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| Doctors give a medical checkup to Liberty Korea Party floor leader Kim Sung-tae, who has been on a week-long hunger strike, Wednesday. / Yonhap |
By Choi Ha-young
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Rep. Kim Sung-tae, floor leader of the largest opposition Liberty Korea Party (LKP), has staged a hunger strike for seven days as of Wednesday, in the face of hostile public opinions against him and even a physical assault last Saturday. The lawmaker began the protest calling for special prosecutors to investigate an opinion-rigging allegation involving a ruling party lawmaker.Rep. Kim's protest, however, only brought about mountains of mockery, despite his determination to risk his life. Netizens cursed the move, with some even ordering him pizza to taunt him and sending "text bombs." On Monday, Rep. Kim said he received about 1,000 text messages from citizens lashing out at him.
In Korea's modern history, hunger strikes have been considered a sublime resistance against dictatorship, primarily adopted by democratic activists and religious figures here. "Successful" hunger strikes require few conditions ― it should be a last resort in resolving the problem, along with justification to persuade people.
Future President Kim Young-sam effectively stood up against the military dictatorship in a 1983 hunger strike. As a fruit of his 23-day long hunger strike, he was released from house arrest, and the world branded then-President Chun Doo-hwan, who seized power in a military coup, a brutal dictator.
"Unlike the ongoing hunger strike of Kim Sung-tae, Kim Young-sam was totally ostracized by local media, under the government's control," said Im Hyug-baeg, a retired political science professor at Korea University.
That's why the ongoing hunger strike has failed to gain public sympathy, Im noted. As floor leader of the largest conservative party with 115 lawmakers, he has various options other than a hunger strike.
"The Assembly can pick a special prosecutor, if the prosecution fails to look squarely into the opinion-rigging case. So far, there's no sign of interruptions of Cheong Wa Dae to hamper the ongoing investigation," Im said.
The ex-president's precedent explains the flood of negative views toward Kim. "He doesn't look that desperate. Amid lack of support, Rep. Kim's move is viewed as an election strategy," Im said.
According to a Realmeter poll issued April 23, 52.4 percent of respondents said the prosecution's investigation would be enough to reveal the facts, while 38.1 percent of them backed the idea of forming an independent counsel.
The most memorable hunger strike in recent days would be the one staged by bereaved families of victims of the 2014 ferry Sewol disaster, during the Park Geun-hye administration. Kim Young-oh, who lost a daughter named Yu-min, continued his hunger strike for 46 days, calling for a thorough investigation of the disaster. The hunger strike had justification amid the Park administration's attempts to cover up certain facts.
Rep. Kim is not the first politician who was mocked for a hunger strike. In October 2016, Rep. Lee Jung-hyun, former chairman of the Saenuri Party ― predecessor of the LKP ― aroused widespread mockery over his "closed-door" hunger strike. Instead of being concerned about his physical condition, all eyes were on whether he was eating behind the door or not.
Lee, the first known conservative politician to attempt a hunger strike, carried out his protest demanding the resignation of National Assembly Speaker Chung Sye-kyun. However, the staunch loyalist to then-President Park was chairman of the ruling party, and one of the most powerful political figures here.
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