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| Lee Yong-soo speaks during a press conference on Monday in Daegu. Korea Times photo by Wang Tae-seok |
By Kim Se-jeong
Former sex slavery victim Lee Yong-soo on Thursday reconfirmed her condemnation of Yoon Mee-hyang, a former activist for so called "comfort women" and now a lawmaker-elect, saying she felt betrayed.
"The feeling of betrayal was too big to overcome. Together with loneliness, I felt like committing suicide," Lee said during an interview with a local radio station.
Ending her three-decades of advocacy work at the Korean Council for Justice and Remembrance for the Issue of Military Sexual Slavery by Japan (Korean Council), Yoon was elected as a lawmaker of the Together Citizens, the satellite party of the ruling Democratic Party, through the proportional representation vote in the April 15 general election.
Thursday's comment came only three days after a press conference during which the victim made accusations and even expressed contempt for Yoon ― Lee even invited Yoon to the press conference to explain her stance.
Lee dismissed an argument that Yoon could do more work to seek justice for the victims at the National Assembly. "Yoon has done this for 30 years. No one is better than her and she has to continue her work here," the victim said, adding Yoon should have declined an offer to become a lawmaker.
"Yoon lied to me, Korean citizens and the world. She did this work for her political ambitions. She doesn't deserve to be in the National Assembly," she said.
Lee also dismissed her critics who suspect the 92-year-old victim is under the influence of another group.
"I heard some saying that I am being helped by others. I am not an idiot. I am all alone here. No one is helping me," she said. Her speech at the press conference was typed out for her by her adopted daughter, she said.
Both Yoon and Lee were iconic figures in the movement against sex slavery practices of the Japanese military. Yoon led the famous Wednesday rally for decades and other advocacy work in and outside Korea successfully and Lee was always there to support Yoon.
The controversy started this month when Lee publicly raised questions about the usage of funds at the Korean Council and criticized Yoon's ethics.
That was followed by torrents of media coverage on Yoon and the organization which unveiled other allegations. This culminated in a raid on the organization's office in Mapo, Seoul on May 20. According to local news reports on Thursday, the prosecution indicates summoning Yoon is inevitable and will happen this week prior to the commencement of the forthcoming National Assembly session after which time she will become immune to arrest or questioning for the duration of her tenure as an Assembly member.
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