Five First-Term Lawmakers Say, "Elect Supreme Council Members at the Party Convention... Let's Not Divide Responsibility Between Pro-Moon and Anti-Moon Factions"

Greater Blame Placed on Specific Factions
Behavior Aimed at Gaining Political Benefits
Old Practices Encouraging Division Within the Party

Jeon Yong-gi, Oh Young-hwan, Lee So-young, Jang Kyung-tae, Jang Cheol-min, and other first-term lawmakers of the Democratic Party of Korea are greeting each other before the announcement of the "Democratic Party of Korea 2030 Lawmakers' Statement" held at the National Assembly Communication Office in Yeouido, Seoul, on the morning of the 9th.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Hyun-joo] The first-term lawmakers in their 20s and 30s of the Democratic Party of Korea have joined the call to elect the Supreme Council members at the party convention rather than the Central Committee.

On this day, lawmakers Oh Young-hwan, Lee So-young, Jeon Yong-gi, Jang Kyung-tae, and Jang Cheol-min stated in a press release, "We demand the election of Supreme Council members through a full vote of party members at the May 2 party convention."

They said, "Our party nominated candidates for the by-elections without democratic debate and thorough reflection," adding, "We realized through the judgment of public sentiment that damaging democratic procedures and principles based on situational logic could bring greater difficulties to the party."

The Democratic Party decided to elect the vacant Supreme Council members through the Central Committee according to party regulations following the total resignation of the leadership. However, some within the party argue that to properly demonstrate reform, the party should more broadly gather the will of its members through the party convention.

These first-term lawmakers in their 20s and 30s also issued a statement on the 9th, citing the former Minister of Justice Cho Kuk incident as one of the causes of the April 7 by-election defeat.

Regarding criticism from the hardline pro-Moon Jae-in faction within the party, they said, "Although we anticipated criticism and controversy, we issued a reflection statement because diverse introspection and vision proposals are necessary within the party," reaffirming their critical stance on the 'Cho Kuk incident.' They added, "The behavior of emphasizing the responsibility of specific individuals or factions within the party to gain political advantage is an old practice that fosters division within the party," and requested, "Please do not divide responsibility between pro-Moon and anti-Moon factions."

Furthermore, they announced that for concrete action, they will engage in discussions and debates through meetings with the media and youth.