Kim Rahn is the managing editor of The Korea Times. Since joining the company in 2003, she has covered various beats including the presidential office, Seoul city government, the Bank of Korea and the tourism industry. In 2014, she won the Society of Publishers in Asia (SOPA) award for her coverage of the ordeals of migrant women in Korea.
Byeon's apologies outstrip policies
Land Minister Byeon Chang-heum bows ahead of a press briefing at the Government Complex Seoul, March 4. He apologized for alleged speculative land buying by some employees at the Korea Land & Housing Corp. using confidential information. Yonhap
By Kim Rahn
Land Minister Byeon Chang-heum had to make a public apology even before he took office. Since he was nominated to lead the nation's real estate policy on Dec. 4 last year, public criticism against his past inappropriate remarks and his following apologies have made bigger headlines than his policies.
When he was nominated for the minister position, a past remark he made when he was head of the Seoul Housing & Communities Corp. (SH) surfaced. It was about an accident at Guui Station in Seoul in 2016, where a subcontracted 19-year-old irregular worker was killed by a subway train while fixing a safety door on a subway platform. At the time the case highlighted poor working conditions of such workers and lax safety rules at the subway operator and its subcontractors.
Regarding the accident, Byeon had said in a meeting, “When looking closely at what happened, the subcontracted worker died due to his own mistake.” He went on to say, “The incident would not have happened if he had been more attentive.”
As public uproar grew, he apologized during his confirmation hearing at the National Assembly. “The remark was to underline the social impact of safety mismanagement,” he said. “I apologize to the people who have been hurt by the remark, regardless of my intention.”
He made another controversial remark during his days leading SH. While talking about a kitchen in a shared home designed for the underprivileged, Byeon said, “Poor people wouldn't dine out unless they are crazy.”
This remark alone was inappropriate enough, but his explanation about this, made during the confirmation hearing, also drew criticism for being gender insensitive: “What I wanted to say was in case of women, they are reluctant to have breakfast with others because they have to put on makeup.”
As lawmakers attending the hearing pointed out that remark was disparaging to women and demanded an apology, Byeon apologized by saying, “That may have brought about a misunderstanding. I didn't mean that. I express my regret.”
Despite these controversies, President Moon Jae-in pushed ahead with appointing him to the ministerial post. But in the appointment ceremony on Dec. 28, Moon warned him against making remarks that go against public sentiment, by saying, “Your remark on the irregular worker deserved criticism considering the safety and human rights issues highlighted by the incident and the loss of the young man's life.”
However, it seems the controversies and the President's warning were insufficient to teach him any lessons.
It was alleged last week that a dozen workers at the state-run Korea Land & Housing Corp. (LH) purchased land in Gyeonggi provincial cities for speculation purposes by using classified information on new development projects planned for the area.
Public fury was especially high because the public officials were seeking personal gains unfairly while the people are suffering from skyrocketing housing prices.
While Cheong Wa Dae pledged a thorough investigation into the allegations, Byeon added fuel to the fire by making remarks defending the LH workers: “It seems they purchased the land without knowing the development plan and the land was later included in the project,” and “It is stupid to buy land at a planned new town site, because the land owners have to sell the land at less than market value.”
These remarks angered not only the public but also the ruling bloc, especially because Byeon was the head of LH when the alleged land purchase took place. Then-DPK Chairman Lee Nak-yon even called him in and told him to develop more sensitivity to understand why the public was angry and disappointed.
Then Byeon made another apology in a text message to reporters: “Real estate speculation by workers at the public corporation, which is in charge of public development of land, cannot be forgiven for any reason. It was my fault if my remarks seem to have defended their speculation.”
But his apology did not convince the public because, like all his previous apologies, this one was made reactively as the situation was turning negative for him, not because he really understood the problems with his remarks.
His messages seem to convey, “I didn't mean that, but I'm sorry anyway if you were hurt.” If that's the reason for his frequent slips of the tongue, Byeon is strongly recommended to learn how to express his thoughts clearly.