Yoon Mi-hyang: "The event was not hosted only by Chongryon... Participated as a member of the National Assembly"

"Over 100 Organizations Conduct Memorial Projects"
"No Contact with Chongryon... I Am Confident"
"Kanto Massacre: Korean Political Silence Is Devastating"

Independent lawmaker Yoon Mi-hyang, who was accused by conservative civic groups of violating the National Security Act after attending the 100th anniversary memorial event for the Great Kanto Earthquake hosted by the General Association of Korean Residents in Japan (Chongryon), known as a pro-North Korea organization, clarified that "the event was not solely organized by Chongryon."

On the 5th, Yoon appeared on the YouTube program 'Kim Eo-jun's Humility is Difficult News Factory' and stated, "Because it was the 100th anniversary, over 50 organizations in Korea had already formed a 100th Anniversary Memorial Project Committee and had been actively working on it, and various organizations in Japan also carried out memorial projects."

Yoon emphasized, "The event was carried out by encompassing Japanese people, Korean residents in Japan, Chongryon, Japanese civic groups, and Japanese lawmakers, and I had no reason to have contact with Chongryon."

Independent lawmaker Yoon Mi-hyang. Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

Regarding her attendance at the event, Yoon said, "I am confident. I have never violated the Inter-Korean Exchange and Cooperation Act," and explained, "I never planned to meet with Chongryon. The prior contact application under the Inter-Korean Exchange and Cooperation Act requires specifying who you are going to meet, but participating in a memorial project itself is not subject to prior notification, as I interpreted it."

She continued, "Having engaged in countless inter-Korean solidarity activities over 30 years while visiting Japan, I was well aware of what kind of content needed to be reported," and added, "So if I unintentionally met (Chongryon) on site, there is a system to report afterward."

Yoon said, "I went there as a member of the National Assembly of the Republic of Korea. It was also the first time I delivered a memorial message for overseas Koreans," and added, "What I felt sorry about locally was that some Korean residents expressed regret, saying 'Why did you come, especially as an independent?' Nevertheless, Japanese society said, 'Thank you for coming like this.'"

She said, "Both the Japanese government and the Korean government could not remain silent on the 100th anniversary of the Kanto Massacre. It was heartbreaking that the Korean political circles could be so indifferent to this issue. Properly commemorating it is exactly what the political circles should do."

She added, "What is rather thankful is that through Yoon Mi-hyang, the 100th anniversary memorial project for the Korean victims of the Kanto Massacre has been publicized domestically like never before. I feel bittersweet and devastated thinking about that."

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