[Asia Economy reporters Lee Ji-eun and Won Dara] Until the 29th, when the Chuseok holiday begins, the political sphere continued to be embroiled in disputes over the shooting incident involving civil servant Mr. Lee and the preferential treatment allegations concerning Minister of Justice Choo Mi-ae's son. The People Power Party has been holding relay one-person protests in front of the Blue House, demanding an urgent inquiry into the killing of Mr. Lee, while the Democratic Party criticizes this as 'political strife.'
On this day, People Power Party lawmakers Lee Yong, Ji Seong-ho, Cho Tae-yong, and Seo Eun-ah took turns conducting one-person protests for an hour each in the morning. Bae Hyun-jin, the People Power Party floor spokesperson, said in a briefing the previous day, "Although it is not at the leadership level, proportional representatives have voluntarily stepped forward to urge the president's voice," adding, "Party members in each support group have also expressed a desire to hold one-person protests and street demonstrations, which is under consideration."
Joo Ho-young, the People Power Party floor leader, appeared on YTN radio that morning and said, "Since the public is curious, we demanded an urgent inquiry," adding, "However, the Democratic Party said they absolutely could not hold an urgent inquiry, so we said fine, then let's postpone the urgent inquiry and at least adopt a resolution on North Korea even if further discussions are delayed." He continued, "But didn't North Korea send some kind of apology document? The Democratic Party wants to significantly revise the condemnation resolution that passed the National Defense Committee using that as a reason," criticizing, "They want to change it so that it is not a condemnation but a resolution that helps North Korea's position, which we cannot accept."
The Democratic Party criticizes the failure to adopt the resolution as a hidden political intention of the People Power Party. Kim Young-jin, the Democratic Party's senior deputy floor leader, said in a KBS radio interview that morning, "In such matters, the opposition party should first adopt a resolution and then proceed with investigating the facts and preparing countermeasures, but the opposition is doing the opposite now," adding, "They had no intention of adopting the resolution." He further criticized, "In short, during this Chuseok period, they want to use this incident as a material to attack the ruling party and the president. If the resolution is adopted, they cannot do that, so they refuse. We believe there was a sufficient hidden political intention." Hong Jung-min, the Democratic Party floor spokesperson, said after the negotiation breakdown the previous day, "The part about 'burning the body' has not yet been verified as fact, so we requested to exclude it, and the negotiation broke down while only discussing the urgent inquiry demanded by the People Power Party."
The controversy over allegations involving Minister Choo's son also continues. Kim Eun-hye, the People Power Party spokesperson, issued a statement regarding the Eastern District Prosecutors' Office's decision not to indict any related individuals after investigating the allegations against Minister Choo's son, saying, "From the moment prosecutors aligned with the regime's tastes were consecutively assigned to the Eastern District Prosecutors' Office, both Minister Choo and the public knew the outcome," rebutting the claims. People Power Party lawmakers on the National Assembly's Legislation and Judiciary Committee released a statement on witness selection for the audit, emphasizing, "The Democratic Party is playing games with witness selection related to Minister Choo's allegations," and warned, "Without a single key witness, the audit will end up being a sham." On the other hand, Democratic Party senior spokesperson Choi In-ho criticized immediately after the prosecution's announcement, saying, "It has been proven that there was no coercion or intimidation during the vacation application and usage process. Justice has been served," and added, "This is evidence that the People Power Party has only made reckless allegations all this time."
Meanwhile, both ruling and opposition parties plan to forgo traditional Chuseok greetings this year. During last year's Lunar New Year holiday, the leadership of both parties visited Seoul and Yongsan stations to greet returning travelers. Instead of greeting travelers this morning, Democratic Party leader Lee Nak-yeon and other party leaders plan to encourage sanitation workers and visit traditional markets. People Power Party leader Ahn Cheol-soo plans to hold a virtual meeting to encourage soldiers who could not be with their families during the holiday, including children of party members currently serving in the military. Kim Jong-in, the party's emergency committee chairman, and floor leader Joo Ho-young have decided not to hold official events during the holiday period.
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