2023-12-24 18:34:00
Former Minister of Justice Han Dong-hoon./News 1
Former Minister of Justice Han Dong-hoon, who was appointed as chairman of the People Power Party’s Emergency Response Committee, will face three challenges when he is officially appointed on the 26th. On the 27th, ‘Former Representative Lee Jun-seok’s withdrawal from the party’, on the 28th, ‘Processing of the Special Prosecutor Act on First Lady Kim Kun-hee’, and on the 29th, ‘Emergency Response Committee Appointment’ await him in turn. All three tasks are important issues that will determine whether ‘unification of the ruling party’, ‘change in party-government relations’, or ‘generational change and innovation’ are possible. Inside and outside of the political world, there is a saying that “the ‘killer (super difficult) questions’ that must be answered for three consecutive days starting the day following inauguration may early determine the success or failure of emergency committee member Han Dong-hoon.”
The first problem faced is that of former representative Lee. Former representative Lee announced that he would withdraw from the party on the 27th and begin the process of creating a new party. For this reason, the possibility that former Minister Han may pursue a meeting with former Representative Lee is also being discussed. An official from the ruling party said, “It is a matter that has been announced, but if former representative Lee really leaves the party, it will be a big bad news for the ruling party.”
Some within the party predict that “the meeting itself will fail because former Minister Han cannot meet former Representative Lee’s requirements.” One pro-Yoon-gye lawmaker said, “Former Representative Lee ultimately appears to be demanding an apology from President Yoon Seok-yeol and the right to conduct the general election, but these conditions, which many of the ruling party’s supporters do not agree with, are issues that former Minister Han cannot accept in the first place.” The question is, will former Minister Han go to such lengths to meet when it is obvious that the meeting will be fruitless? A person close to former Representative Lee said, “There is no reason not to meet with former Minister Han, but meeting with former Minister Han will not change your expectations or resolve.”
Graphics = Yang Inseong
On the 28th, the Democratic Party of Korea plans to push through the so-called ‘Kim Kun-hee Special Prosecutor Act’ at the plenary session of the National Assembly. It is also expected to be a political test of how former Minister Han responds to a controversial bill on which the pros and cons of the ruling and opposition parties are sharply divided in the National Assembly plenary session, his first since taking office as chairman of the emergency committee. The President’s Office and the ruling party maintain a position of ‘absolutely unacceptable’, and there are concerns that former Minister Han may be trapped in the frame of ‘covering his own family’ if he repeats the existing position of the party and government.
Previously, on the 19th, former Minister Han said regarding the ‘Kim Kun-hee Special Prosecutor Act’, “There should be no exceptions before the law,” and “However, the opposition party’s Special Prosecutor Act is an evil law created for propaganda purposes (during the general election). “That must be taken into full consideration within the National Assembly procedures,” he said. Regarding this, there was also speculation that an acceptance plan would be presented on the condition of ‘removal of the toxic clause’ and ‘promotion following the general election’.
Former Minister Han is known to have focused on selecting emergency committee members somewhere in Seoul during the Christmas holiday. It is said that former Minister Han plans to complete the selection of emergency committee members on the 29th, launch the emergency committee, and then begin official activities starting with a visit to the National Cemetery on New Year’s Day. In the ruling party, there are many calls for former Minister Han to form a ‘789 emergency committee’ centered on people born in the 70s, 80s, and 90s to counter the Democratic Party, which is centered on the May 86 movement. Rep. Ha Tae-kyung said on Facebook on the 24th, “Our party can survive and emergency committee member Han Dong-hoon can succeed only when people who are not bound by old ideologies lead our party,” and added, “We will form an emergency committee centered on the 789 generation, but we will form a committee that well represents the spirit of the new era.” He said, “If you are a person, even from the previous generation, using moderation will increase your chances of success.”
Experts said, “How former Minister Han resolves difficult issues during the three days immediately following his inauguration as emergency committee chairman will determine his success or failure as the ruling party’s leader in the future general elections.” Kim Hyeong-jun, a professor at Pai Chai University, said, “If he is appointed as the chairman of the emergency committee, one week will be ‘Han Dong-hoon’s time.’” He added, “What message he puts out, what agenda he presents, and what appointments he makes during that period will determine what kind of politics he will pursue in the future.” “It will be a kind of touchstone to see if we will do it.”
Kwon Chil-seung, chief spokesperson of the Democratic Party of Korea, said on the 24th, “Former Minister Han and the People Power Party are trying to neutralize the ‘Kim Kun-hee Special Prosecutor Act’ by misleading public opinion.” “It will be the prelude to the fall of the regime,” he said.
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