Jeong I-han, the Reform Party’s Busan mayoral candidate, is hit by a drink thrown by a driver while campaigning in Geumjeong District, Busan, on the 27th. [Photo=Reform Party Busan chapter]
Jeong I-han, the Reform Party’s candidate for mayor of Busan, was struck by a drink thrown from a vehicle while campaigning on the 27th, the party said.
According to the Reform Party, Jeong was greeting commuters and asking for support in Busan’s Geumjeong District when a car approached. The driver threw a drink at him and shouted an insult to the effect of, “How can a kid that young run for mayor?” Jeong was born in 1988.
Startled, Jeong lost his balance and fell, hitting his head on the ground and briefly losing consciousness. He was taken to a hospital, regained consciousness and remains hospitalized with concussion symptoms.
The Reform Party denounced the incident as “terror against democracy.” Party leader Lee Jun-seok told reporters after a meeting of the party’s top council at the National Assembly that people may choose not to support a candidate, but “committing terror is extremely immature behavior.”
The party said attempts to resolve political differences through physical force must not be tolerated, adding it would not yield to any effort to suppress “a young candidate’s courageous challenge” through violence and hatred.
It urged police to swiftly and thoroughly investigate without leaving any doubts, identify the attacker and hold the person strictly accountable, and take all necessary steps to prevent a repeat.
Police are reviewing witness statements and nearby CCTV footage to determine what happened.
According to the Reform Party, Jeong was greeting commuters and asking for support in Busan’s Geumjeong District when a car approached. The driver threw a drink at him and shouted an insult to the effect of, “How can a kid that young run for mayor?” Jeong was born in 1988.
Startled, Jeong lost his balance and fell, hitting his head on the ground and briefly losing consciousness. He was taken to a hospital, regained consciousness and remains hospitalized with concussion symptoms.
The Reform Party denounced the incident as “terror against democracy.” Party leader Lee Jun-seok told reporters after a meeting of the party’s top council at the National Assembly that people may choose not to support a candidate, but “committing terror is extremely immature behavior.”
The party said attempts to resolve political differences through physical force must not be tolerated, adding it would not yield to any effort to suppress “a young candidate’s courageous challenge” through violence and hatred.
It urged police to swiftly and thoroughly investigate without leaving any doubts, identify the attacker and hold the person strictly accountable, and take all necessary steps to prevent a repeat.
Police are reviewing witness statements and nearby CCTV footage to determine what happened.
* This article has been translated by AI.
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