Lee Jae-myung: "Yoon Seok-yeol, who wants to imprison me, mainly talks about the past and revenge"

Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party presidential candidate, is having a conversation with young people on the terrace of the youth housing "Jangan Saenghwal" in Dongdaemun-gu, Seoul, on the morning of the 6th.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Hwang Sumi] Lee Jae-myung, the presidential candidate of the Democratic Party of Korea, expressed confidence regarding Yoon Seok-yeol, the former Prosecutor General, being selected as the People Power Party's presidential candidate, saying, "It was a predictable result, so I am not very surprised," and "I believe it will be easier for me to persuade the people."

On the 6th, during a discussion held at a studio in Mapo-gu, Seoul, hosted by the 'Prosecutor and Media Reform Candlelight Action Coalition,' Lee said, "I talk about the future, but he tends to focus on the past."

Lee pointed out, "Candidate Yoon mainly talks about revenge or retaliation." He added, "Yoon keeps saying he will put me in jail. But I actually want to talk about the future and people's livelihoods."

He continued, "We are entering an era full of challenges where ability is crucial," and said, "Ability means having achievements, not just words. In that regard, I think it will be easier for me to persuade the people than Candidate Yoon."

Regarding the Daejang-dong scandal, Lee said, "I feel that I am currently suffering the consequences of not having achieved media reform with my whole body."

He claimed, "Amid the People Power Party's pressure to force private development, we recovered as much as 1 trillion won at most, or 500 billion won at least," and added, "The rest was pocketed by the People Power Party."

He went on, "Now they ask why public development was not done, why 100% recovery was not achieved, yet they refuse related legislation," and said, "The very environment that allows such audacity is the media."

He also emphasized, "Freedom of the press has transformed from a force that protects democracy into a privilege that destroys and manipulates," and stressed, "Media reform is a very serious task."

Regarding prosecutorial reform, he said, "The core of power is still prosecutorial power. The prosecution exercises omnipotent authority that can fabricate crimes that do not exist and cover up those that do," and added, "Normalizing this is an important task."

Lee also expressed his determination to pursue reform politics against vested interests, saying, "The ones who actually rule this country are not the people but the privileged cartel and vested interest coalition."

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