정치 테러

[송정현]

With less than 70 days left until the general election in April, two recent cases of violence against politicians have sparked concern about the unhealthy state of Korean politics. In December, Rep. Lee Jae-myung, the head of Democratic Party, was stabbed in his neck by a 67-year-old man during his visit to Busan. Shortly after, Rep. Bae Hyun-jin from the ruling People Power Party was struck mercilessly in her head by a 14-year-old minor. The ensuing incidences of violence against politicians, especially as the general election draws near, not only pose a grave threat to democracy but serve as a powerful wake-up call for the widespread politics of hatred that have long plagued the country.

A strong case can be made that the recent incidents of physical aggression are largely triggered by politicians themselves. For years, a stream of politicians on both ends of political spectrums have employed crude speech, and public shaming, demonizing their political adversaries to rally support from their existing supporters. This has contributed to political polarization which was further exacerbated by the widespread use of social media.

Online communities and virtual space tend to serve as a breeding and bonding ground for those who hold similar political beliefs. In other words, it amplifies hatred by bringing together like-minded people. What is worse, the rising popularity and influence of political YouTubers further adds fuel to political polarisation in the online space. In a move to gain more views, and subscribers, these YouTubers tend to resort to unverified facts or fake news, promoting extreme views. Indeed, the investigation revealed that  the 67-year-old man who attacked Rep. Lee was an avid viewer of political YouTube channel whose content allegedly fed his motivation for the assault.

Political polarization is a worldwide phenomenon not specific to Korea. But nevertheless, South Korea needs to take proactive measures to address this, considering its belligerent neighbour and the memories of the Korean war which had split the country for over seven decades.

First and foremost, Korean politicians should stop resorting to hatred and anger to rally support. Instead, the leaders of  both the conservative and liberal blocs need to demonstrate mature political attitude and behavior befitting democracy to set an example. Rather than personally attacking their  political opponents and even their family members to sway votes, politicians should focus on giving critical diagnosis of the opponent’s policy, offering constructive feedback and views for the wholesome purpose of improving Korea’s political state. Currently, in a race to win the major seats in the upcoming parliamentary election, politicians from rival parties have been proposing populist policies. Such a move is a short-sighted political move. What is required of them is for both rival party members to cooperate and come up with measures and policies that have long-term benefits for Korean citizens.

Secondly, the policymakers should also introduce harsher penalties and punishments for the speeches and (online) content that are designed to incite hatred. Indeed, digital content creators such as political YouTubers should be strongly monitored and regulated to filter out politically motivated propaganda or fake news. Further, with the galloping advances of generative artificial intelligence technology which gives even ordinary individuals easy access to generate false content, online spaces are becoming quickly marred by the plethora of unverified contents and facts, further exacerbating political polarization. Acknowledging the severity of the situation, politicians should come up with proactive measures to tackle threats posed by fake news and rapid advancement of AI technology.

To conclude, recent cases of violence can be largely attributed to politics of hatred that has plagued the country for years. For this, politicians only have themselves to blame as they are guilty of using hatred and anger to gain support and fuel political polarizatin. As such, to put a brake on politics of hatred, they should first set an example by terminating the use of hate speech that personally demonizes their political opponents. Further, politicians and lawmakers should implement proactive legal measures to curb the spread of unverified facts and fake news flourishing in the online space.

Clock is ticking. Politicians must take action before the flames of hatred backfires, posing a threat to their own lives.

[UNGP]

도입부에 상황 설명을 해주실 때는 이재명, 배현진 의원이 누구에게 공격을 받게 되었는지까지 자세히 사례소개가 되어있는데 해결책 부분에도 사례가 제시된다면 더 완성도있는 글이 될 것 같습니다. 저도 정부가 앞장서 규제를 강화해야한다, 정치적 양극화가 심각하다는 논지로 썼는데, 스터디 내 2명 중 2명의 논지가 엇비슷하게 나온다면 실제 고사장에서는 보다 색다른 관점을 제시하는 지원자가 유리할 것 같다는 생각이 들어 이 부분 역시 함께 고민해보면 좋을 것 같습니다. 나머지는 다 잘 읽었습니다. 감사합니다.

P.S 사소한 부분이지만 단어에서 영국식과 미국식 철자가 혼용되어 다소 헷갈렸습니다. 읽는 이에 따라 이 부분이 통일되었으면 좋겠다고 느낄 사람도 있을 것 같습니다.

[우지원]

자세하게 작성하시는 게 장점인 거 같습니다. 덕분에 모호함이 없는 글이라고 느꼈습니다. 본문에서도 어떤 노력이 필요한지 구체적으로 설명해주셨는데 이와 관련된 사례가 제시되면 더 완성도 높은 글이 될 거라고 생각했습니다. 현재 글도 충분히 좋은 글이라고 생각했지만, 정부 외 관련 기관이나 시민들의 역할을 언급해도 색다른 글이 되지 않을까 생각했습니다. 마지막 문장이 여운을 남겨 좋았습니다. 고생 많으셨습니다.