Former Blue House Protocol Secretary Tak Hyun-min, in an interview with CBS, stated, “We should be lenient with others.”
On May 9, 2022, then-President Moon Jae-in bid farewell to citizens in front of the fountain at the Blue House, receiving a cake from them.
On April 10, Tak Hyun-min criticized former President Yoon Suk-yeol’s continued residence at the presidential residence for a week following the Constitutional Court’s decision for dismissal. He said, “We were told to vacate the Blue House that evening, but he stayed for an extended period.”
Appearing on CBS Radio’s “Park Jae-hong’s Battle,” he commented, “A person should be strict with themselves and lenient with others, but it’s rare to find someone who is the exact opposite,” in response to the host’s remark about Yoon leaving the residence the next day.
Yoon was expected to leave the Hannam-dong residence in Yongsan-gu, Seoul, for his residence in Seocho-dong on April 11, a week after the Constitutional Court ruling. Demonstrations urging Yoon and his wife to leave quickly and rallies of Yoon’s supporters with national flags have been ongoing near the residence.
Tak recalled reporting to former President Moon about the opening and vacating of the Blue House in 2022. Initially, he opposed the midnight opening event but recounted how Moon, instead of being displeased, smiled and suggested leaving early, saying, “We’ll just leave during the day.”
Earlier in April, former President Moon announced on his social media that he planned to leave the Blue House at the end of his term at 6 PM on May 9. This became a matter of great interest as Yoon had announced the opening of the Blue House to the public on his first day in office, May 10.
After finishing his term and spending one night outside the Blue House, Moon attended the presidential inauguration and then headed to his residence in Yangsan, Gyeongnam.
Regarding possible rallies near Yoon’s residence after returning, Tak said, “It’s his turn now,” hoping Yoon would deeply understand and realize the importance of freedom of expression. This appears to reference the rallies by conservative YouTubers near Moon’s residence in Yangsan after his retirement. One YouTuber, who verbally abused Moon near his residence, was fined 4 million won with a two-year probation by a court in January.