Women's group slams Democratic Party leader for telling child to call candidate 'oppa'

The Hankyoreh reports on a controversy surrounding Democratic Party leader Jeong Cheong-rae's remarks to a child at a campaign event. Jeong, while campaigning for a by-election candidate in Busan, encouraged a young child to call the candidate 'oppa.' This seemingly innocuous comment has ignited a firestorm of criticism from the Korean Women's Federation.

The women's group has sharply rebuked Jeong's statement, arguing that the term 'oppa' carries significant patriarchal weight in Korean society. They contend that urging a child to use this term in a public, political setting is not merely a slip of the tongue but a profound indicator of a lack of gender sensitivity. In their view, it reduces women to a subordinate position within a patriarchal framework, rather than recognizing them as equal subjects in public discourse.

While Jeong and the candidate have issued apologies directed at the child and their parents, the Korean Women's Federation has dismissed these as missing the core issue. The group emphasizes that the responsibility lies with the ruling party's leadership to confront the problematic nature of such remarks. They are calling for a deeper introspection within the Democratic Party, urging it to acknowledge and rectify its deficiencies in gender-sensitive perspectives and practices. This incident highlights ongoing debates in South Korea about gender equality and the language used in public and political spheres.