(Seoul = Yonhap News) Reporters Lee Jeong-hyeon, Park Gyeong-joon, and Lee Yullip = On the 4th, the People Power Party decided to send a letter in the name of all its members to the Singapore International Film Festival requesting that the film 'Assassin(s)', which deals with the assassination of Ms. Yuk Young-soo, be selected as the opening film.
It is known that when Representative Joo Jin-woo initially announced that he would send it in his personal name, the number of lawmakers who wanted to participate increased and they decided to pursue it in this way.
Senior Spokesperson Choi Bo-yoon met with reporters at the National Assembly on this day and explained regarding the issue, "There are many people who voluntarily participate in raising their voices, so we decided to collect opinions and proceed within the National Assembly."
In a personal letter released first, Rep. Joo said, "The film turns the murdered victim's family into the party of suspicion and puts the terrible frame of the father's involvement in the mother's death on the actual bereaved family," and added, "Do not lend the authority of the film festival to the immoral distortion of history that insults the victims and their families."
The People Power Party continued its offensive against the ‘assassin(s)’ even during the holidays.
5-term lawmaker Na Kyung-won criticized on Facebook, "Naver is said to have requested a police investigation for changing the rating bulletin board settings for the corrupt movie 'Assassin(s)' to the most recent, saying it was 'due to macro manipulation'. So they make a lame excuse saying they changed it to the most recent."
Rep. Kim Seung-soo, a member of the National Assembly Culture, Sports and Tourism Committee, announced on this day that as a result of analyzing the investment details received from Korea Venture Investment, it was revealed that nine parent fund affiliates invested 7.8 billion won in 'assassin(s)' from November of last year to August of last year.
Representative Kim claimed that the representatives of the three unions that invested 2.4 billion won were pro-Democratic Party figures.
According to Rep. Kim, among these three, the CEO of Ilshin Startup Investment served as a member of the Democratic Party's New Growth Special Committee, and the CEO of KC Ventures served as a member of the Investment Subcommittee of the Popular Culture Exchange Committee, an advisory body belonging to the President launched in October of last year. The CEO of 'Saltlux', the parent company of Saltlux Ventures, served as vice chairman of the 'Democratic Party Artificial Intelligence (AI) Powerhouse Committee', which President Lee Jae-myung chaired when he was the party leader in February of last year.
Korea Venture Investment explained to Rep. Kim’s office that “selection of individual investment targets and decisions on whether to invest are the sole authority of the executive members of the association,” and that “Korea Venture Investment is not involved in the individual investment deliberation and decision process.”
Rep. Kim criticized, "It turns out that the Ministry of Culture, Sports and Tourism's Fund of Funds invested in a film that has been criticized as a malicious and corrupt distortion of history," adding, "It raises reasonable doubts that this is not a coincidence, but that an invisible power has cunningly drawn the big picture and exerted external pressure."
Representative Joo Jin-woo said at a press conference at the National Assembly on this day, "Korea Development Bank indirectly invested 14 billion won and Industrial Bank of Korea invested 14.2 billion won in Hive Media Corp, the production company of 'Assassin(s),'" and urged, "In fact, this production company is enriched with money from government-run banks. Immediately recover the investment money and investigate the circumstances of the investment."
Meanwhile, CEO Jang Dong-hyuk announced that he would visit First Lady Yuk Young-soo's birthplace in Okcheon-gun, North Chungcheong Province on the 5th and hold a press conference.
In response to this move by the People Power Party, the Democratic Party of Korea criticized the People Power Party in a written briefing under the name of floor spokesperson Jeon Eun-soo, saying, "Is the People Power Party a 'film blocking party' that even intervenes in whether or not to screen at international film festivals?"
Former floor spokesperson emphasized, “The Park Geun-hye government created a list of artists critical of the regime and excluded them from support, and the Yoon Seok-yeol government issued a stern warning to the organizers of a contest that awarded prizes to satirical cartoons drawn by high school students,” adding, “This is not an unfamiliar scene.”
He continued, “Whenever the People Power Party opens its mouth, it shouts for freedom, but it mercilessly silences content it does not like,” and claimed, “The reality of the People Power Party is an old-fashioned political party that speaks of freedom but suppresses freedom of criticism.”
Former floor spokesperson said, “We must immediately withdraw our demand for the withdrawal of screenings at the Singapore International Film Festival,” adding, “We must not try to take away the audience’s right to enjoy culture.”
