Controversy over the word choices employed by United Progressive Party (UPP) presidential candidate Lee Jung Hee during last night’s presidential debate has continued all day, and has incited the anger of some who see it as a clear indication of her pro-North Korea stance.
Choi Joo Hwal, the head of NKD, declared to Daily NK today, “Lee Jung Hee, who acts as North Korea’s spokeswoman, has revealed her true pro-North colors; she is in opposition to capitalism itself and intends to renew and prolong North Korea’s strategy of achieving unification under communism.”
Meanwhile, Ahn Chan Il, who manages the World North Korea Research Center, pointed out, “Overall, candidate Lee Jung Hee’s observations vis North Korea were not balanced and seemed very biased. Maybe she was trying to show that she is trying to bring about unification on the Korean Peninsula, but either way, it is not desirable for a South Korean politician to be so conscious of North Korea.”
“The word ‘security’ that she used is only used in North Korea, so I was surprised that a South Korean would use this word,” another senior defector commented. “She would need to either read a lot of books about North Korea or be a fan of the Juche ideology to be using that kind of word.”
Saenuri Party lawmaker and former leftist Ha Tae Kyung agreed, adding that the problem runs deep, “She used those words because pro-North culture is the norm within the progressive party,” he claimed. “She is among the less strident pro-North figures in the UPP, which tells you how severe the tendency is.”
