Candidate Yoo In-chon Denies the Existence of a Blacklist Under Lee Myung-bak Administration
In response to allegations of a “blacklist” within the culture and arts community during the administration of Lee Myung-bak (MB), Yoo In-chon, candidate for the position of Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism, firmly denied the existence of such a list.
During a written response to a personnel hearing conducted at the National Assembly, Candidate Yoo addressed the question regarding his stance on the blacklist by stating, “There is no need for a separate investigation into the blacklist,” indicating his belief that the allegations are unfounded.
No Encouragement of Mass Resignations
Furthermore, Yoo In-chon defended himself against the controversy surrounding the alleged encouragement of agency heads to resign, particularly during his tenure as Culture, Sports and Tourism Minister in 2008. He refuted the claims, emphasizing, “We have never encouraged agency heads appointed by the previous government to resign en masse.” Instead, he clarified that a selective approach was taken, wherein specific organizations were identified for support. Additionally, he acknowledged that subsidies were allocated in alignment with budget implementation guidelines.
Regarding the resignation of Kim Yun-soo, the former director of the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, and former member of the Federation of Korean Artists, Yoo cited “limitations in terms of efficiency and performance in operation” as the reason behind it. He emphasized that various regulations had been breached during an audit, leading to the need for restructuring.
Judicial Setbacks Addressed
With regards to the loss suffered by the state in a lawsuit filed by former agency heads disputing the validity of their dismissal, Candidate Yoo attributed it primarily to procedural issues. However, he did express his belief in the desirability of politically appointed institution heads stepping down when a new government assumes power. He suggested that discussions regarding institutionalization at the National Assembly level would be essential.
Park Geun-hye’s Stance on the Blacklist
During Park Geun-hye’s administration, the former president expressed her disapproval of the blacklist within the arts and culture industry, stressing that it should not exist as it conflicted with core democratic principles.
Celebrity Responsibility and Political Evaluations
In light of criticism directed at celebrities for expressing their views on social issues, Jaurim Kim Yoon-ah cautioned that with social influence comes responsibility, urging caution in public expressions. Representative Kim Ki-hyun of the People Power Party, however, criticized Kim Yun-ah, only to receive a response that deemed evaluating personal comments of a party leader as inappropriate.
In response to the suspicion of a “blacklist” in the culture and arts community during the administration of Lee Myung-bak (MB), Yoo In-chon, candidate for the Minister of Culture, Sports and Tourism, said, “There was no blacklist under the Lee Myung-bak administration.”
In a written response to the personnel hearing submitted to the National Assembly, Candidate Yoo answered the question, “Will you apologize for the blacklist and formulate measures to prevent this from happening again?” and said, “There is no need for a separate investigation into the blacklist.”
Asked about the controversy over encouraging agency heads to resign when Candidate Yoo served as Culture, Sports and Tourism Minister in 2008, he said, “We have never encouraged agency heads appointed by the previous government to resign en masse,” and added , “We have chosen a specific organization and provided support for it.” “I have not ruled it out, and I understand that subsidies are in accordance with budget implementation guidelines,” he said.
As for Kim Yun-soo, former director of the National Museum of Modern and Contemporary Art, and former member of the Federation of Korean Artists, who resigned at the time, he said, “The heads of the institutions involved had limitations in terms of efficiency and performance in operation the organisation, and as a result of the audit, breaches of various regulations were discovered, so they were rearranged.”
At the same time, when asked about the state’s position on the state’s loss in the lawsuit filed by former agency heads to confirm the invalidity of dismissal, he replied, “I understand that it is mainly a result of procedural issues.”
However, Candidate Yoo said, “I think it is desirable for heads of politically appointed institutions to step down when the government changes, and I think discussions on institutionalization are necessary at the level of the National Assembly.”
At the time of Park Geun-hye’s administration, her position on the blacklist of the arts and culture industry was that “I think a blacklist should not exist,” and that “a blacklist is fundamentally wrong.”
As Jaurim Kim Yoon-ah criticized the release of Fukushima’s contaminated water, about celebrities expressing social issues, she said, “If there is social influence, responsibility also comes with it, so we must be careful about public expressions,” and People Power Party representative Kim Ki-hyun criticized Kim Yun-ah. In response to the criticism, he responded, “It is not appropriate to evaluate the personal comments of the party leader.”
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