People Power Party Floor Leader Jung Jeom-sik stated today (July 7) regarding the enforcement of the revised Information and Communications Network Act that the so-called "gag law" is an "evil law and unconstitutional." He added, "We will file a petition for a constitutional court ruling and push for the proposal of a full revision that removes the toxic clauses as our party's official platform."

During the party's floor strategy meeting held at the National Assembly, Floor Leader Jung said, "The biggest problem with the gag law is that the state directly determines and punishes what is fact or fiction, and what constitutes hate speech or not." He continued, "From now on, facts and lies will be mixed according to the interests of those in power, and labels of 'hate' will be recklessly applied based on the whims of the powerful."

He further criticized the law, saying, "Some politicians are already branding others as 'Ilbe' (a far-right online community) over a single word of a dialect used by an idol. The gag law will make such witch-hunt-style violence a daily occurrence and create an atmosphere of fear and silence in society." He added, "A society where the majority of citizens remain silent out of fear of censorship and labeling is exactly what a dictatorship is."

(Photo: Yonhap News)