Lee Rebuts 'Multicultural' Controversy for Third Straight Day; No Further Comment on 'Foreign Workers'

Invokes "political correctness and factionalism" in rebuttals
Calls for review of priority access to postpartum care centers
Demands corrections and apologies from media over foreign worker remarks
But questions persist over the substance of his remarks
Ruling camp also urges caution over "social media fueling debate"

President Lee Jaemyung has spent three consecutive days rebutting criticism of policies supporting multicultural families on social media, invoking factionalism and political correctness (PC). By contrast, he has made no further comments on a controversy over the economic contributions of foreign workers since demanding corrections and apologies for media reports. The contrast highlights different patterns in the president's communication. Some in the ruling camp worry that his frequent social media activity could instead fuel unproductive disputes.

President Lee Jae-myung speaks during the second plenary meeting of the National Life Safety Committee at Cheong Wa Dae on Oct. 28, 2026. Yonhap News Agency

On Oct. 31, President Lee wrote on X, formerly Twitter: "The fact that a general claim is correct does not mean every specific claim is correct." He added, "It is true that multicultural families need support, but that cannot justify specific policies supporting them that are unreasonable or produce reverse discrimination."

President Lee said in particular, "We should also consider why people take issue with statements based on political correctness, hypocrisy, or factionalism." He stressed, "Acknowledging and correcting the flawed 'part' will strengthen support for the necessary 'whole.'" He added, "The more sensitive an issue is, the less we should avoid it because it is controversial or let those in power decide behind closed doors. All citizens should take part in bringing the issue to light and discussing it seriously."

The controversy began on Oct. 28. President Lee shared a post on the online community FM Korea about priority access to Seoul's Safe Postpartum Care Centers and wrote, "Thank you for raising a good point." The post questioned whether mothers from multicultural families should be included among those given priority, alongside mothers who are national merit recipients.

After President Lee said he would consider abolishing the preferential system and revising the relevant enforcement decree, some on the progressive side criticized him, saying it could encourage discrimination against and hostility toward socially vulnerable groups. President Lee began responding to the criticism on Oct. 29 and continued for three consecutive days. On Oct. 30, he reiterated that support for multicultural families is necessary, but that excessive or unfair preferential treatment should be reassessed.

As the controversy grew, a Cheong Wa Dae aide also stepped in to contain it. In a notice on Oct. 29, Im Hokeun, presidential secretary for population policy, said the criteria for priority access to postpartum care centers were established in 2016 and should be reviewed to reflect changes in the policy environment. He clarified that the aim was not to reduce support for multicultural families, but to make the priority system fairer and more reasonable, and said the government would consider revising the enforcement decree. Even so, questions continued over whether the "reverse discrimination" cited to justify changes to the system actually exists. Some also called for objective verification of how mothers from multicultural families use the centers and whether other mothers are disadvantaged.

The response to the controversy over foreign workers has been different. At a Cabinet meeting on Oct. 27, President Lee referred to labor shortages in rural and fishing communities and said, "Even if we bring in foreign workers to do the work, they don't do much to help the national economy. They send all [their wages] back." Organizations representing migrant workers and others protested, saying the remark underestimated foreign workers' economic contributions.

From the night of Oct. 27 through the following day, President Lee used social media to demand corrections and apologies from media outlets that reported his remarks. He said the intent of his comments had been distorted because the word "much" was omitted from headlines. President Lee explained that he had meant foreign workers contribute to the domestic economy, but to a relatively lesser extent than domestic workers. Cheong Wa Dae also said on Oct. 29 that the point was not to exclude foreign workers, but to improve low wages in agriculture and fisheries and create quality jobs.

However, questions have continued not only about whether the remarks were accurately conveyed, but also about whether their substance was sound. According to the Ministry of Data and Statistics and the Ministry of Justice's "2025 Survey on Immigrants' Living Conditions and Labor Force," foreign residents living in Korea spent 37.3% of their income on living expenses and 11.9% on housing. Remittances to recipients in Korea and abroad accounted for 25.5%. The share was higher among foreign workers in nonprofessional employment, but that statistic also includes remittances within Korea.

Debate also remains over the impact of foreign workers on domestic production and consumption, and the effectiveness of policies to expand employment of domestic workers. But as of Oct. 31, President Lee had made no further comments on these issues after rebutting media reports. The difference is that he has repeatedly responded to criticism of policies affecting multicultural families and brought the issue into public debate, while on foreign workers he has focused his response on what he says was a distorted account of his remarks.

President Lee Jae Myung enters the Cabinet meeting at the Blue House on the 20th, accompanied by Prime Minister Han Seongsuk and Chief of Staff Lim Gwanghyeon. 2026.10.20 Yonhap News

In this context, voices in the ruling camp have increasingly called for the president to moderate the pace of his social media activity. Jung Sungho, a Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker who served as justice minister in the early days of the Lee administration, said in an SBS interview on Oct. 28 that he thought it "might be better to cut back a little" on the president's social media activity. Kim Youngjin, a key figure in the pro-Lee faction and a Democratic Party lawmaker, said on MBC radio on Oct. 22, "I support broadening the means of communication," but added, "I don't consider one-way communication to be communication." Hong Kiwon, a Democratic Party lawmaker, said on YTN radio on Oct. 30, "Some of the messages are too argumentative. Could they be keeping the issue alive?" He said detailed policy matters should be left to aides or ministers.

That same day, President Lee also wrote on social media about policies supporting multicultural families: "Defending even the flawed aspects of something just because it is on my side or is a subject I have advocated does not help solve the problem; it makes it worse." Some say that for the president's direct communication to lead to substantive policy debate, rather than one-sided claims and rebuttals, he must also treat criticism of his own remarks as a matter for scrutiny and deliberation. "The key question is whether the president's principle of not avoiding debate will be applied consistently to arguments against him as well," a ruling party official said.

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