Hong-geun Park: "Kwon Seong-dong makes baseless claims, no possibility of dialogue... Will meet if he apologizes"

Park Hong-geun, floor leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, is attending the Emergency Measures Committee meeting held at the National Assembly on the 22nd and delivering opening remarks. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

[Asia Economy Reporter Naju-seok] Park Hong-geun, the floor leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, reiterated on the 22nd that he would return to the negotiation channel to discuss the organization of the National Assembly only if Kwon Seong-dong, the floor leader of the People Power Party, issues an apology.

After visiting the Korea Inclusive Finance Agency as part of the Livelihood Priority Practice Team's field visit schedule, Park met with reporters and said, "He (Floor Leader Kwon) even used expressions like 'What apology? I'm sulking.' How can the leader of the ruling party keep making such frivolous remarks one after another?" He added, "He should take an attitude of unlimited responsibility. This is not child's play."

He continued, "Is the issue of organizing the second half of the National Assembly about who is sulking or not?" and said, "He himself started the political conflict by distorting facts and spreading falsehoods. Both sides should be careful with their words, fix the mistakes, and speed up negotiations. How can any dialogue be possible if one insists on unreasonable claims?"

He added, "There will be no negotiations today," and said, "I will wait for an apology, and if there is one, we will meet."

Regarding the possibility of electing the Speaker of the National Assembly solely by the Democratic Party, Park said, "As I have said many times, all possibilities are open to us," and "We will wait and see a little longer."

Earlier, Park had proposed a candid meeting with Kwon, but Kwon withdrew the meeting proposal after confirming Park's remarks. At a party event that day, Kwon said, "(The Democratic Party) is continuing the conflict by demanding conditions unrelated to the organization of the National Assembly that we cannot accept," and added, "They are asking to mutually withdraw lawsuits filed during the presidential election, all of which are related to Representative Lee Jae-myung," and said, "This is a political move to save Representative Lee."