"If the President Commits a Crime, He Should Go to Prison" and "So Yoon Went to Prison"... Chuncheon 'Reply Banners' Draw Attention

Banner Wars Intensify Ahead of June 3 Local Elections
People Power Party Criticizes President Lee Using His Past Remarks
Progressive Party Counters: "So Yoon Suk-yeol Went to Prison"

As the June 3 local elections approach, the People Power Party has sparked discussion by displaying a banner criticizing President Lee Jaemyung, while the Justice Party responded by putting up a banner featuring former President Yoon Suk-yeol beneath it.

Banners of the People Power Party and the Justice Party displayed in Chuncheon City. Park Taehun, Preparatory Chairman of the National University Council of the Justice Party

On May 13, Park Taehun, Preparatory Chairman of the National University Council of the Justice Party, posted a photo on his social networking service (SNS) showing banners in Chuncheon City, Gangwon Province. The photo quickly spread online. It depicts two banners hung one above the other: the People Power Party banner reads, "If the president commits a crime, let’s send him to prison. March 10, 2017, Lee Jaemyung," while the Justice Party banner below states, "So Yoon Suk-yeol went to prison. February 19, 2026, Yoon Suk-yeol sentenced to life imprisonment in the first trial."

The remark by President Lee, quoted on the People Power Party banner, was originally made on March 10, 2017, when the impeachment of former President Park Geun-hye was upheld and Lee was serving as mayor of Seongnam. Recently, the People Power Party has highlighted the so-called "Special Prosecution for Fabricated Indictments Act"—a controversial bill that could allow for the withdrawal of charges related to President Lee’s ongoing trial—as a central issue in the June 3 local elections. On May 13, People Power Party leader Jang Donghyeok claimed, "If a criminal in power erases their own crimes, the separation of powers and the rule of law in the Republic of Korea will come to an end." The wording on the banner is seen as a strategic use of President Lee’s past remarks to reinforce this argument.

Kim Byunghyuk, the Justice Party candidate for Chuncheon City Council who put up the banner, posted two photos on SNS the same day with the caption, "After the anti-democratic party hung a banner inciting political hatred over our Justice Party’s 'for the people' banner, we responded with a 'reply banner'." The post included the process of replacing an original banner—which featured the pledge to expand the designated Dalbit Children’s Hospital in Chuncheon—with the new "Yoon Suk-yeol Prison" banner. Kim added, "We may only care about people’s livelihoods, but we will never turn a blind eye to actions that threaten democracy."

The People Power Party’s Chuncheon-gap District Party Council issued a statement the same day, claiming, "Chuncheon City removed our banner on the grounds that it did not meet the party banner guidelines, which require the local party council chair or regional committee chair’s name to be displayed, while leaving the Justice Party’s banner intact even though it did not comply with the same rule."

This is not the first time a "reply banner"—a banner directly countering the opposing party’s message—has drawn attention. Whereas party banners used to focus mainly on promoting their own pledges, there is now a clear trend toward targeting rival parties with pointed messages.

The intensified banner competition began after the Outdoor Advertisement Act was revised in December 2022. The revision lifted restrictions on locations and filing procedures for party banners, leading to a surge in political banners nationwide and a more than twofold increase in related complaints compared to the three months before the law was enacted. In 2024, regulations were partially reinstated, limiting each town, township, or neighborhood to a maximum of two banners, among other measures.

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