Roh had lifelong battle for the underprivileged

The Korea Times

The Korea Times

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Sat, December 9, 2023 | 23:20

Politics

Roh had lifelong battle for the underprivileged

Posted : 2018-07-23 16:58

Updated : 2018-07-23 18:53

Roh holds a hunger strike to demand the scrapping of the Korea-U.S. free trade talks in Seoul in 2007. / Yonhap

By Lee Min-hyung

Roh Hoe-chan, as a high school student in 1974, poses during a visit to the April 19th National Cemetery in Suyuri, Seoul. / Korea Times file

Rep. Roh Hoe-chan of the left-leaning Justice Party, who committed suicide Monday, was known as "the icon of progressive politics" during his lifetime.

The third-term lawmaker had gone through plenty of political ups and downs as a symbolic figure in leading the nation's pro-democracy labor movement. He started his labor campaign in 1973 by distributing printed materials against then-dictator Park Chung-hee.

Since then Roh devoted his life to leading a variety of labor campaigns. He started his career as a welder back in the 1980s. In a media interview, he recalled the June Democracy Movement in 1987 as one of his most life-changing experiences.

He said the nationwide pro-democracy demonstration served as momentum for him to seek ways to bring more workers into politics. Two years later, however, he was detained and imprisoned for two and a half years on charges of violating the National Security Act by forming a labor coalition.

Roh was a lesser-known political figure before being elected as a lawmaker of the then-Democratic Labor Party in 2004. But he began to draw public attention by showing off his witty and progressive remarks.

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With Roh gaining public popularity, he expressed his will to run for the presidency in 2007, but failed to pass a presidential primary.

In 2010, he ran for Seoul mayor, but lost. However, he was able to continue expanding his political influence by being elected for his second National Assembly term in 2012.

Roh, right, smiles with Rep. Sim Sang-jung of the Justice Party, center, and her husband during the couple's wedding reception in 1992. Roh and Sim were longtime political friends. / Courtesy of Justice Party

Roh faced political turmoil in 2013 after unveiling a list of prosecutors' names involved in bribery linked with Samsung Group. He was found guilty in the wake of the scandal and lost his seat in the National Assembly.

Roh's shabby shoes seen during his meeting with irregular workers at a GM Korea factory in Changwon, Dec. 30, 2016. / Yonhap

But the scandal did not hold back his political career. In 2016, he became a third-term lawmaker in the constituency of Changwon in South Gyeongsang Province, which is home to a number of manufacturing facilities. The city is often called the epicenter of the labor force.

Roh, who served as the floor leader of the minor opposition party, was also seen as a key figure to drive up the popularity of the party. According to Gallup Korea, the approval rating for the Justice Party came in at 10.4 percent in a poll conducted for three days from July 17, exceeding that of the main opposition Liberty Korea Party.

But he had to face his worst-ever political crisis this year over allegations he accepted 50 million won ($44,300) from a lawyer involved with the latest online opinion-rigging scandal.

Roh had denied the suspicion, arguing he had never received money from anyone linked to the controversy. He had repeatedly said he would sincerely comply with investigations by prosecutors.

But he admitted to receiving money in a note found after he committed suicide at an apartment complex in Seoul.

mhlee@ktimes.com