[Asia Economy Reporter Kang Juhee] Former Democratic Party Supreme Council Member Kim Haeyoung criticized the party's reform efforts following the crushing defeat in the April 7 by-elections, saying, "The flame of party reform ignited by first-term lawmakers who showed courage is cooling down very quickly in just a few days."
After concluding a press conference at the National Assembly Communication Office on the same day, former Supreme Council Member Kim stated, "If it reaches the level where thousands of text message bombs are sent daily in an organized manner targeting specific politicians' phone numbers through YouTube and other platforms, this crosses the line of political expression," criticizing the act.
Earlier, hardline supporters of the Democratic Party reportedly shared the mobile phone numbers of first-term lawmakers in their 20s and 30s, who cited the 'Cho Kuk incident' as the cause of the election defeat, on social networking services (SNS), sending 4,000 to 5,000 critical messages per day.
Additionally, Democratic Party members issued a statement on the 12th under the name "All Democratic Party Members," criticizing the first-term lawmakers by saying, "They showed an ungrateful attitude by releasing a trash statement full of distortions and errors that blamed the Blue House and former Minister Cho Kuk for the April 7 by-election defeat."
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 ahead of the announcement of the "Democratic Party of Korea 2030 Lawmakers' Statement" held at the National Assembly Communication Hall in Yeouido, Seoul, on the morning of the 9th. / Photo by Yonhap News
In response, former Supreme Council Member Kim emphasized, "At this rate, it is not just a problem for the presidential or general elections; the party's very existence is at risk," adding, "There is a concern that it could undermine diversity within the party. Those in the party leadership should firmly urge restraint." Although second- and third-term lawmakers gathered to prepare party reform measures after the first-term lawmakers' statements, the tone of reflection and reform is fading due to backlash from the party's hardline supporters.
Former Supreme Council Member Kim also addressed the Cho Kuk incident, saying, "The Democratic Party did not lose the election solely because of the Cho Kuk incident. However, it is certainly one of the causes of defeat," and pointed out, "The Democratic Party was believed to be a party that values 'fairness' more than the People Power Party, but the Cho Kuk incident was the starting point that decisively shook that belief."
He continued, "If there is sincerity, an apology must be specific," and stressed, "The party must thoroughly analyze the flow that caused the Democratic Party to lose trust among the general public and establish measures to prevent such misjudgments in the future."
Meanwhile, Kim Haeyoung, who entered the 20th National Assembly as a first-term lawmaker, is considered a principled figure who delivers harsh criticism toward the party alongside fellow former Democratic Party members Cho Eungcheon and Park Yongjin, as well as former member Geum Taeseop, who left the party, collectively known as 'Jogeumbakhae.'
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