Justice Party (South Korea)

[[File:Jeongeuidang logo.svg|thumb|right|165px|Logo of the Justice Party]]
{{politics}}
{{hatnote|Not to be confused with the Justice Party that was founded by former [[Utah|Salt Lake City]] mayor [[Rocky Anderson]].}}
The '''Justice Party''' (정의당) is the [[South Korea]]n center-left to left-wing{{efn|South Korean political standards}} party. The abbreviation is JP, which is never radical "left-wing" by international political standards, but is recognized by the [[conservative]] camp in South Korea as a very radical far-left and [[cultural Marxist]]-occupied party. JP is considered to be closer to "center" than to the social democratic "center-left to left-wing" in European political standards.<ref>https://www.kci.go.kr/kciportal/ci/sereArticleSearch/ciSereArtiView.kci?sereArticleSearchBean.artiId=ART002603474</ref>

This party is the only party in the Republic of Korea that is forward-looking in terms of the rights of the disabled, especially the mentally. However, the party is not complete, with some party members disparaging [[autism]].

The party was the 3<sup>rd</sup> largest party in the National Assembly until losing all its seats in 2024.

== Political position ==
=== Socially progressivism ===
This party is the only pro-[[LGBT]] party and the only social democratic party in South Korea. Its main support is from [[trade union]] activists, the lower working class, multicultural families, and the sexual minorities. It supports the appeasement policy toward [[North Korea]] ([[Sunshine Policy]]) but it opposes the North Korean political system. This party is also the least nationalist party among the liberal or leftist parties in South Korea. (In South Korea, 'Korean nationalism' is usually prominent on the left-wing.) It supports [[Pro-choice|abortion rights]], [[same-sex marriage]], [[sustainable development]] and [[multiculturalism]] and is only party in the Republic that supports the acceptance of [[Islamic]] refugees. However, it opposes [[cannabis]], [[prostitution]] and some social issues.{{efn|The latter case is due to South Korea's conservative sentiment.}}

JP is known as an left-wing anti-racist organization. Korea suffered from imperialism in China and Japan in the past, and anti-Japanese and anti-Chinese sentiment are often expressed politically due to the current antipathy between China and Japan to hegemonic nationalism. Anti-Japanese sentiment is mainly represented by center-left DPK, and anti-Chinese sentiment is mainly represented by right-wing PPP. JP opposes using anti-Japanese/anti-Chinese sentiment politically.

The party has a friendly relationship with the {{wpl|Social Democratic Party (Japan)|Japanese Social Democratic Party}}<ref>https://news.joins.com/article/13867972</ref> and {{wpl|New Power Party|Taiwanese New Power Party|.}}<ref>http://www.justice21.org/go/su/8/59750</ref>

=== Social democracy? ===
Unlike general social democratic parties, the Justice Party has a more 'liberal' character than the 'socialist' one. For this reason, WSWS, a far-left [[moonbat]] Trotskyist journalist, described the Justice Party as 'fake-left'.<ref>https://www.wsws.org/en/articles/2022/09/08/fdtx-s08.html</ref> JP is officially putting "social democratic" and "liberal" into the party platform. In practice, however, JP's economic policy is not much different from DPK's Keynesian policy, and it is even relatively fiscal conservatism than left-wing populists like {{wpl|Lee Jae-myung}}. It should <big>'''''NEVER'''''</big> be considered a left-wing party like the U.S. [[Justice Party]], {{wpl|Justice Democrats}} and [[Democratic Socialists of America]].

JP refers to themselves as "social democrats" to differentiate themselves from DPK, a socially conservative self-proclaimed "social liberal" because they are supported by LGBT and feminists. However, in a Western sense, JP would be much more of a social liberal than DPK.

The reason JP is considered more left-wing and progressive than DPK is because of its social and cultural issues, which are influenced by [[Confucian]] traditionalists and [[Christian democracy|Christian democrats]], but JP politicians refer to DPK's self-proclaimed liberals as "pseudo-liberals" and support '''U.S. Democrat social policy'''.

Simply put, South Korea's DPK is similarly progressive in economic policy with the U.S. Democratic Party, but socially similar to, or more conservative than, the U.S. Republican moderates. On the other hand, JP is a progressive line that is much similar economically and socially to the US Democratic Party. Even some politicians in Jang Hye-young are known to be more pro-American than mainstream DPK politicians. (Because of this tendency, the DPK is sometimes referred to as a "conservative liberal" in the progressive camp.)

South Korea has a strong anti-communist and anti-socialist atmosphere due to the influence of the [[Korean War]] in the past. In South Korea, there are restrictions on the activities of socialist parties because of the [[National Security Act]]. Also, even legitimate socialist activities are almost impossible to gain public support in the South. Therefore, it will be difficult for lawmakers like [[Bernie Sanders]] and [[AOC]] to come out of South Korea at this point. JP recognizes the abuse and oppression that socialists, who are more left-wing than them, suffer in Korean society, and therefore adopts the abolition of the National Security Law as an official party theory.

== Criticism ==
It is officially a social democratic party, and it is the most cultural liberal of all the major political parties in South Korea. However, this is the standard in South Korean politics, which is extremely socially conservative compared to Western countries such as the United States.

* Park Ga-bun(박가분), a major member of the right-wing of the Justice Party, wrote a (Internet media)article called "Hyehwa Station Assembly, which has fallen into autism beyond isolation" to criticize radical feminism.<ref>[https://www.realnews.co.kr/news/articleView.html?idxno=14178 고립 넘어 자폐로 빠져든 혜화역 집회 (Hyehwa Station Assembly, which has fallen into autism beyond isolation")] ''Real news''. (2018.10.08)</ref> This is a clear hate speech for autistic people, but South Korean media did not take issue with his remarks.
* Contrary to the Justice Party's official position, there was a candidate named Jang Dae-beom(장대범) who offered "homosexual therapy" in the 2018 Gwangyang City Council elections in South Korea. "I learned the seriousness of homosexuality after taking a lecture in the church," he said. He was expelled from the Justice Party over the incident, but it is highly likely that he would not have been deported if the South Korea's LGBT rights groups had not protested.<ref>[https://www.newsnjoy.or.kr/news/articleView.html?idxno=218089 정의당 후보가 '동성애 치료' 공약 내건 까닭 (This is because the Justice Party candidate made a pledge to "cure homosexuality.")] ''NEWS&JOY'' (2018.06.11)</ref>
* [[Jang Hye-young]](장혜영), a disabled human rights activist of the Justice Party, known to the South Korean people as 'radical', supported "[[Autism Speaks|Light It Up Blue]]" in 2019. (For your information, she belongs to the party's left-wing.)
* In 2021, Ryu Ho-jung(류호정) of the Justice Party, a member of the South Korean National Assembly, was embroiled in controversy over her unfair dismissal of her secretary. The Justice Party is the only party in South Korea that claims to be a "labor politics."<ref>[https://www.ytn.co.kr/_ln/0101_202102060519549071 정의당 류호정 의원 '비서 해고' 논란 왜 커졌을까?...핵심 가치 '노동' 연관] ''YTN'' (2021.02.16)</ref>
* In 2021, it was revealed that Justice Party leader Kim Jong-chul(김종철) sexually harassed lawmaker Jang Hye-young(장혜영), and eventually Kim Jong-chul was expelled from the party.<ref>https://www.hani.co.kr/arti/politics/assembly/980922.html</ref>

Of course, these SHIT are more common in the ruling [[Minjoo Party]] and the main opposition [[People Power Party]]. However, the Justice Party deserves even more criticism as it is a party that advocates "[[social justice]]".

==Notes==
{{reflist|group=note}}

==References==
{{reflist}}

[[Category:South Korean politics]]
[[Category:East Asian political parties]]
[[Category:Ableism]]
[[Category:Environmentalism]]
[[Category:Misnomers]]
[[Category:Liberal political parties]]
[[Category:Social liberal political parties]]
[[Category:Social democratic political parties]]

Categories: South Korean politics, East Asian political parties, Ableism, Environmentalism, Misnomers, Liberal political parties, Social liberal political parties, Social democratic political parties