Gong Ji-young, Who Defended Cho Kuk, Says "I Protected Him Despite Criticism, but I Feel Betrayed"

"'If only they had said sorry once'
'Break away from dichotomous logic and 1980s-style slogans'"

Author Gong Ji-young, who had publicly supported former Justice Minister Cho Kuk in the past, opened up about her true feelings toward the 86 Generation (those born in the 1960s and who entered university in the 1980s) to which she belongs, reflecting, "Even though we were criticized, protecting him was, at the time, a form of patriotism and sacrifice, but now I realize I was speaking without knowing anything." Although she did not mention names, her remarks are interpreted as targeting former Minister Cho, whom she had publicly supported before.

In an interview with Yonhap News on the 23rd, Gong said, "I never imagined he would be that kind of person," adding, "Because we had a fairly long friendship, the sense of betrayal was even greater." She continued, "If he had just said 'I'm sorry' or 'I was wrong' when his mistakes were revealed later, I wouldn't have been this disappointed." To Jin Joong-kwon, a former professor at Dongyang University, with whom she had exchanged heated words on social media at the time, she expressed her apology, saying, "I'm terribly sorry."

In her new essay released after three years, You Will Be Lonely Again (Haenaem), Gong included a heartfelt reflection on the 86 Generation to which she belongs. In the book, she wrote, "Through social media, I realized that the person I fervently defended was not who I had thought he was," referring to a famous figure who once claimed to be a 'protector.'

On the 15th, author Gong Ji-young was interviewed by Yonhap News at her home in Pyeonggeori Village, Hadong-gun, Gyeongnam.

At a press conference in July 2018, when she released her novel Harry, Gong had said, "The evil we must fight from now on is hypocrisy disguised as progressivism and democracy." Regarding this, Gong pointed out, "Even after being betrayed like that, our 86 Generation still believed until the end that the promises made would be kept, which was the root of the problem," adding, "The current progressivism, which raises its voice only for itself rather than for the socially weak, is no longer true progressivism." She also added, "These days, Han Dong-hoon's proposal to have lawmakers return their salaries if sentenced to imprisonment of more than a year is correct, even if it comes from the People Power Party, and Lee Jun-seok, who would have been dismissed as a 'Park Geun-hye kid' in the past, is now saying the right things, so he looks good, as if joking."

However, she clarified that she has not turned conservative. Gong said, "I have not gone 'conservative,'" explaining, "It means that I will not support unconditionally just because of our generation, but will take a critical stance and judge on a case-by-case basis." She continued, "The ideological feast that should have ended in the 20th century has been dragged this far," emphasizing, "This is a kind of declaration to break away from ideological comrades who still shout outdated and dichotomous slogans from the 1980s, even though the 86 activists have become lawmakers and the Democratic Party of Korea has become the majority party."

Gong stressed, "If so-called 'progressive' remarks are made carelessly, the majority may be achieved, but I hate hypocrites who only talk," adding, "It's not about being progressive or conservative, but the modifiers like 'rational' or 'extreme' that come before them that are more important."

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