33 lawmakers awarded for polite language

Sunfull Movement Chairman Min Byoung-chul, center, poses with lawmakers who won awards for using polite language, as well as student members of the organization, at the National Assembly, Seoul, Friday. The five grand prize winners include Reps. Roh Hoe-chan of the minor opposition Justice Party, Seo Hyung-soo of the Democratic Party of Korea, Chang Byoung-wan of the minor opposition People’s Party and Reps. Kim Seon-dong and Cheong Yang-seog of the main opposition Liberty Korea Party. / Courtesy of Sunfull Movement

By Lee Kyung-min

Thirty-three lawmakers received Sunfull awards for using polite language in National Assembly sessions, the award’s organizer said Tuesday.

A total of 237 high school and university students monitored National Assembly meeting minutes between September and October to review the words lawmakers used in addressing each other during legislative sessions.

The five grand prize winners were Roh Hoe-chan of the minor opposition Justice Party, Seo Hyung-soo of the Democratic Party of Korea, Kim Seon-dong and Cheong Yang-seog of the main opposition Liberty Korea Party and Chang Byoung-wan of the minor opposition People’s Party.

The awards ceremony was held at the National Assembly on Yeouido, Seoul, Friday.

The Sunfull Movement, a nonprofit anti-cyberbullying network, awards lawmakers every year who lead by example in fostering a positive language culture.

The group chairman, Min Byoung-chul, a former Konkuk University professor and a noted English education expert here, began the campaign in 2007 to raise awareness of the importance of using positive comments on the internet.

He launched the movement to tackle a violent online culture in which many internet users post malicious and slanderous comments about others behind a veil of anonymity.