Democratic Party's 'Taste-Targeted' Pledge, Created by This Person [Hot Interview]

Interview with Party Member Oh Chang-seok in His 30s
"An Experience Every Young Generation Will Face Once"

The Democratic Party of Korea announced 'taste-targeted pledges' aimed at the 20s to 40s age group. These include seven major pledges such as strengthening penalties against 'parking villains' who frequently engage in illegal street parking, expanding paid leave systems for infertility treatment, and regulating covert game promotions. The pledge materials also feature a new slang phrase: 'If you have personal taste (gaechwi), vote for the Democratic Party!'

This was proposed to the Democratic Party by Oh Chang-seok, a party member in his 30s, who gathered discussions from online communities. The content is modest but closely connected to everyday life. We asked Mr. Oh about the background and process of compiling these pledges.

O Chang-seok, Member of the Democratic Party of Korea [Photo by O Chang-seok]

What motivated you to propose pledges closely connected to daily life?

I had discussions with Kim Min-seok, the Situation Room Chief, for several months. We also held policy meetings where we talked about various pledges indiscriminately. I thought it would be good to organize pledges that resonate with office workers. I focused mainly on issues that people in their 20s and 30s have experienced or will face at least once.

What considerations did you have when selecting the pledges?

Recently, private sanctions and 'disciplinary education' have been rampant. I thought we should not leave that unchecked. Also, I wanted to complement these realities legally. For example, the current illegal parking problem requires people to call privately and resolve issues themselves, which escalates conflicts. I wanted to legalize a system similar to calling the security office or the Seoul Metropolitan Government's noise consultation office when there is noise between floors.

Which pledge do you want to emphasize the most?

The one likely to have the biggest impact is 'strong punishment for parking villains.' Videos related to parking stress on YouTube have very high views. I felt that people’s interest is that high. Personally, I want to put the most effort into the pledge related to 'infertility treatment.' Since many low birthrate pledges are coming out these days and the government is paying attention, I thought it could also help families who want only one child.

Oh Chang-seok, member of the Democratic Party of Korea
Photo by Oh Chang-seok

Was there a reason you referred to online communities?

Since the internet contains issues that everyone experiences, I thought we should respond sensitively to them. I joined the Democratic Party in 2016, and since the 2021 by-elections, I have suggested to the party that we need to pay more attention to communities. However, some misunderstood that and tried to join, so I just compiled and reported directly on 'how things are.'

Are there any additional pledges you would like to propose?

Convenience store owners sometimes have to operate 24 hours even when sales are poor late at night, so I thought a system to ease this would be necessary. After midnight, the number of payments at bars drops significantly as people don’t go out as much past midnight like before COVID-19. However, if convenience store owners sign a contract for 24-hour operation initially, they face a situation where they can neither do this nor that. I have at least informed the party about this issue.

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