Democratic Party: "Far-right Group Supported Kim Moonsoo Through Opinion Manipulation"

“Strong Possibility of Masterminding”
“Comment Manipulation Team Reported to Police”

The Democratic Party of Korea on May 31 called on candidate Kim Moonsoo of the People Power Party to clarify his ties with an organization, stating, "It has been revealed that a far-right group systematically manipulated public opinion to support Kim Moonsoo."

Cho Seungrae, spokesperson for the party's central election committee, said during a briefing at a campaign event in Cheongju, North Chungcheong Province, "The existence of an illegal comment manipulation team has been confirmed," adding, "There is evidence that illegal comments were posted to support Kim Moonsoo and to disparage Lee Jaemyung and other candidates."

According to an investigative report by Newstapa the previous day, a conservative group called 'Reebak School' allegedly created a comment manipulation team named 'Jasongun' (Freedom Finger Army Saving the Nation with Comments) to sway public opinion during the presidential election.

The report also stated that this group disguised itself as a parents' organization and held a press conference at the National Assembly on May 27, which was arranged by Jo Jeonghoon, a member of the People Power Party. Kwon Seongdong, the floor leader, and Kim Sanghoon, another lawmaker, also attended to offer their support.

Yonhap News

Spokesperson Cho said, "The representative of Jasongun stated that Kim Moonsoo visited their office and is aware of their activities," and argued, "There is a strong possibility that Kim Moonsoo and the People Power Party were not just aided by the group, but were also involved in planning and orchestrating these actions."

He continued, "Kim Moonsoo and the People Power Party must confess the extent of their involvement in this base manipulation of public opinion," stressing, "Kwon Seongdong, Kim Sanghoon, and Jo Jeonghoon, who were mentioned in the report, must provide direct explanations."

Cho also stated, "It is necessary to uncover who the dark forces are that enabled such a group to infiltrate educational settings and indoctrinate young students with far-right ideology," adding, "If a convincing explanation is not provided, it can only be seen as an attempt to rekindle the spark of a coup through public opinion manipulation after the failure of the 12·3 coup."

He went on to say, "Despite the failure of the 12·3 coup, we condemn the public opinion manipulation by the far-right insurrection cartel, which is once again trying to engulf the Republic of Korea," and added, "We will punish the shameless conspirators behind this insurrection."

The Democratic Party has also taken action by filing a police complaint. Cho stated, "We have filed a police report against the teams, including Reebak School, that operated the comment manipulation scheme, and in the afternoon, we will visit the office building where Reebak School was located and hold a press conference."

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