"Going Elegantly," Then... Lee Ji-sung's 'Four Beauties' Remark Applauded by Ruling Party

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Ji-eun] On the 25th, the People Power Party, which has transitioned to an emergency response committee system, faced controversy over inappropriate remarks made by invited lecturer writer Lee Ji-sung at a workshop held for the first time since the launch of the Yoon Seok-yeol administration. He referred to First Lady Kim Geon-hee, four-term lawmaker Na Kyung-won, and former Supreme Council member Bae Hyun-jin as "young and beautiful women," which caused discomfort even among the individuals mentioned, yet the attending lawmakers responded with applause and laughter.

During the lecture, Lee said, "When you think of a conservative party, the first image that comes to mind is that of grandfathers. The People Power Party needs the image of young and beautiful women." He added that he told his wife, Cha Yu-ram, "You should join and instill the image of young and beautiful women in the People Power Party."

He continued, "(In the People Power Party) there are Bae Hyun-jin and Na Kyung-won, but it seems somewhat lacking. There is also First Lady Kim Geon-hee," and added, "You (Cha Yu-ram) should join as well." Some lawmakers laughed or applauded in response.

The problem is that such remarks sparked controversy for reducing women to merely a "young and beautiful" image. As related articles poured in, Lee clarified on his social networking service (SNS), "Bae Hyun-jin, Na Kyung-won, and First Lady Kim Geon-hee are young and beautiful, but the numbers are insufficient. Only by adding Cha Yu-ram will the People Power Party's image become young and beautiful. This was the intention, and it was said as a joke."

The individuals mentioned as examples of the "young and beautiful image" also expressed discomfort. Lawmaker Bae said, "I arrived late at the Cheonan workshop due to a lunch schedule, and unfortunately, the writer left inappropriate remarks," and criticized, "What kind of mindset leads to telling the president's wife and public servants elected by the people to form a 'group of four young and beautiful women'?"

Lawmaker Na also expressed displeasure at the writer's remarks about a "beautiful female image," stating, "Such comments and approaches only reinforce our party's outdated image." She pointed out that the writer's remarks ▲reduced women to appearance by mentioning "beautiful," and ▲judged women solely by image regardless of political ability, adding, "While it is difficult to find references to 'handsome' male politicians, attaching such labels only to female politicians leads to disparagement based on gender," and called for an apology.

In particular, his remarks came right after Emergency Committee Chairman Joo Ho-young appealed to win public sentiment through "elegance," making the event's purpose seem meaningless. Chairman Joo said in his opening remarks that "Even if the opposition party goes low, we must go high and win public sentiment," and "Even with opposition from the opposition party, we must gain national momentum through public support."

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