Justice Party: "'Proposal to Prioritize Approval of Lee Jae-myung's Arrest Motion' Is Personal Opinion... Not Party Policy"

Lee Jung-mi "Lee Jae-myung Should Confidently Face the Arrest Motion"

[Asia Economy Reporter Naju-seok] On the 13th, the Justice Party drew a line on Kim Chang-in, the leader of the Youth Justice Party's statement that "the approval of the arrest consent bill for Lee Jae-myung, the leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, should take precedence," saying it was a "(personal opinion) not the party's official stance." The party showed caution about mentioning approval before the arrest consent bill for Lee had even been submitted.

The Justice Party's Public Relations Office announced on the same day, "There have been many questions regarding articles supporting the Justice Party's approval of the arrest consent bill for Lee Jae-myung, so we are informing you accordingly."

Earlier, Kim said in a public statement at the Justice Party's Executive Committee meeting that day, "The Democratic Party is desperate to put the 'Kim Geon-hee special prosecutor' on the 'fast track,'" adding, "They must have been in a hurry ahead of the request for an arrest warrant for the leader." He continued, "The Democratic Party must prove on its own whether it is advocating the 'Kim Geon-hee special prosecutor' as a 'Lee Jae-myung shield trick,'" and said, "If they cannot, they have no right to talk about fair law enforcement. Everything has its order. Right now, the approval of the arrest consent bill for the leader should take priority."

Lee Jung-mi, leader of the Justice Party, is speaking at the Executive Committee meeting held on the 13th at the protest site in front of the National Assembly main building in Yeouido, Seoul. Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

Regarding Kim's remarks, the Justice Party explained, "The arrest consent bill for the leader has not even been submitted to the National Assembly, and the Justice Party has not yet discussed this matter or established an official party stance." They added, "However, the issue of the arrest consent bill is a matter to be judged based on our party's official stance on 'giving up the parliamentary immunity of members of the National Assembly,' which is separate from the special prosecutor issue concerning Mrs. Kim Geon-hee, and we have repeatedly made this clear."

Summarizing the Justice Party's explanation, Kim's remarks were made without internal party coordination, and the party has no official position yet on the arrest consent bill for Lee. However, the Justice Party explained that based on its existing party stance of relinquishing parliamentary immunity, it could make a judgment if the arrest consent bill for Lee is submitted. It seems they gently conveyed that the position on the arrest consent bill, which has not even been submitted yet, is a 'premature stance.' However, there are criticisms that labeling the statements of an elected party official as 'personal opinion' is not a neat way to handle it.

Earlier, Lee Jeong-mi, leader of the Justice Party, met with reporters after the Executive Committee meeting and said, "Since it has been judged by the individual and the Democratic Party that there is practically no reason for detention during the investigation process, the court's judgment should be awaited," adding, "The Justice Party has regarded the process of attending the substantive hearing of the warrant as a member of the National Assembly and contesting it as a privilege that can be refused, and the party's official stance is to give up the parliamentary immunity privilege, which was also a pledge during the leader's presidential candidacy." She continued, "To create politics trusted by the people, politicians must consistently take responsibility for their words," and said, "I believe the leader will also face the issue of the arrest consent bill confidently, just as he sincerely cooperated with the prosecution's investigation."