Lee Jae-myung: "Refusing Debate Is a Declaration of Not Practicing Democracy," Targeting Yoon Seok-yeol

[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Jeon Jinyoung] Lee Jae-myung, the presidential candidate of the Democratic Party of Korea, urged Yoon Seok-yeol, the presidential candidate of the People Power Party, on the 27th to participate in debates, saying, “Dismissing it as mere quarrels and refusing to debate itself can easily be understood as a declaration of not wanting to practice democracy.”

On the morning of the same day, Lee posted on Facebook, “As politicians are representatives of the sovereign people, I firmly believe that they should not avoid debates even more,” adding, “Without debating, one cannot grow, nor can social consensus be achieved.”

He raised his voice, saying, “Politicians have the duty to listen to what the sovereign people think, and they have the duty to present their philosophy and vision to the sovereign people and gain their consent.”

He continued, “I believe there is no debate without learning. I will continue to debate to listen well and learn well,” and emphasized, “Whether I am fully prepared or less so, I will communicate and debate steadily with the people. I believe that when this happens, our society will take a further leap forward.”

The two candidates engaged in a heated exchange over whether to hold TV debates during the weekend. On the 25th, Yoon appeared on a YouTube broadcast and stated, “If we debate, it will only end up as a fight,” expressing his stance that debates are unnecessary. In response, Lee pointed out in a broadcast interview on the 26th that “It is blocking the opportunity for the people to make a judgment.” The Democratic Party has accused Yoon of adopting an election strategy of refusing debates and has continued efforts to bring Yoon onto the ring, including proposing a bill to increase the number of presidential debates from the current three to seven.

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