"The Press Arbitration Act is a Protection Law for Moon"… '101-Year-Old Philosopher' Kim Hyung-seok's Government Criticism

"We Are a Generation That Lived Without a Country... Advice Through Patriotism"
"The Media Arbitration Act Is a Law to Maintain the Regime"
"The Country Has Become Completely Different from President Moon's Promise"

Professor Emeritus Kim Hyung-seok, Yonsei University. Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Juhyung] Despite being over 100 years old, Kim Hyung-seok, Honorary Professor at Yonsei University, who is actively engaged in lectures, writing, and activities and is nicknamed the "101-year-old philosopher," sharply criticized the Moon Jae-in administration. He labeled the amendment to the Media Arbitration Act promoted by the Democratic Party of Korea as a "media control law," stating, "The country has become completely different from the one President Moon Jae-in promised in his inaugural speech."

In an interview with the Chosun Ilbo on the 11th, Professor Kim criticized, "A country that controls the media is a backward country. Just as taking off a hat reveals the head, it is only called arbitration in name, but in content, it is control."

He added, "In a democracy, the media is like air, so why does the government intervene? The motives and purposes are not pure," and strongly condemned, "The Media Arbitration Act is a law to maintain the regime, and to put it harshly, it is a 'Moon Jae-in protection law.'"

Having previously criticized President Moon and the ruling party several times, Professor Kim explained, "Our generation, who lived without a country, has a different patriotism from those born into a country," and "I cannot abandon that feeling, so I offer sincere advice (gogeon)."

Regarding lawyer Jung Cheol-seung, the legal representative of the late former Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon’s family, who criticized him by saying, "If this is aging, it is pitiful," Kim dismissed it as "a personal matter" and said, "I do not want to make an issue of it."

Interview article with Professor Kim Emeritus published on the official website of the Japanese Sankei Shimbun / Photo by Internet homepage capture

This is not the first time Honorary Professor Kim has directly criticized President Moon. Previously, in a column contributed to a media outlet, he expressed a sense of crisis, saying, "The value of the people's human life and human rights has been damaged, and even the mental social order is being lost," and sharply stated, "The current politics does not seem to be a government serving the people but exists for the Moon Jae-in administration."

On the 30th of last month (local time), he also criticized the government’s diplomacy toward Japan in an interview with Japan's Sankei Shimbun. He claimed, "President Moon Jae-in is obsessed with wanting to be respected like a patriot who fought against Japanese colonial rule."

In response, lawyer Jung strongly criticized Professor Kim on his Facebook post on the 1st, saying, "Is he starting to do things he never did with a sound mind over the past 100 years only after becoming clouded?" and "This is why the old saying that living long is dangerous came about."

He added, "If this is aging, it is a pitiful matter. He even gave an interview to a Japanese right-wing media outlet, pouring out criticism disguised as condemnation of the Moon Jae-in government's diplomacy toward Japan," and said, "Someone should stop that elder."

Meanwhile, Professor Kim, who turned 101 this year, defected from North Korea in 1947 and has been working as a professor in South Korea. He has published various books such as In Search of the Meaning of Life, Having Lived a Hundred Years, and There Is No Pathless Road, and continues to actively engage in academic and literary activities even after turning 100.

Yoon Seok-youl, a presidential candidate from the People Power Party and former Prosecutor General, visited Professor Kim’s home after stepping down from his position in March. It is reported that Yoon had a two-hour conversation with Professor Kim and received various pieces of advice.

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