DPK lawmaker egged in front of Constitutional Court

Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker Back Hye-ryun was hit in the face by a raw egg thrown by an alleged supporter of President Yoon Suk Yeol during a press conference in front of the Constitutional Court on Thursday, where she was calling for his removal from office. The Democratic Party of Korea condemned the incident as “a clear act of assault and terrorism,” and Back vowed legal action, saying she could not “ignore the reality that violence is becoming a daily occurrence.”

Democratic Party of Korea lawmakers held a press conference in front of the Constitutional Court earlier in the day, calling for Yoon’s swift removal from office. Back, a three-term lawmaker, was struck on the right side of her forehead by a raw egg that came flying from the opposite direction as she tried to grab the microphone. Supporters of Yoon hurled boiled eggs, bananas, and other objects at the Democratic Party of Korea lawmakers. Riot police deployed large umbrellas in an attempt to block the projectiles, but one egg managed to hit Back. With her face and clothes stained with egg, Rep. Back said, “Honestly, it hurts so much. If the egg had burst, it would have been fine, but since it didn’t, it hurts even more. I don’t think this should happen in a democratic society.”

The egg-thrower reportedly fled the scene shortly afterward. Yoon’s supporters continued shouting “Communists!” at the Democratic Party Korea lawmakers following the egg incident, but were restrained by police. Just behind the Democratic Party of Korea lawmakers, People Power Party lawmakers Na Kyung-won, Choo Kyung-ho, and Kim Min-jeon held a counter-protest, holding signs that read, “Dismiss the impeachment of President Yoon Suk Yeol.”

The Democratic Party of Korea labeled the egg-throwing incident as an act of “terrorism” and vowed a hardline response. “We will normalize the situation around the Constitutional Court so that it can be free from physical intimidation by far-right forces and reach a decision on President Yoon’s impeachment based solely on justice and the rule of law,” said party spokesman No Jong-myeon. The main opposition party held a general meeting on the same day and decided to hold press conferences in front of the Constitutional Court twice a day—once in the morning and once in the afternoon—for the time being.

“I hope the authorities will do their best to manage the site of the rally to prevent this from happening again,” Choi Sang-mok, the acting president and deputy prime minister and minister of economy and finance, said while instructing the police to conduct a thorough investigation.


Oh-Hyuk Kwon hyuk@donga.com