, and Park Yong-jin, stating, "Rather take me out. I don’t want to participate in vile mudslinging. No one should be demeaned because of a disability."

In response, Lee said, "There was nowhere to appeal and only pain in my heart. I am grateful for candidate Kim Du-kwan’s words that understood and comforted the sorrow of disability," and added, "Reading Kim’s post, I felt the warmth of an older brother stepping in to stop neighborhood kids from mocking his younger sibling’s disability."

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