Bae Hyun-jin, a lawmaker from the People Power Party, speaks at a press conference at the People Power Party's headquarters in Yeouido, Seoul on the 11th. [Yonhap News]

Public opinion is increasingly supportive following the People Power Party's Central Ethics Committee's decision to suspend party membership for Bae Hyun-jin, the Seoul Metropolitan Chapter Chairperson, for one year.

The Ethics Committee initiated the disciplinary review for Rep. Bae on the 6th, leading to a swift decision on the disciplinary action. It is understood that the committee decided on the disciplinary level on the same day after summoning Rep. Bae for an explanation.

According to the People Power Party's regulations, disciplinary actions are categorized into four levels: ▲ Expulsion ▲ Recommendation to leave the party ▲ Suspension of party membership ▲ Warning.

In the decision document distributed on the same day, the Ethics Committee stated that Rep. Bae was referred for disciplinary action on four counts: ▲ SNS posts denigrating former President Yoon Suk-yeol and First Lady Kim Keon-hee ▲ SNS posts disparaging and mocking the hunger strike of Representative Jang Dong-hyuk ▲ Unauthorized posting of a minor's photo on an SNS account ▲ Utilizing her position and influence as Seoul Metropolitan Chapter Chairperson.

It further stated that the disciplinary action was decided due to the incident of posting a minor's photo on SNS.

Previously, Rep. Bae caused controversy by capturing and posting a photo of a civilian child, presumed to be a family member of an online commenter, in a comment section during a dispute on her SNS regarding the appointment of Lee Hye-hoon as the candidate for the Minister of Planning and Budget.

The Ethics Committee explained, "Leaving the photo of a minor on one's SNS to be the subject of malicious criticism can be considered a serious violation of minor children's human rights. This constitutes cyberbullying and online child abuse." It added, "The unauthorized posting of a specific minor's photo on SNS also has the potential to constitute defamation under criminal law."

Furthermore, the committee pointed out, "Rep. Bae initiated the 'Cyber Bullying Prevention Act' four days before the SNS post and, even after the photo was deleted following the controversy, no follow-up actions such as an apology were taken, indicating significant responsibility."

Regarding the SNS posts denigrating former President Yoon and his wife, the Ethics Committee stated, "Although impeached, expressions such as 'crude Kim Keon-hee' and 'a base peddler who wormed her way in' towards a president and his wife produced by our party can be interpreted as highly aggressive, excessive, hateful, and slanderous depending on the listener," and concluded, "This can be considered a warning, which is a minor disciplinary action."

Concerning the SNS post disparaging Representative Jang's hunger strike, the committee said, "The severity and excessiveness are low, and it cannot be subject to disciplinary action. Even if the content is somewhat or significantly uncomfortable for some audience to read, it is difficult to consider it as meeting the disciplinary requirements." However, it recommended "urging caution" due to the somewhat excessive, vulgar, or aggressive nature of the expression.

Regarding the claim that she led the opposition to the expulsion of former Representative Han, presenting it as the overall opinion of the Seoul Chapter, the committee stated, "It is difficult to confirm the facts based solely on the statements and written materials from the complainant and the disciplined party." The committee concluded, "We reserve judgment on this matter."

There are expectations that a by-election for the Seoul Chapter Chairperson will be held soon, as Rep. Bae's position as Seoul Chapter Chairperson, which requires her to lead the nomination process in the Seoul region ahead of the 6/3 local elections, will be automatically revoked.

Earlier, Rep. Bae was referred to the party's Ethics Committee for allegedly informing the public that a statement by 21 district chapter chairpersons opposing the expulsion of former Representative Han, while serving as the Seoul Chapter Chairperson, represented the entire opinion of the Seoul Chapter.

Editorial Department, Hanmi Ilbo