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Sim Sang-jung

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In this Korean name, the family name is Sim.
Sim Sang-jung
심상정
Sim Sang-jung in 2015
Member of the National Assembly
In office
30 May 2012 – 29 May 2024
Preceded bySon Beom Gyu
ConstituencyGyeonggi Goyang A
In office
30 May 2004 – 29 May 2008
ConstituencyProportional representation
Leader of the Justice Party
In office
18 July 2015 – 11 July 2017
Preceded byCheon Ho-sun
Succeeded byLee Jeong-mi
In office
13 July 2019 – 12 October 2020
Preceded byLee Jeong-mi
Succeeded byKim Jong-Cheol
Personal details
Born (1959-02-20) 20 February 1959 (age 65)
P'aju, Kyonggi Province, South Korea
Political partyJustice Party
Other political
affiliations		Democratic Labor Party (2000–2008)
New Progressive Party (2008–2011)
Unified Progressive Party (2011–12)
Alma materSeoul National University
Signature
Korean name
Hangul
심상정
Hanja
Revised RomanizationSim Sangjeong
McCune–ReischauerSim Sangjŏng

Sim Sang-jung (Korean: 심상정; born 20 February 1959) is a South Korean labor rights activist and former politician. She was one of the five major presidential candidates in the 2017 South Korean presidential election, running as the Justice Party's nominee. She again ran as the Justice Party's nominee in the 2022 presidential election, finishing in 3rd place.

She has been a member of the National Assembly since 2012, having previously served from 2004 to 2008, and was the leader of the Justice Party from 2015 to 2017 and 2019 to 2020.[1] She announced her retirement from politics following the 2024 legislative election, effective at the end of the National Assembly's term on 29 May.[2][3]

Education and early career

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Sim obtained her bachelor's degree in education from Seoul National University. She switched degrees from history,[further explanation needed] with the aspiration to become a history teacher.[4]

At the age of 21, she worked at a cassette tape factory where her days as a labor rights activist began. Sim was subsequently fired for mobilizing workers to demand higher wages and better meals. She "hopped from job to job" to earn a wage but continued her labor activism. In 1985, she was on the country's most wanted list for instigating labor strikes.[citation needed] She was on the list for 9 years, and married her husband, a fellow activist, during that time. She was formally charged for 'instigation of mass harm' and 'instigation of arson', and was sentenced to 1.5 years imprisonment, but a 2-year suspended sentence, soon after she became pregnant.[4]

Political career

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Sim was first elected in 2004 in the 17th National Assembly as a member of the Democratic Labor Party.[5] She won her first direct election in the 19th National Assembly as a member of the UPP with 49.37% of the votes in an area of Gyeonggi Goyang in 2012.[6]

Following the disintegration of the Unified Progressive Party after the Park Geun-hye government's petition to the Constitutional Court of Korea for the UPP's alleged pro-North Korean views in 2013, Sim helped found the Justice Party.[6] She was elected party chair in 2015.[7] Sim won another seat in the 20th National Assembly in 2016, again in an area of Goyang with 53% of the vote.[6] In the 2020 election, she defeated Moon Myung-soon from Democratic Party and Lee Kyung-hwan from the United Future Party, becoming the first four-term parliamentarian from a progressive party in Korea.[8] She announced her retirement from politics following the 2024 legislative election after the Justice Party failed to win seats for the first time since its foundation.[2]

Political positions and ideology

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Economy

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Her economic positions reflect the progressive platform of the Justice Party. This includes reforming chaebols (Korean conglomerates) so that hereditary succession is banned. Her key policy in the 2022 South Korean election was the proposal of a four-day work week, which has been described as "a revolutionary idea in a country where workers endure notoriously long hours".[9][10]

Social issues

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In the 2017 South Korean presidential election, Sim was the only major presidential candidate to openly support LGBT rights in South Korea.[11]

National security

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Sim opposes the deployment of THAAD, a U.S. anti ballistics missile defense system, and supports a nuclear-free Korean Peninsula.[12]

Feminism

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Sim self-identifies as a feminist. She has said that, "Sexism clearly exists in South Korean society". Polling in the 2022 South Korean presidential election suggested her strongest support came from women in their 20s. Vladimir Tikhonov, professor of Korean studies at the University of Oslo, has said that some younger women consider her a hero for what he describes as being able to "articulate the women's rights agenda".[9][10]

References

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  1. ^ "Korea's electoral map is being totally rewritten". Korea JoongAng Daily. 28 July 2015. Archived from the original on 9 October 2017. Retrieved 5 October 2015.
  2. ^ a b "심상정 정계 은퇴 선언 "통절한 마음으로 사죄드린다"". 11 April 2024. Archived from the original on 14 April 2024. Retrieved 14 April 2024.
  3. ^ "Former Justice Party chief Sim Sang-jeung retires from politics". koreajoongangdaily.joins.com. 11 April 2024. Retrieved 16 April 2024.
  4. ^ a b "Pot Holder Episode 4 Engsub | Kshow123". Kshow123. Archived from the original on 18 December 2017. Retrieved 29 June 2017.
  5. ^ Won, Jeesoo (15 April 2017). "Impact Player: Sim Sang-jung". Centre for Strategic & International Studies. Archived from the original on 24 December 2020. Retrieved 11 March 2022.
  6. ^ a b c 심상정 : 네이버 통합검색. search.naver.com (in Korean). Archived from the original on 31 January 2019. Retrieved 28 April 2017.
  7. ^ Political handbook of the world, 2018-2019. Thousand Oaks, California: Sage, CQ Press. 2019. p. 871. ISBN 978-1-5443-6327-1.
  8. ^ "진보정당 첫 4선 심상정, 씁쓸한 '나홀로 당선' - 머니투데이". news.mt.co.kr (in Korean). 16 April 2020. Archived from the original on 17 December 2021. Retrieved 20 September 2020.
  9. ^ a b "'Sexism exists': S.Korea feminist presidential candidate's lonely crusade". France 24. AFP. 8 March 2022. Archived from the original on 8 March 2022. Retrieved 10 March 2022.
  10. ^ a b "'Sexism exists': South Korean feminist presidential candidate's lonely crusade". The Japan Times. AFP. 8 March 2022. Archived from the original on 10 March 2022. Retrieved 10 March 2022.
  11. ^ "[JTBC 대선토론] 문재인 "동성애 합법화 반대"…심상정 "유감스럽다"". Naver. The Korea Economic Daily. Archived from the original on 8 December 2019. Retrieved 7 May 2017.
  12. ^ "유승민 "보수 대표 후보 가려달라"…심상정 "사드 배치 철회"". Naver. TV Chosun. Archived from the original on 8 December 2019. Retrieved 7 May 2017.
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