Ruling Party and Han Dong-hoon Clash Again Over 'Roh Probe'... 'Han Must Make a Groveling Apology' vs. 'I Merely Pointed Out the Facts'

[Financial News] The Democratic Party of Korea and independent lawmaker Han Dong-hoon have clashed day after day over allegations that the late former President Roh Moo-hyun accepted money and valuables. The party is demanding that Han apologize, saying he should "make a groveling apology," while Han is rebutting each of the party's claims, intensifying the confrontation.
In a written briefing, Democratic Party of Korea chief spokesperson Park Seong-jun harshly criticized Han, calling his conduct "the pathetic behavior of petty political operators from the political-prosecutor ranks." He added, "It is an outrageous and shameless act—insulting someone with provocative language and then demanding that the victim who was insulted prove why it was an insult—so outrageous that even Joseph Goebbels would weep."
In another written briefing, Park also declared, "Yoon Suk Yeol's insurrection did not end on Dec. 3. Attempts to seize power continued afterward, and I cannot shake the suspicion that Han was at the center of them." He added, "Investigative authorities must immediately investigate whether Han took part in the insurrection."
In a written briefing, Cho Gye-won, another Democratic Party of Korea spokesperson, said, "Former President Roh did not personally receive the watch or the money. He said he first heard about them from prosecutors, and naturally, he denied all the allegations." Cho added, "At a point when the legal proceedings had come to a halt, Han maliciously inflicted an indelible insult on the late president and his family."
Cho continued, "Former President Roh died as a result of gaslighting by political prosecutors, the National Intelligence Service (NIS), and the media." He urged Han, "Bow your head and apologize to the bereaved family and the people. If you want to lessen your own guilt even a little, make a groveling apology before former President Roh's grave."
Kwak Sang-eon, a Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker and the son-in-law of former President Roh, wrote on social media, "Han himself was not the prosecutor who investigated the case involving former President Roh, commonly known as the 'Park Yeon-cha Gate.'" He continued, "After former President Roh's death, the case related to him was closed on the grounds that there was no authority to prosecute, and no trial took place. As I understand it, the investigation records were then 'permanently preserved,' so no one can access them."
He then lashed out at Han, saying, "I cannot understand at all on what basis or how you can assert as 'established fact' or 'fact' the details of a case that was neither concluded nor tried and for which no verdict was delivered."
In immediate response to the Democratic Party of Korea's offensive, Han struck back.
Han posted Park's written briefing on social media and wrote, "The martial-law talk will not work on me, since I risked my life to stop martial law. Direct it instead at those who hid, like President Lee Jae-myung, who hid in the woods, and Democratic Party of Korea leader Kim Min-seok, who hid at home."
Regarding Cho's written briefing, Han retorted, "The target of my criticism is clear. I am talking about you—the people who cursed him relentlessly while he was alive, then created and exploited a 'fabricated myth of a fictional victim' after his death." He continued, "In the end, you are the ones who have spent nearly 20 years instilling that fabricated myth, laying waste to the judicial system and causing immense suffering to the people."
He continued, "I am talking about the Democratic Party political forces that created and exploited lies. Do not distort this as an attack on the sacred figure of former President Roh and cowardly hide behind him. Former President Roh himself never said that the prosecution's investigation was fabricated."
He also fired back at Kwak, saying, "I am not exposing new information unknown to the public. Put aside the unfocused diversion that asks, 'How would you know when you were not even on the investigation team?'"
Han claimed, "Unlike the Democratic Party political forces that have gaslighted the public for nearly 20 years, I pointed out the fact that Park Yeon-cha, former President Roh's sponsor, paid part of the purchase price of the New Jersey home that Kwak and his wife bought for Kwak's studies abroad, in order to say that the investigation into former President Roh was 'not fabricated.'" He then lashed out, asking, "Isn't that so? Can't you deny it?"
Han added, "South Korea can have a future only if it overcomes the 'myth that the prosecution's investigation of Roh Moo-hyun was fabricated'—a myth that Democratic Party political forces have used to gaslight the public for nearly 20 years for their own personal gain."
  


[email protected] Kim Hyeong-gu Reporter