[Full Text] Presidential Candidate Shim Sang-jung Declares "We Have Paid Enough for Industrialization and Democratization Parties... Please Use Shim Sang-jung Prominently"

[Asia Economy Reporter Oh Ju-yeon] Shim Sang-jung, a member of the Justice Party, officially declared her candidacy for the presidential election on the 29th, saying, "Please replace politics, not just the regime."

On the day, Shim held an online declaration ceremony via Zoom, promising to overcome the climate crisis, promote a new labor law, and firmly establish the public concept of land.

Shim emphasized, "The process of the minority changing the majority is exactly political replacement. I am confident," adding, "You have already given enough compensation to the industrialization and democratization parties. The way to turn disappointment in the candlelight government into hope is to make the candidate of the progressive party the president." She also stressed, "Until now, you have written Shim Sang-jung and the Justice Party small, but now it is time to write us generously and big."

Below is the full text of the presidential candidacy declaration.

1 - I, Shim Sang-jung, am a person who owes only to the people

Dear citizens,

This is Shim Sang-jung.

The COVID-19 pandemic, which we thought would pass quickly,

has continued beyond a year.

To all the medical staff working on the front lines,

to all the self-employed sacrificing for everyone,

and to all citizens enduring hardships day by day,

I offer my deepest condolences.

Dear citizens,

The time to change South Korea again is approaching.

What kind of president do you want?

What kind of society do you hope South Korea will become?

What kind of life does each of our citizens long for?

I know that you think even these questions are pointless.

Whether conservative or progressive,

everyone fights to protect their own interests every day,

do they even care about the citizens who are shedding tears of blood?

The resentment and anger of citizens who have no expectations, no interest, and no one to vote for

come to me deeply.

But dear citizens,

isn't each day too hard to give up on politics?

Isn't the future bleak?

Shouldn't we find a way?

Next year's presidential election

is a time for your decision.

Only you can pave the way for new politics

and change your own lives.

Dear citizens!

For the past 20 years,

I have devoted myself to politics with the sole purpose of creating a better society.

I wanted to be a source of courage for workers

and comfort for youth and women.

I have done my best to uplift the lives of all citizens.

Many citizens recognized my sincerity and encouraged me.

However, with the power of a small party alone,

I could not change the world significantly.

I have often been told to join a big party and shake things up.

But I did not go.

That path was one that distanced me from citizens

and gave up on the future.

I have come this far relying not on power given by authority

but solely on the power entrusted by you, the citizens.

That is the pride of me and the Justice Party that cannot be exchanged for anything.

I, Shim Sang-jung, owe only to the people.

Dear citizens,

There are things that can be done better

by someone who does not rely on power

and does not bow to conglomerates.

Even without a big party,

there are times when a person who has kept their convictions for 20 years

is absolutely needed.

That time is now.

The point of climate catastrophe, where the Earth's temperature rises by 1.5 degrees,

has been brought forward by 10 years to 2040.

The pandemic has deepened the valley of inequality.

Do we have a future?

The next generation is asking.

The formula of infinite development and infinite competition until now

is a shortcut to destruction.

"If we do better as we have done,"

such a temporary measure will not work,

and our people know this better than anyone.

Who, then, can be the president

who can cross this era of crisis with bold political transformation?

Dear citizens!

I confidently say it is me, Shim Sang-jung,

who is prepared for the future,

can cooperate beyond parties solely on the side of citizens,

and has firm convictions and capabilities.

I, Shim Sang-jung,

will start just politics for a fair transition

to solve the climate crisis and inequality.

Beyond the era of the state and the market,

I will open the era of citizens.

I will create a country where we all want to live,

not a country we want to escape from.

Citizens,

please use me, Shim Sang-jung,

as a bridge to cross this era of crisis

and move toward the future.

2 - Beyond the era of the state and the market, I will open the era of citizens

There was a time when the state controlled the economy

and trampled on human rights.

And finally,

we opened an era where we elect the president with our own hands.

However, as the late President Roh Moo-hyun said,

power has entirely passed to the market.

Following 40 years of the era of the state,

the era of the market has continued for 30 years.

Institutional democracy has been achieved,

but the power of citizens has been extremely weak.

Even after democratization,

the people alternately gave opportunities to the industrialization and democratization forces.

They hoped these forces would remove the dark shadows of compressed growth and compressed democratization.

They longed for decentralization in all areas of politics, economy, and society,

and for a pluralistic society that improves quality of life.

However, these historical tasks were delayed and deferred.

Politics was only devoted to supporting market power.

It defended corporate culture that prioritized profit over life,

and repeatedly gave impunity to illegal acts of conglomerate heads under economic logic.

We gave power to the Lee Myung-bak and Park Geun-hye administrations,

but what returned were the Four Major Rivers Project, the Sewol ferry disaster, and the state corruption scandal.

The Moon Jae-in government, which came in with 17 million candlelight protesters,

wasted the best opportunity in South Korean history

to create a country where everyone can prosper.

As a result, our country ranks lowest in most social indicators except GDP,

including the highest suicide rate, highest elderly poverty rate, and world-class industrial accident death rate in the OECD.

Above all, the world's lowest birthrate continues to decline every year.

In July, South Korea officially obtained advanced country status from the UN.

However, citizens feel

"Is my life really advanced?"

and are disillusioned.

Nevertheless, the industrialization and democratization forces

still say "there is no government that can beat the market," and continue to support market power.

Now, the era of the market must end.

The Shim Sang-jung government

will be a government that firmly beats the market

to protect life and human rights.

The Shim Sang-jung government

will grant the right to organize to all the weak in the market,

including workers, subcontractors, dealerships, and franchises,

to stand against market vested interests.

It will be a government that greatly expands decentralization and autonomy

in all areas of society and even in communities.

We will form a strong society that checks and balances the state and the market.

We will create a country where citizenship is stronger than presidential power.

We will vigorously open the era of citizens.

Dear citizens,

The forces that have alternated power for over 30 years

but have not even properly established citizens' right to life

are shamelessly seeking power again.

Among those who want to become president,

there is no one who sincerely reflects on themselves.

You must now hold accountable the politics that diverted the achievements

built by citizens with blood and sweat for 70 years

into the fortune of a privileged few,

and the politics that stole the future of our youth.

Dear citizens,

Please replace politics, not just the regime!

This presidential election

must be an election that ends the winner-takes-all politics of the two major parties.

So far, two-party politics has only been fierce against each other,

and utterly incompetent in reforming people's livelihoods.

They are full of desire for power,

but there are no citizens or future inside.

Now, the 34-year-old

old two-party system must be replaced.

Above all, to solve the transformative tasks of responding to the climate crisis and inequality,

the capability of one president, one party,

or one regime is insufficient.

We must move toward a parliamentary system where diverse citizens' opinions are reflected,

and a responsible coalition government based on a multi-party system.

Many ask me,

"Can a small Justice Party govern the country if it comes to power?"

Dear citizens,

The process of the minority changing the majority

is exactly political replacement.

I am confident.

Above all, you, the citizens, are here.

The ruling party that always agrees unconditionally,

and the main opposition party that always opposes unconditionally,

cannot cooperate.

I and the Justice Party have always said what is right is right,

and what is wrong is wrong from the people's perspective.

Only forces standing solely on the side of the people

can operate coalition politics based on principles.

3 - Next year's presidential election is South Korea's first climate vote

Dear citizens,

This election will be South Korea's first climate vote.

In the face of the climate crisis,

individuals, companies, and countries cannot continue as they are.

There is no more retreat.

There is discrimination even in the climate crisis.

The powerful and wealthy

can move to higher ground if sea levels rise,

or flee to other countries in extreme cold or heat.

The wealthy survive,

while the majority of citizens and innocent non-human life

will face disaster helplessly.

Climate crisis measures are not policies.

They are transitions.

It is a transition from a growth-centered socio-economic system

to a coexistence system.

Now, politics, industry, our daily lives, and even values

must be reorganized within the limits the Earth can bear.

First, we must end the fossil energy system that has lasted over 200 years.

If humanity does not reduce fossil energy use by more than half by 2030,

the 'mass extinction' will begin.

The energy system transition must be revolutionary.

Now is not the time to leisurely talk about 'green growth'

or support building coal-fired power plants in other countries.

The alternative to fossil energy is not nuclear power but renewable energy.

By 2030, renewable energy will be responsible for half of power production,

and we will start an energy revolution.

We will reduce greenhouse gas emissions to half the level demanded by the international community

and fulfill the responsibilities of an advanced country.

According to the principle of a just transition,

we will first provide jobs in renewable energy projects

to workers who lose jobs during the energy transition.

We will hasten the transition to a coexistence economy

that prioritizes harmony between people and nature.

We will start large-scale public investments

for the transition to a green economy, green industry, and green cities.

We will create jobs through a green investment-led economy

firmly connected to our strength in digital innovation.

We will establish regional and metropolitan transportation systems centered on green railroads,

and by 2030, one in two vehicles on roads will be electric cars.

We will expand public green remodeling projects

so that all buildings nationwide can become renewable energy power plants.

In this process, we will also promote balanced national development and spatial democratization.

Overcoming the climate crisis

cannot be achieved by the president alone.

Even bipartisan cooperation in politics is insufficient.

Citizen participation is absolutely necessary.

To this end, we will form a 'National Climate Emergency Council'

that includes political circles, regions, and civil society.

Citizens, youth, and politicians working hard nationwide to overcome the climate crisis!

Charge toward the center of politics.

I and the Justice Party will sprint toward green.

Let us hold hands and protect the Earth.

Let us protect our future.

4 - A new social contract is what I, Shim Sang-jung, can do best

Dear citizens,

The 68-year-old labor law and the 72-year-old land reform,

these old systems have fostered inequality.

I will boldly abolish the old social contract

and strongly promote a social contract of coexistence.

The current labor law made in 1953

has reached the end of its life.

When I left school during university

and jumped into 25 years of labor activism,

it was to revive the obsolete labor law

and to inform workers who did not even know the law existed

about labor law.

But now, even if we revive the labor law,

there are 7 million people pushed outside the law,

such as irregular workers, special employment workers, platform workers, and ultra-short-time workers.

High-tech industries like platforms

have made a fuss as if they will save the future,

but they are leading the way in splitting labor and pushing workers outside the law.

Workers in workplaces with fewer than five employees

could not even take a substitute holiday on Liberation Day recently.

They are not guaranteed annual leave or menstrual leave.

Also, nurses collapsing from overwork on the front lines of COVID-19

are not even covered by legal working hours.

Delivery workers cannot demand improved working conditions

from platform companies.

I will abolish the current law based on employment relationships

and promote a new labor law that grants equal rights

to all working citizens.

I will guarantee the three new labor rights:

the right to work, the right to organize, and the right to leisure.

I will correct labor exploitation and human rights violations caused by algorithms,

abuse of small businesses in local markets, cost-shifting,

and the tyranny of giant platform companies.

To solve the labor market gap that has become multi-layered beyond a dual structure,

I will lead multi-layered social agreements.

This is what I, Shim Sang-jung, must do

and what I can do best.

A country where labor is dignified!

I will definitely achieve it.

Dear citizens,

Another area requiring fundamental social contract transformation is asset inequality.

South Korea has now become a society led by unearned income.

Someone's unearned income

is the result of plundering someone else's earned income.

I will surely create a society where the pride of hard work

is the source of self-esteem.

I will firmly establish the public concept of land.

Since liberation, South Korea started with equal starting lines through land reform.

However, over the past 70 years,

while construction capitalists have been left to dominate,

South Korea has become the most unequal country in the world.

South Korea's land belongs to all 50 million people.

Then shouldn't the community agree on the principles of land ownership and use?

Individual and corporate land ownership for necessity will be recognized,

but land ownership for speculative gains

will be thoroughly suppressed through taxation,

and unnecessary land sales will be encouraged

to promote efficient use of national land.

I will surely lead national consensus on the land value increment tax,

which has repeatedly failed due to vested interests.

Also, I will expand the supply of quality public housing

so that at least 80% of citizens can live without housing worries.

Incorporating green building philosophy for the climate crisis era,

I will build new-concept public housing where everyone wants to live.

I will significantly raise minimum housing standards,

expand housing benefits,

and enable all citizens to enjoy the joy of living in a proper home.

Along with this,

I will innovate the social contract for welfare.

I will establish a lifelong safety net income system.

Whether freelancers or self-employed,

if citizens earn income through labor,

they will be automatically enrolled in social insurance based on income,

and the state will guarantee minimum income through categorical basic income.

I will establish a public healthcare system prepared for the with-pandemic era

and fairly improve the treatment of public healthcare workers.

Beyond control measures that have only demanded unilateral sacrifice from citizens,

I will actively prepare loss compensation and daily recovery programs.

The dream of a just welfare state

will finally become a reality under the Shim Sang-jung government.

5 - Beyond institutional democracy, we must move toward everyday democracy

Dear citizens,

Discrimination is barbarism.

A society that calls resistance to discrimination 'conflict'

is not just.

Today's so-called gender and generational conflicts

are the political circles' shifting of responsibility to citizens for neglecting discrimination.

The era when individual dignity and diversity were ignored

in the grand narratives of nation and ethnicity

should have ended in the 20th century.

Our youth, born as citizens of an advanced country,

demand a pluralistic society

where their dignity is respected

and their individuality and potential can be expressed.

Now, beyond institutional democracy,

we must move toward everyday democracy.

We must realize justice in relationships in our daily lives.

I always remember the tears of a sexual minority youth

who hugged me tightly at my campaign four years ago.

I, Shim Sang-jung, have fought relentlessly for human rights.

In the Shim Sang-jung government,

there will be no more "later."

The delay of the anti-discrimination law will end.

Light punishments for sexual violence will disappear.

We will protect diverse family lives

through the Life Partner Act.

We will build a mature human rights state

where every individual is dignified

and every life is respected.

6 - South Korea must now shift to proactive diplomacy

Dear citizens,

South Korea's status has risen

to be considered among the G8.

Our diplomatic strategy must now shift

to proactive diplomacy as a middle power.

I will promote the East Asia Green Alliance

with 'climate crisis' and 'peace' as two pillars.

From a security perspective,

the climate crisis is a serious threat to all countries.

Sharing carbon emission reduction goals with North Korea, China, Japan, etc.,

and building an East Asian coexistence system

through renewable energy technology exchange and cooperation

will itself become an important lever for peace.

The reason North Korea denuclearization policies repeatedly fail

is that we have no proactive negotiation cards.

Repeating passive mediator diplomacy

will only produce the same results regardless of the government.

We must make an offer North Korea cannot refuse.

We will give assurance that there will be no further regime threats,

and envision a joint prosperity economy

that can be stably integrated into the global value chain.

We will patiently guide North Korea

to gradually join the path of peace.

We will fulfill the responsibilities of an advanced country in the international community.

Especially, we will take the lead in supporting citizens of Myanmar and Afghanistan

and firmly establish our status as an Asian 'peace and human rights leader nation.'

7 - Join hands with me and cross the great transition bridge to the future

Dear citizens!

Dear party members and comrades!

You have already given enough compensation to the industrialization and democratization parties.

The way to turn disappointment in the candlelight government into hope

is to make the candidate of the progressive party the president.

Until now, you have written Shim Sang-jung and the Justice Party small,

but now it is time to write us generously and big.

The opportunity you give me and the Justice Party

will expand beyond the Justice Party,

to the power of all political forces

that want to properly change the world.

To all workers,

self-employed, small business owners, and farmers,

civil society,

youth and young people,

women,

all citizens suffering today because they are different from others,

and our proud Justice Party members who will join me on this long journey!

The strongest force to lead the era of citizens

is you.

Join me

to create a country where citizens win.

Let us build a happy country

where our diverse dreams come true.

Without looking back,

let us cross the great transition bridge to the future together.

Thank you.

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