Yang Kyung-kyu faces Rep. Sim Sang-jeung during a TV debate Monday for the leadership of the Justice Party. Yang is the first South Korean politician to declare himself a "democratic socialist." Yonhap



By Jung Min-ho



Four years after Bernie Sanders made his case for "democratic socialism" in U.S. politics, a South Korean politician has declared himself a "democratic socialist."



Yang Kyung-kyu, 59, who is competing against Rep. Sim Sang-jeung for leadership of the minor opposition Justice Party, has vowed to fight for ordinary people and resolve social inequality issues and injustices.



During TV debates on Monday and early Wednesday morning, Yang, former vice chief of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, the second-largest umbrella labor group in the nation, said the party failed to bring fundamental changes to the lives of ordinary people with "the same old messages."



"It is important how we identify ourselves as a party," he said during Monday's debate. "I use the term of democratic socialism to clearly show voters what we try to achieve as a society and how to solve its problems.



"For example, our party promised to fight for affordable housing for everyone and we did so, but only in a limited way. In the view of democratic socialism, one person, in principle, can only have one house and must pay enormous taxes for additional houses the person owns."



But other than the housing policy, Yang did not specifically say what his vision entails.



In a statement he released on June 13, he said he would press ahead with three objectives ― "green transition" and solving the problems of housing and ever-growing income disparity ― and come up with concrete policies later.



In a country that is still technically at war with North Korea, which is ruled by its own version of communism and socialism, it was a bold statement.



"Who fears socialism?" Yang said. "Why would we fear a new idea of changing a society where injustices and inequalities are rampant? I will say loud and clear which direction our party should take. The Justice Party under my leadership will pursue socialism."

