Lee Jae-myung: "Noh, the person who opened my path... I followed the path he opened"

Lee Jae-myung "The Late President Roh Moo-hyun, the One Who Opened My Path"
Reflecting on Life as an Urban Poor Raised as a Boy Laborer

On the 1st, Gyeonggi Governor Lee Jae-myung appeared on the dialogue "Seonmunmyeongdap" with former Minister of SMEs and Startups Park Young-sun, released on YouTube, where he reflected on his childhood and the late former President Roh Moo-hyun. Photo by YouTube Park Young-sun TV.

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Hyun-joo] Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party presidential candidate and Governor of Gyeonggi Province, recalled the late former President Roh Moo-hyun as "the person who opened the path for me."

On the 1st, in a dialogue titled 'Seonmunmyeongdap' with former Minister of SMEs and Startups Park Young-sun, released on YouTube, Lee responded to the question "What does Roh Moo-hyun mean to Lee Jae-myung in one word?" by saying, "I have come this far by following the path he created."

Lee reminisced about his past attending elementary school as the son of poor farmers in Andong, Gyeongbuk, saying, "Looking back now, it was truly the happiest and most brilliant time in my life."

Regarding his days as a child laborer, he said, "I felt abnormal only around middle school to high school age; before that, I thought it was just a natural part of life. Holding my mother's hand and going to the factory was a very joyful time for me."

After passing the qualification exam and entering university, Lee said his life changed after meeting former President Roh while undergoing training after passing the bar exam. He stated, "How could a so-called labor rights lawyer survive after opening a practice at 25? I had no money to start or sustain it." He added, "President Roh came to give a lecture, explained his activities, and taught me that 'a lawyer does not starve.'"

He continued, "President Roh said, 'In our society, the profession of a lawyer can never starve. A stable life is guaranteed. So don't worry and go to the field.'" He added, "In that sense, President Roh opened the path for labor rights lawyers. He probably doesn't even know it."

Lee also reflected that it was former President Roh who opened the path for him into politics.

He said, "I had no intention of entering politics at all. Becoming a politician means either ruin or becoming a thief." He criticized, "You need money, have to swear loyalty, line up early in the morning to pay respects, or you won't get nominated. Then if you spend a lot of money on the election and lose, you become a beggar. If you win, you have to recover your investment and prepare for the next election, commit corruption, go to jail, or become a strong, big thief?one of the two."

He added, "So I never thought about politics, but he (President Roh) solved this. He did truly great things like political reform and election reform." He said, "He created politics where elections don't cost money, money is returned, and if you do bad things, you are punished, enabling fair competition. Because of that, I have come this far. So, in fact, President Roh opened two paths for me."

Regarding his past criticism of the May 18 Gwangju Democratization Movement, he explained, "That's why I developed somewhat radical thoughts about the media." He said, "I perceived it completely oppositely based on media reports. I misunderstood and criticized them with my own words. In today's terms, it was secondary harm."

Meanwhile, the dialogue between the two will be released in five parts by the 5th on Lee's campaign Facebook page and YouTube channel 'Park Young-sun TV.'

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