Rep. Park Ji-won of the Democratic Party of Korea criticized South Korean President Yoon Suk Yeol on Wednesday, responding to Yoon’s concern for his wife’s health, Kim Keon Hee, by saying, “Don’t worry about the First Lady. She’ll be there soon enough. Just enjoy your Tteokguk (Korean rice cake soup) there.”
In a Facebook post on the same day, Park wrote, “If he was truly concerned about the country’s future, would he have done what he did? Would he have lived that way if he was worried about her health?” He continued, “How can he behave like this without a single word of remorse?”
Previously, on Tuesday, attorney Seok Dong Hyun, who visited Yoon at the Seoul Detention Center, conveyed Yoon’s concerns. Seok stated, “President Yoon is deeply worried about the country’s future and is also concerned about the many citizens struggling to get through each day, wondering how they are enduring the cold and financial hardships.”
Seok also relayed Yoon’s concerns about his wife: “The First Lady has not been in good health recently. Since leaving the official residence on January 15, President Yoon has not seen her even once, nor has he been able to meet her. He is worried about how she is doing.”
In response, Park sarcastically remarked that Yoon should quietly arrange visits if he wished but added that he hoped the large red headlines and Yoon’s prominent face would disappear from TV screens. He wrote, “From the December 3 martial law discussion to Jeju Air, arrests, detention, the Constitutional Court, and now heavy snowfall—those massive red headlines and large faces keep startling viewers. I earnestly hope to stop seeing them.”
Park further criticized Yoon’s legal team: “His lawyers are highly educated individuals from prestigious schools. There’s no way they fail to distinguish between insurrection and other charges, yet they continue to create excessive noise.” He added, “It is the Constitutional Court that will determine whether it was insurrection or not, and the criminal trial will decide whether he is guilty or not. So please, let’s be quiet. Stop making the people frustrated and exhausted just to defend one person.”