Han Byeongdo: “Lee Jinsook and Joo Jinwoo are like cyber wreckers... Their insults and bizarre behavior have gone too far”

Supreme Court Chief Justice Cho Heedae in the crosshairs: "Step down"

Han Byeongdo, floor leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, strongly criticized People Power Party lawmakers Joo Jin-woo and Lee Jin-sook on the 13th, calling them “cyber-wreckers desperate for views.” He also called for Supreme Court Chief Justice Cho Hee-dae to resign, raising the issue of cash payments to Supreme Court justices and others as “encouragement money.”

At a meeting that day at the National Assembly on preparations for the parliamentary audit, Han said, “The conduct of the People Power Party in this parliamentary audit has been nothing short of a contest in outrageous remarks. In particular, the irrational comments and bizarre behavior of People Power Party lawmakers Lee Jin-sook and Joo Jin-woo have gone too far.”

Han Byeongdo, floor leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, delivers opening remarks at a meeting on preparations for the parliamentary audit at the National Assembly on Oct. 13, 2026. Photo by Yoon Dongju.

Han criticized Joo for exploiting the collapse of a commercial building in Daegu for political gain. “As soon as the president was briefed on the accident, he instructed officials to make every effort to rescue people and safely manage the aftermath. The presidential office also provided detailed information on the purpose of the president’s personal schedule and how reports about the incident were handled,” Han said. “But Joo released footage of the presidential security vehicles, demanded a second-by-second account of the schedule, and even called for a special counsel investigation.”

Referring to a post Joo had made on social media the previous day, Oct. 12, saying, “It’s time to end his life,” Han said, “He made an outrageous remark that seemed to allude to the death of a president whose life had been threatened in a political attack.” He added, “This cannot simply be ignored. Joo Jin-woo must prostrate himself in a public apology and resign as a lawmaker.”

Han also criticized Lee, saying, “Yesterday, she even brought a photograph of a gravesite into the parliamentary audit hearing room. This is disgraceful, beyond merely bizarre behavior.” He added, “Lee Jin-sook was never qualified to appear at the Science, ICT, Broadcasting and Communications Committee’s parliamentary audit in the first place, given the clear potential for a conflict of interest. That is why the Democratic Party approved a motion to exclude her yesterday, in accordance with principle.”

“The shameless contest in outrageous remarks between Lee Jin-sook and Joo Jin-woo is eroding both the dignity of lawmakers and the basic bounds of politics,” Han said. “Their shallow scheme to raise their profiles through base noise marketing that does nothing to help people’s lives will no longer work.” He called on the People Power Party to “stop turning a blind eye to the two lawmakers’ conduct and fulfill its responsibilities as a political party.”

Regarding Chief Justice Cho, Han claimed, “The parliamentary audit of the Board of Audit and Inspection has once again confirmed that the Chief Justice’s Office provided cash as ‘encouragement money’ to Supreme Court justices and the Minister of Court Administration.” Referring to Cho’s response during the Supreme Court’s parliamentary audit on Oct. 6 that “the chief justice is not involved in any way,” Han asked, “Were you truly not involved and unaware of it?”

He also said, “According to audit materials reviewed by members of the Legislation and Judiciary Committee, cash withdrawn by the Supreme Court’s finance officer was delivered to the offices of the Supreme Court justices via Chief Justice Cho Hee-dae’s chief secretary and secretaries.” He added, “Board of Audit and Inspection Chairman Kim Ho-cheol also made clear that the person responsible for providing the ‘encouragement money’ was the head of the institution—in other words, Chief Justice Cho Hee-dae.”

Han added, “There has also been a finding that the chief justice’s regular and uniform distribution of ‘encouragement money’ violates the National Finance Act.” He said, “Resign from your post of your own accord, even now.”

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