Opposition Tensions as Working-Level Talks Begin... People Power Party "Almost Agreed," People's Party "Need to Discuss Missing Parts"

On the morning of the 22nd, at the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul, Seong Il-jong, the head of the People Power Party (right), and Kwon Eun-hee, the head of the People Party, are greeting each other during a working-level negotiation meeting related to the merger of the People Power Party and the People Party.
[Photo by Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Jun-yi] The People Power Party and the People’s Party, which showed differences over the merger, held their first working-level negotiation meeting amid tension. On this day, both sides agreed on the principle of a "party-to-party merger that expands values" after discussions and also tentatively agreed to regularize working-level talks.

The working-level negotiation teams of the two parties gathered on the morning of the 22nd at the National Assembly main building for their first working-level negotiation meeting. Before the meeting, the People Power Party’s team emphasized the existing ‘Joo Ho-young plan’ and expressed their intention to quickly finalize the merger, but the People’s Party’s team hinted that many issues could be discussed in the future by suggesting to address the ‘scope of absence of discussion.’

Seong Il-jong, head of the People Power Party’s working-level negotiation team, said, "Ahn Cheol-soo, the great political leader and representative of the People’s Party, declared the merger with former floor leader Joo Ho-young and opened a great path for the people," adding, "Since the two have already reached some agreement on practical matters, I think many practical issues will be discussed during today’s negotiation." This implies a desire to quickly conclude negotiations according to the previously agreed ‘Joo Ho-young plan.’ Former lawmaker Lee Jae-young of the People Power Party also supported a swift agreement, saying, "Since about 90-95% of the agreement has already been reached, we will strive for a smooth merger at the working level."

On the other hand, the People’s Party left open the possibility of further discussions. Kwon Eun-hee, head of the People’s Party’s working-level negotiation team, said, "We have gathered the will of party members to promote a principled merger and have reached a consensus with former floor leader Joo on that matter," but added, "We will proceed with working-level consultations to address the scope of absence of discussion."

After 1 hour and 20 minutes of discussion, the working-level teams of both parties announced that they "agreed on the principle of a party-to-party merger that expands values." They also decided to hold regular meetings every Tuesday at 10 a.m. and to meet as needed for additional discussions.

Regarding the issue of changing the party name, which had previously caused differences between the two parties, they said, "It was mentioned during the discussion process, and we plan to continue meeting and include it in future discussions."