Han Dong-hoon pressures the Lee administration over ‘remittances to North Korea’ and ‘lawsuits against North Korea’ risks, appointing himself as its attack dog

[Financial News] Independent lawmaker Han Dong-hoon is moving to shake the Lee administration by leveraging court and police decisions concerning ‘remittances to North Korea’ and ‘lawsuits against North Korea.’ On the 16th, the court and police successively sided with Han Dong-hoon over the ‘remittances to North Korea’ and ‘lawsuits against North Korea.’ Han Dong-hoon immediately launched an attack after police cleared him of wrongdoing in a case in which he had been accused of spreading false information about President Lee Jae Myung’s remittances to North Korea through Ssangbangwool.
The previous day, Han Dong-hoon wrote on Facebook, “One year later, today, the police decided not to refer the case for prosecution due to a lack of evidence. Naturally,” adding, “As the Supreme Court of Korea also acknowledged, the money sent to North Korea was indeed payment for Lee Jae Myung’s visit.” He continued, “The Democratic Party of Korea confidently filed a complaint claiming that saying it was payment for the visit constituted the dissemination of false information, but it has instead been revealed that they falsely accused me,” adding, “I have already filed a complaint for false accusation, so now the Democratic Party of Korea must be punished.” He further stated, “The trial over Lee Jae Myung’s remittances to North Korea must resume,” and added, “The Democratic Party of Korea should abandon its dream of having a ‘brother’s poison lobbyist’ appointed as Minister of Justice to withdraw the indictment over the remittances to North Korea.”
On the same day, the court also ruled that North Korea must pay 46.6 billion won in damages in the South Korean government’s lawsuit over the bombing of the Inter-Korean Liaison Office, in which Han Dong-hoon participated as a plaintiff while serving as Minister of Justice under the Yoon Suk Yeol administration.
Han Dong-hoon said, “As the plaintiff, I won a civil lawsuit against North Korea seeking accountability for the bombing of the Inter-Korean Liaison Office. It was the first lawsuit filed by the Republic of Korea against North Korea. I determined that we needed to pursue it actively, so I filed the lawsuit,” adding, “The Republic of Korea can achieve genuine peace only by holding the North Korean regime accountable for its wrongdoing.”
The bombing of the Inter-Korean Liaison Office occurred on June 16, 2020, during the Moon Jae-in administration. However, the lawsuit was pursued three years later, in June 2023, under the Yoon Suk Yeol administration. Friction is expected, however, as the Ministry of Unification (MOU) has expressed its intention to continue inter-Korean dialogue despite the court’s ruling.
Immediately after the ruling the previous day, the Ministry of Unification (MOU) stated, “We hope that inter-Korean dialogue will resume and that all inter-Korean issues can be resolved through dialogue and cooperation.” The ministry also said, “We respect the court’s decision and will review the necessary measures.” Since the Lee Jae Myung administration took office, the Ministry of Unification (MOU) has considered various forms of assistance to North Korea, including providing expensive medical equipment and importing North Korean agricultural products. The opposition has criticized this as a humiliating policy toward North Korea. As Han Dong-hoon begins his legislative activities as a member of the Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee of the National Assembly, he is expected to act as a sharp critic of the Ministry of Unification (MOU)’s pro-North Korea policies.
[email protected] Kim Kyung-soo Reporter