"Channel PNU" had special interviews about "Youth Politics Spoken by Young People" to mark the 8th Nationwide Simultaneous Local Elections on June 1st. We had sincere phone conversations on the challenge of the local elections on May 13th, 14th, and 20th with Lee Jun-Ho (34) of the People Power Party, Yu Yeong-Hyeon (31) of the Democratic Party, and Seo Dong-Uk (30) of the Justice Party. The candidates are respectively running for City Councilor (2nd District of Geumjeong-gu) and District Councilors (Saha-gu "Na'' District, the Suyeong-gu "Ra" District). We listened to the aspirations of Politicians in their 20s and 30s who are running in the local elections in Busan.

Q. Tell us how you started politics.

- Lee Jun-Ho, the People Power Party: I worked as a professor at the Republic of Korea Naval Academy before entering politics. I wrote a lot of suggestions about social improvements while researching. However, no matter how hard I tried to write my thesis, it didn't get applied. So, I quit school and entered into politics because words and actions seemed to convey greater power to society than writing.

- Yu Yeong-Hyeon, the Democratic Party: I couldn't pass over social injustice or matters going wrong in my life. Examples are the sinking of the ferry Sewol, the impeachment scandal of former President Park Geun-Hye, sexual discrimination, education in schools, and national university problems. So, I wanted to change it and started working at the party in 2017.

- Seo Dong-Uk, Justice Party: I've been interested in political podcasts since high school. Then, I joined the Progressive Justice Party in 2012 and worked actively until now.

Q. What do you think of established politics?

- Lee Jun-Ho, the People Power Party: South Korea has continued making rapid progress and been growing in the economic and diplomatic fields. I think this is because even if established politicians are criticized, they have played a good role. On the other hand, the desire to change or communicate with the new generation is still insufficient.

- Yu Yeong-Hyeon, the Democratic Party: The era is changing. Most lawmakers of the Democratic Party are also known as the "586 generations". Of course, they will try hard to change themselves. But I think they are still a little authoritative and rigid. It is time to go to an era of looking back and respecting the lives of individual members, centering on the new generation.

- Seo Dong-Uk, the Justice Party: It's a shame that the two big parties look for young people only during the election season. Many promises are not kept even if we make pledges related to young people. And even if they are kept, there are many things that we don't feel.

Q. Why is the existence of a "young politician" necessary?

- Lee Jun-Ho, the People Power Party: When you run on a sports day, you must do a baton touch. The same goes for politics, just as if you're running first but end up last when you fail to touch the baton. We need a generation that can accept the baton of established politicians. In a new era, people with new ideas should continue to flow in.

- Yu Yeong-Hyeon, the Democratic Party: Anyway, it's a world where we live in our 20s and 30s. I think it's natural that people who will live in the future have the right to decide the world. It does not mean that only youth politics is necessary. The political circle should be more diversified by giving the opportunity for all generations to participate.

- Seo Dong-Uk, the Justice Party: I think it's because there's a variety of things we can talk about youth issues since they are the ones who are related. No one knows more about a problem than they do. More and more young politicians can be reflected in political matters.

Q. There are many young people who left Busan because they cannot find a job. What policies or efforts should be improved as a young man?

- Lee Jun-Ho, the People Power Party: This is a global issue beyond Busan and South Korea. So, I don't think it's right to talk about this issue limited to Korea. Ultimately, it's a matter of high-quality jobs. President Yoon Seok-Yeol also said that he would attract companies and move the KDB Development Bank to Busan. I think that public institutions and companies must move to small cities in some way to prevent the outflow of the youth population.

- Yu Yeong-Hyeon, the Democratic Party: It needs a lot of consideration because the weakening competitiveness of local universities and falling behind of regions are the root of various problems. However, one of the things I thought about is the bold local talent recruitment policy. I guess various public institutions, including Busan, should boldly hire talented people from the "real" region who graduated from universities in the actual area and have been living there since then. Before we talk about "No talent in Busan" and "No development in Busan," we should recruit talented people who want to work in Busan without going to the metropolitan area.

- Seo Dong-Uk, the Justice Party: I think it is essential to pay attention to the process, such as how many opportunities young people have received and how much they have participated in the policy. Focusing on the resulting index, like creating thousands of jobs, is not enough. The current politics doesn't seem to reflect the story of young people. Young people would have stayed in Busan without leaving if there were more jobs as previous mayors promised. We need a practical policy.

Q. Do you have any difficulties preparing for this local election?

- Lee Jun-Ho, the People Power Party: I had so much fun doing this job that nothing was complicated. I have enjoyed the whole process until now.

- Yoo Yeong-Hyeon, the Democratic Party: It's better because I've tried it once. But most of the time, there was no information about young people. It's not easy to come to the election because we want to do it. The hardest thing must be the financial part. In my case, the legal election cost limit in the running district is a little over 49,000,000 won, and most candidates spend all that money. But I think people in their 20s and 30s have a hard time because they don't have that much capital.

- Seo Dong-Uk, the Justice Party: As new politicians, we often suffer from lack of budget and personal connections. It’s a shame that there are restrictions on what we want to do due to a lack of funding. Starting from this election, candidates for basic councilors can also create sponsorship accounts. But political rookies don't get a lot of sponsorship. Fortunately, the Justice Party provides much youth support, but there are still tricky parts.

Q. Tell us about the direction you want to move forward.

- Lee Jun-Ho, the People Power Party: Usually, when it comes to politics, I aim for the head of the district office, lawmakers, and the president. However, I don't have such a clear dream. Since I was born and raised near Pusan National University, I want to protect the neighborhood where I lived, take care of it, and change it in a good direction no matter what position I am in.

- Yoo Yeong-Hyeon, the Democratic Party: I'm in politics because I want our world to be a common-sense world. And I want to create a world without discrimination, and finally, a world where injustice or misfortune that I've experienced is not repeated to others. So, I don't want to set goals like lawmakers or presidents. I want to continue playing a political role in creating such a world.

- Seo Dong-Uk, the Justice Party: My slogan is "Su-Yeong becomes younger, the district councilor next to you." Like this slogan, I want you to feel that I am near the residents, and I want to make changes that young people can handle. I want to tell the story of what young people “really” want by entering the district council.

Reporter Im Ha-Eun

Translated by Shin Ji-Won