Yong Hyein, Member of the Basic Income Party. 2024.10.14 Yonhap News Agency

Yong Hyein, Member of the Basic Income Party. 2024.10.14 Yonhap News Agency

View original image

Yong Hyein, member of the Basic Income Party who has been nominated as Minister of Gender Equality and Family, was born in 1990 and became known as a social activist after the Sewol Ferry disaster.


Yong, a progressive politician, entered the 21st National Assembly as a proportional representative, putting basic income at the center of her policy agenda. She was re-elected as a proportional representative in the 22nd National Assembly and currently leads her party as its sole sitting lawmaker.


Born in Bucheon, Gyeonggi Province, she graduated from Kyung Hee University's Department of Political Science and International Relations, then became actively involved in youth and part-time workers' rights movements. As a founding member of Alba Solidarity, she advocated for improvements in the minimum wage and working conditions. In 2014, during the Sewol Ferry disaster, she drew national attention by proposing the "Stay Still" silent march.


In May 2021, Yong announced the birth of her child via social media, and at the time, President Lee Jaemyung, then governor of Gyeonggi Province, left a congratulatory comment. Yong and President Lee have shown consensus on a variety of policies, having co-hosted numerous forums on topics such as basic income, universal housing, and national disaster relief payments.



In the National Assembly, she has worked mainly on the Public Administration and Security Committee and has advocated for institutionalizing basic income, strengthening care and gender policies, expanding youth rights, and protecting vulnerable groups as her main policy priorities.


This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.

© The Asia Business Daily. All rights reserved. Unauthorized AI training and use prohibited.

Today’s Briefing