Unification Minister Chung Dong-young Sues Over Fake Claims of Daughter in North Korea… Damage 'Irreparable'

Unification Minister Chung Dong-young revealed that the damage from false claims spreading that he has a 27-year-old daughter living in North Korea is already 'irreparable,' and announced he has filed a criminal complaint against those who spread the misinformation. Speaking at a Cabinet meeting at the Cheong Wa Dae on the 3rd, Minister Chung pointed out that a video containing the claim had garnered hundreds of thousands of views and requested that the government "increase the budget for fact-checking (verification of false claims)."

President Lee Jae-myung chaired the Cabinet meeting held at Cheong Wa Dae on the 3rd. Asking about the specifics of the false claim, the president quipped, "A 27-year-old daughter — so they even specify the age and gender. What's her name?" When Minister Chung explained, "I last visited Pyongyang 21 years ago, so the timeline doesn't add up," President Lee joked, "Well, people can age quickly."

President Lee then emphasized the gravity of the fake news problem. "We have long since moved past the level of 'someone said something by the village well' — it has now become a problem that undermines the basic order of the state," he said, adding, "In the past, spreading false information was treated as merely a matter of embarrassing someone, but now it shakes the very foundations of society." The fact that even a cabinet-level official became a direct victim of misinformation demonstrated that the targets of fake news are not confined to any particular group.