Amid People Power Party Offensive, Education Ministry Responds Before Gyeonggi Province Office of Education ... "Recommends Replacing Hwang Hyun-pil's Lecture"
As the Gyeonggi Province Office of Education moves forward with a scheduled lecture by Hwang Hyun-pil, director of the Institute for Correcting History, who sparked controversy over historical distortion, Education Minister Choi Kyou-jin also stated his position to recommend replacing the lecturer amid repeated calls for withdrawal from the People Power Party.
According to the National Assembly and Gyeonggi Province Office of Education on October 23rd, the Gyeonggi Province Office of Education plans to hold a "2026 Gyeonggi Education Transformation Celebrity Lecture" at the main auditorium of the South Branch Office on the 28th, featuring Director Hwang's lecture titled "History as History, Education as Education." The event is expected to be attended by approximately 500 people including students, parents, and school staff.
However, after the lecture plan was delivered to schools on October 16th, some teachers raised issues with Director Hwang's past statements and political bias, demanding replacement of the lecturer. The Korean Federation of Teachers' Associations also called on October 22nd for cancellation of the lecture and establishment of standards for lecturer selection.
Regarding this matter, Minister Choi responded during the National Assembly Education Committee's comprehensive national audit when People Power Party member Chung Sung-guk pointed out that Director Hwang previously made statements to the effect that the Korean War was caused by the United States, questioning the appropriateness of inviting the lecturer: "I think it would be appropriate to reconsider."
When asked whether he believed the historical view was justified, Minister Choi answered "it is not justified" and stated: "If the person has not reflected on or denied past thoughts, I will recommend speaking with Superintendent An Min-seok about whether it would be better to replace the lecturer who could cause misunderstanding."
The People Power Party's Gyeonggi Provincial Party also issued a statement on behalf of the party's standing committee chair on the same day, criticizing the Gyeonggi Province Office of Education and Democratic Party Rep. Bu Seung-chan.
They cited Article 6 of the Education Basic Law regarding the principle of political neutrality and urged: "Immediately withdraw the lecture invitation for Director Hwang." They also pointed out that Rep. Bu invited Director Hwang as the first lecturer for the "Democratic Academy."
They added: "It is also inappropriate that Rep. Bu, who sparked controversy over remarks related to fire department finances in recent national assembly audits, invited Director Hwang as a lecturer," and demanded an apology.
People Power Party members of the Gyeonggi Provincial Assembly also held a press conference on the same day calling for withdrawal of the lecture.
The provincial assembly's People Power Party raised issues with Director Hwang's past statements related to the Korean War, arguing: "It is inappropriate to invite a person surrounded by controversy over historical distortion as an official lecturer for a public education institution."
In particular, noting that this lecture was "also recommended as a linked activity of learning communities for history and social studies teachers," they demanded cancellation of the lecture and disclosure of the selection process and standards for the lecturer.
Director Hwang has previously clarified regarding his past statements about the Korean War that he has never denied North Korea's invasion of the South and that the context of his remarks was misrepresented.