Presidential Office Issues Public Warning to Lee Byung-tae Over "5·18 Is a Sacred Cow" Remark

[Anchor]

Lee Byung-tae, Vice Chairman of the Regulatory Rationalization Committee, is facing controversy after posting on social media that the "May 18 Democratization Movement has become a sacred cow," in response to the heavy disciplinary action taken against the Paichai High School baseball team. The Presidential Office has issued a public warning, calling his conduct inappropriate.

Reporter Bae Junu has the story.

[Reporter]

This is what Lee Byung-tae, Vice Chairman of the presidential Regulatory Rationalization Committee, posted on his social media account on July 2.

He argued, "What does it say about our society that it deals with the students' deviation of using the Starbucks controversy to mock others in a high school baseball rivalry," adding, "The May 18 movement has become a sacred cow in this land."

He further compared the situation to "North Korea, where people wail at the sight of a newspaper featuring a photo of Kim Il-sung getting wet in the rain."

Following his post regarding the Paichai High School baseball team, which received heavy disciplinary action for using cheering slogans that disparaged the May 18 Democratization Movement, Democratic Party lawmaker Choi Min-hee criticized him the next day, stating that the May 18 movement is indeed a "sacred ground of democracy."

In response, Vice Chairman Lee posted again on the morning of July 4, stating that "the core issue is freedom of expression" and that "punishing someone based on their remarks is a denial of fundamental rights," adding that "even shouting 'Long live Kim Il-sung' in the middle of Seoul should be permitted."

In response, Kang Yu-jung, Chief Spokesperson for the Presidential Office, stated that while the Vice Chairman posted his personal opinion on social media, "it is misleading and inappropriate, contrary to the government's firm stance against hatred and mockery. We have issued a stern warning and strongly requested that such incidents do not recur."

Following this, the Vice Chairman made his initial post private. In a phone call with SBS, he explained, "Unlike when I wrote posts as a private individual, I should have been more cautious with my remarks as a vice chairman," adding, "I had absolutely no intention to disparage or mock the May 18 movement."

However, the Vice Chairman continued to emphasize his point that "there should be no sacred cows when it comes to freedom of expression, and people should not be punished for it," and stated that he has no intention of resigning.

Vice Chairman Lee, who has conservative leanings, was appointed to his current prime ministerial-level position last March in line with President Lee Jae-myung's policy of integration and pragmatic appointments, a move that faced opposition from some within the pan-ruling bloc at the time.

Some interpret the Presidential Office's decision to issue a public warning over the Vice Chairman's social media post as a move to prevent the controversy surrounding so-called "New Lee Jae-myung" appointees from escalating within the ruling party ahead of the Democratic Party's national convention.

Reported by Yang Ji-hoon | Video edited by Park Sun-soo | Graphics by Im Chan-hyuk and Park Tae-young
※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.