Lee Jun-seok on Yoon's Proposal to Recruit Professor Lee Soo-jung: "Definitely Opposed"

On the 23rd, Lee Jun-seok, the leader of the People Power Party, appeared on the Chosun Ilbo YouTube channel "Paekpok Sister." / Photo by "Paekpok Sister" capture

[Asia Economy Reporter Na Ye-eun] Lee Jun-seok, the leader of the People Power Party, expressed opposition to the recruitment of Professor Lee Soo-jung, a criminal psychology professor at Kyonggi University, to the party's election campaign committee.

On the 23rd, Lee appeared on the Chosun Ilbo YouTube channel 'Fact Bomb Sister' and was asked by Kim Mi-seon, a TV Chosun reporter, "Candidate Yoon Seok-yeol proposed recruiting Professor Lee Soo-jung. What is your opinion on this?" Lee responded, "The candidate has never once consulted me on this matter, and I am not sure if they will actually recruit her. I have not even heard that she has been recruited. If they do, I oppose it. Definitely."

He continued, "If such a recruitment happens, it would be contrary to the process and direction our party has prepared for the election so far," adding, "If the candidate does not understand the current situation, I am willing to discuss it with him."

He also added, "(Recruiting Professor Lee) means restructuring the support base and strategy, so that needs to be shared."

Lee's remarks are interpreted as meaning that the recruitment of Professor Lee is in the opposite direction to the People Power Party's previous efforts to consolidate support among men in their 20s and 30s.

Professor Lee is a leading criminal psychology analyst in South Korea and also works as an expert in protecting women's and children's human rights. Before Lee Jun-seok's leadership, she was active several times within the People Power Party. She led policy planning for the Future United Party (the predecessor of the People Power Party) Sexual Violence Countermeasures Task Force, including the stalking crime punishment bill and the 'Jo Doo-soon Protective Custody Bill.'

Last year, she also participated in the People Power Party's by-election primary preparation committee. At that time, she said on CBS Radio's 'Kim Hyun-jung's News Show,' "I think gender equality is not necessarily only a progressive issue. Ultimately, (the by-election) is related to women's rights. It is about filling the position vacated by a local government head due to acts infringing on women." She added, "If even one person who values gender equality is on the screening committee, I think candidates will propose many policies related to women or gender equality."

Meanwhile, on the 22nd, Professor Lee told multiple media outlets, "Candidate Yoon's side asked me to join the campaign as a female expert," and explained her decision to join by saying, "Since only biased policies related to women keep coming out, I thought someone should help."

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