"Democratic Party and Leader Lee Jae-myung Stand at a Crossroads of Fate"
"Lee Jae-myung, Please Order the Party to Approve the Arrest Motion"
"If Rejected, the Party Will Be Devastated... The Only Way to Save It Is Lee Jae-myung's Sacrifice"
[Asia Economy Reporter Naju-seok] Former Emergency Committee Chair of the Democratic Party, Park Ji-hyun, advised Representative Lee Jae-myung on the 16th to pass the arrest consent bill and undergo the warrant hearing. Former Chair Park said, "The key to overcoming this chaos is 'sacrifice,'" and advised, "Politicians who sacrifice and a decisive Lee Jae-myung must be shown to the people."
Former Chair Park stated through social media (SNS) on the same day, "I appeal to Representative Lee with the resolve to endure ten, even a hundred times more insults and criticisms than I have heard so far," adding, "The arrest consent bill must be passed. As promised during the presidential election, the parliamentary immunity must be waived, and all Democratic Party members must participate in the vote on the arrest consent bill and strongly be instructed to cast affirmative votes."
Referring to the prosecution's request for an arrest warrant for Representative Lee on the same day, she advised, "The Democratic Party and Representative Lee Jae-myung stand at a crossroads of fate. How the Democratic Party handles the arrest consent bill will determine the fate of both the party and Representative Lee."
Former Chair Park said, "We want not a Lee Jae-myung who runs away from power, but a Lee Jae-myung who sacrifices himself to protect the people," and added, "Politicians who sacrifice and a decisive Lee Jae-myung must be shown to the people."
She warned, "If the arrest consent bill is rejected, the prosecution will indict without detention," and said, "The vicious cycle of fake news, separate warrant requests, disclosure of suspect facts, and rejection of the arrest consent bill will continue, leaving the Democratic Party and Representative Lee Jae-myung in ruins."
Former Chair Park said, "Even if it is a ruthless regime, it will not be easy to detain the opposition leader," and added, "If the court dismisses the warrant, the investigation cannot proceed any further." She then asserted, "What they want is the rejection of the arrest consent bill, not the detention of Representative Lee."
She said, "Depending on Representative Lee's decision, the people will realize that we are living under a prosecution dictatorship and that South Korea's democracy has reverted to the Park Chung-hee era," and added, "The only way to save the Democratic Party, the people, and democracy is Representative Lee's sacrifice."
Former Chair Park recalled, "There is a phrase Representative Lee said to me before that I cannot forget: 'The people are the smartest, and we must trust the collective intelligence of the people,'" and said, "Even if he is arrested immediately, we must believe that the people will protect him." She urged, "Representative Lee's decision will determine not only the future of the Democratic Party but also the future of South Korea. The key to overcoming this chaos is 'sacrifice.' That is the way for both the Democratic Party and Representative Lee to survive."
Meanwhile, Democratic Party lawmaker Lee Sang-min also stated on KBS Radio's Choi Kyung-young's Strong Current on the same day, "Rather than passing the arrest consent bill through the current legal procedure, it is cleaner to go directly to the court for the warrant hearing, like People Power Party lawmaker Kwon Seong-dong," and argued, "Whether it is appropriate to demand this from Representative Lee should be discussed within the party."
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