The Han Dong-hoon Story

PART 07 The Human Han Dong-hoon · Original Text 08

"What is an evil person?"

When asked this question in an interview, Han Dong-hoon answered without hesitation. "An evil person is someone who exploits others."

His worldview is condensed within this simple definition.

This passage reveals why he pursued abuses of power so relentlessly and why he insisted on the term 'fellow citizen' rather than 'the weak.' For him, an evil person was not simply someone who broke the law. It was the powerful using and trampling the powerless. That was the adversary he had fought against his entire life.

He emphasizes, "We must see the community through the eyes of the weak."

But there is a caveat.

"The weak are not automatically right compared to the strong. But when polarization deepens, society must care for the weak." Not unconditional sympathy, but creating a fair starting line. That is what he means by 'the common good.'

This philosophy became clear during his time as chairman of the Emergency Response Committee of the People Power Party. One day in January 2024, a small luncheon was held at the People Power Party headquarters in Yeouido. The attendees were not members of the National Assembly or party executives. They were cleaners, security guards, and building managers who worked at the headquarters. It was something no conservative party leader in history had done.

Rather than an elaborate hotel meal, he shared a warm home-cooked meal and listened to their stories.

"You work hard, but you must be cold."

Following his words, a promise came immediately. Provision of winter padding vests and support for necessary supplies. It was not simply an event where they ate a meal.

It was a concrete measure to safeguard the dignity of 'fellow citizens' who worked quietly in unseen places and to improve their treatment. One attendee testified: "He's giving us padding and replacing the refrigerator."

Holiday traditions changed too. As Lunar New Year approached, the budget for expensive gifts sent in the name of the party chairman was entirely eliminated.

Instead, 72,000 briquettes were purchased with that money. Han Dong-hoon personally carried a jigae up the narrow alleys of Baeksa Village in Nowon-gu, Seoul. He did not mind getting soot on his face as he carried the briquettes.

When a Democratic Party member criticized it as a "show," he answered thus.

"We must help." And he quietly carried the briquettes. His decision to redirect taxpayers' money that would have gone to gift exchanges among politicians to neighbors who truly needed help was a refreshing shock that broke the stale conventions of the political world.

For Chuseok, a 50-million-won gift budget was used to provide meals for children without adequate food. Han Dong-hoon personally put on an apron and packed the meals. As he filled containers with side dishes and closed the boxes, he must have thought: a politician's job is not to engage in grand debates but to provide a meal for a child who might go hungry today.

His gaze always turned toward victims who had suffered unjustly and fallen heroes. Kim Han-na, the wife of Sgt. Han Sang-guk, a casualty of the Second Battle of Yeonpyeong, whom he met at a West Sea Guard Day event. Even after the event ended, Han Dong-hoon sent her encouragement messages consistently.

He continued meaningful communication that was not one-off, such as promoting a children's book project for the families of fallen soldiers.

He also listened to the appeals of the victim in the 'Busan Back-kick Incident.'

His improvements to crime victim support systems and updates to the Ministry of Justice systems so that victims could access trial records reflected his principle that "the state should side with victims, not criminals."

Han Dong-hoon's gaze toward the vulnerable is not charitable sympathy. It is a sense of 'responsibility' to protect the dignity and rights they should rightfully enjoy as members of the community. He puts it this way: "Preventing the powerful from breaking rules and exploiting the weak. That is the duty of a public servant."

His efforts for the weak continue. The path of politics he walks always points toward the concrete realities of people's lives. The narrow alley where he carried briquettes, the meal box he handed to a child without food, the rice he shared with a cleaner. Within those small actions lies the vision of Korea he dreams of.

If this book has stayed with you for even a moment, please support it so that the next story can come into the world.

(Voluntary donation account: Nonghyup 302-1096-0948-81 Account holder: Kim Gyeong-jin)