Hyeon Geuntaek: "'Protocol Controversy' Informant Was Intentional from the Start... What's Secondary Harm?"

"Person who worked for 9 months recorded for 8 months"
"Media tip-off one month before general election... Can we not suspect intent?"

Attorney Hyun Geun-taek, spokesperson for the Democratic Party of Korea's Election Countermeasures Committee / Photo by Yonhap News

[Asia Economy Reporter Lim Juhyung] Hyun Geun-taek, spokesperson for the Democratic Party of Korea's election campaign committee, criticized the whistleblower who raised the so-called 'excessive protocol controversy' involving Kim Hye-kyung, the spouse of presidential candidate Lee Jae-myung, saying, "If you thought there was a problem with the instructions, you could have just quit."

In response to criticism from the opposition party calling it "secondary victimization of the victim," Spokesperson Hyun rebutted, saying, "What is secondary victimization? Can't it be seen as intentional from the beginning (by the whistleblower)?"

On the 6th, in a post on his Facebook, Spokesperson Hyun said, "There is criticism that what I wrote is secondary victimization. If a person who worked for nine months recorded conversations for eight months, can't it be seen as intentional from the start?"

He continued, "In judging whether it is secondary victimization, it is important whether information that can identify the whistleblower was provided. Other than the fact that the person is a special appointment secretary already disclosed in the media, no information that could identify who they are was provided," he explained.

He added, "It was the Garosero Research Institute (Gaseyeon) that released the whistleblower's voice as it is," and asked, "Isn't it Gaseyeon that committed the secondary victimization? Who is said to have committed secondary victimization?"

Regarding Rep. Sung Il-jong of the People Power Party's remark, "Should a victim of school violence have dropped out of school?" Hyun responded, "If a secretary who worked for nine months recorded conversations and captured texts for eight months, wouldn't you suspect intent?"

He further said, "Especially if they are sequentially reporting to media outlets a month before the general election, what would you do if your competitor is using this for the election?" and criticized, "Have you ever seen a victim of school violence do this before an election? Compare things that are comparable."

Kim Hye-kyung, spouse of Lee Jae-myung, the Democratic Party presidential candidate / Photo by Yonhap News

Earlier, Spokesperson Hyun wrote on Facebook the previous day, "I don't know who the whistleblower A's close associates are, but there are some issues. They are in financial difficulty and in a situation where they cannot trust anyone, so they created a sponsorship account," and pointed out, "There could be a misunderstanding that the disclosure was made because of money."

He also raised suspicions about A, saying, "I understand that A is not a regular employee hired through an exam but a special appointment," and "When a special appointment resigns due to dissatisfaction with work, no one says anything. If they thought there was a problem with Mr. Bae's instructions, they could have just quit immediately, but recording calls and capturing conversations without quitting despite thinking there was a problem is clearly intentional."

The opposition party immediately pushed back. Rep. Sung condemned, "Does the Lee candidate's side think that a victim of school violence should have dropped out of school? The ruling party's perception that victims of workplace power harassment should 'just quit if you don't like it' is shocking."

Hwang Gyu-hwan, spokesperson of the same party, also issued a statement, saying, "The Democratic Party's bad habit of not hesitating to commit secondary victimization, even coining the term 'victim complainant' during the sexual harassment case of former Seoul Mayor Park Won-soon, has resurfaced," and asked, "Is the secondary victimization filled with abusive language and sophistry the intention of this candidate?"

Meanwhile, A revealed on the 28th of last month that they were instructed by Mr. Bae, a close aide of candidate Lee and a Grade 5 public official, and took on personal errands such as proxy prescription of medicine for Kim, food delivery, and wardrobe organization in the past.

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