This is a media report from the 10th stating that police are considering measures, possibly even restraints, for the anti-China rallies organized by the Free University in Myeongdong, Jung-gu, Seoul. This action was taken immediately after President Lee Jae-myung denounced the rallies as "mayhem." The Free University is a group of university students supporting former President Yoon Suk-yeol and has been leading anti-China rallies nationwide, including in Myeongdong where the Chinese Embassy is located.

  The previous day, the 9th, at a cabinet meeting, President Lee Jae-myung stated, "(The participants of the Free University rallies) are holding rallies that insult tourists from a specific country. What kind of freedom of expression is this? It's mayhem," he defined it.

  In relation to this, the Free University announced, "We will hold a protest march to denounce Lee Jae-myung, the fake president, in front of the Chinese Embassy and the Central Post Office in Myeongdong," and stated that under the slogan "China Out," they planned to express their condemnation of China with an image saying, "We will create a fake Korea, together with the great China."

  It is understandable that President Lee's statements have escalated from "mayhem" to "harming national interests." However, it remains to be seen whether the insult to Chinese people is "mayhem" and "harming national interests," or if the expression "China Out" is the "mayhem" and "harming national interests."

  In December 2019, during a leftist rally in front of the U.S. Embassy in Korea, participants tore up paper with the face of then-U.S. Ambassador to Korea Harry Harris printed on it and mashed it with tofu and jelly. They also printed a large image of Ambassador Harris's face and plucked his beard. Some even performed by taping Ambassador Harris's face onto a soccer ball and kicking it. At the time, the police did not intervene. The current President Lee Jae-myung also offered no criticism at that time. Of course, I recall that the cry "China Out" was not heard then.

  On January 20th, then-Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung attended a "Field Meeting for Economic Recovery for the People: The Democratic Party and the Banking Sector" held at the Korea Federation of Banks building in Myeongdong, Jung-gu, Seoul. Immediately afterward, in a private meeting with bank presidents, he specifically mentioned the name of SKY Daily when discussing advertising support from the banking sector.

  At the meeting, Lee asked the heads of the six major banks, including Financial Services Commission Chairman Cho Yong-byung, "Do you happen to know of a media company called SKY Daily?" and pointed to Bank A. SKY Daily was the first media outlet to report on December 3rd of the previous year that Chinese spies arrested by the South Korean and U.S. military authorities at the Election Management Training Institute in Suwon, Gyeonggi Province, were transported via Pyeongtaek Port to the U.S. military base in Okinawa, Japan.

  When the bank presidents looked bewildered, he was quoted in the media as saying, "It's a strange media company, but Bank A pays a considerable amount in advertising fees. I'm just saying it, so don't worry too much." However, his words "don't worry too much" were likely more terrifying. How chilling must it have been for the president of Bank A, which was placing ads with this "strange media company"?

  As expected, the incident proceeded smoothly according to a predetermined scenario. The day after the meeting, the Financial Services Union took action. They issued a statement saying, "The financial holding company's payment of advertising fees to the media outlet is support for sedition," and demanded, "Cease immediately." It was a true scene of cooperation.

  Sensing the signal, the banking sector and other major advertisers simultaneously cut off advertising to SKY Daily. From that day on, SKY Daily began publishing blank newspapers. This was a re-enactment, after 50 years, of the incident in 1974-1975 when the government pressured advertisers to collectively withdraw their advertisements from Dong-A Ilbo as part of a crackdown on press freedom.

  The Third Labor Union, a non-KCTU faction within MBC-TV, issued a statement on January 24th saying, "It is understood that the bank presidents interpreted the banking sector's reduction in advertising fees as a response to the discomfort expressed by (a power group) regarding SKY Daily's continuous reports on election irregularities," and added, "It's not just that. It is also known that a Democratic Party lawmaker's office requested advertising execution data for a specific media outlet from commercial banks."

  The legacy media, as well as most intellectuals, remained silent on this incident. Only Professor Emeritus Cho Dong-geun of the Department of Economics at Myongji University lamented, "If we cannot protect SKY Daily, the last remaining free and righteous media, by surrendering to pro-China and pro-North Korean forces and turning a blind eye to the truth, then there is no hope for South Korea."

  After some time passed, the management of SKY Daily knelt before the power group. As expected, the reporter who covered the Election Management Training Institute incident during the state of emergency was expelled from the newspaper company.

  The YouTube video "I Appeal with Tears," which has recorded as many as 4.5 million views to date, was a direct plea from Jeon Han-gil to the public. In this video, he shook the blank newspapers of SKY Daily, whose advertisements had been cut off due to threats from Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung, and exclaimed, "Is this the democracy we wanted?" This enraged many.

  The blank newspaper that Jeon Han-gil held was an indictment that clearly showed who the main culprit was in dragging this country and its people into the mire of Chinese totalitarianism.

  Lee Jae-myung, the former Democratic Party leader and current president, who turned SKY Daily into a blank newspaper, is now pointing fingers at the Free University rallies with a subtle expression. This is a moment that everyone should pay attention to. Jeon Han-gil quoted the Greek philosopher Plato, saying, "The greatest penalty for not engaging in politics is to be ruled by the worst of men." We witness every day what kind of men are ruling South Korea. Plato's observation is not wrong.

Lee Shin-woo, Former Editorial Writer for The Culture Daily & Author of ‘Election Irregularities and Traitors’