"30 Seats in General Election" Kim Jong-in and Geum Tae-seop Launch Third Zone Forum

Kim Jong-in "People Must Awaken for New Politics and Forces to Emerge"
Geum Tae-seop "If Failed Presidents Keep Appearing, It's a System Problem"

The 'Reflection and Exploration Forum Preparation Meeting for a Different Future,' which includes former People Power Party Emergency Committee Chairman Kim Jong-in and former lawmaker Geum Tae-seop, held a public debate and officially launched on the 18th. This is effectively a declaration to create a third political bloc, drawing attention as to whether it will lead to the formation of a new party in the future.

After the debate, former People Power Party Emergency Committee Chairman Kim Jong-in told reporters, "Progressive and conservative parties have been in power for 20 years, but nothing substantial has been achieved," citing examples such as the increasing number of basic livelihood security recipients, the lowest happiness index, low birth rates, and suicide rates. He said, "If politics cannot solve these problems, the people will awaken, and new politics and new forces can emerge."

Regarding the immediate possibility of forming a new party, former lawmaker Geum drew a line. Geum said, "Having been involved in and observed the third political bloc movement since 2012, it seems that rushing it is not the way," adding, "It is a very difficult task, and although politicians share similar concerns, it is not easy to break out practically. I will speak more as preparations progress."

Former Emergency Response Committee Chairman of the People Power Party, Kim Jong-in, is speaking at the 'Reflection and Exploration Forum for a Different Future' held at the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul, on the 18th. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

At the debate, former lawmaker Geum stated that they aim to create a value-centered party rather than a personality-centered one. He said, "Since the 2012 Ahn Cheol-soo phenomenon, after the impeachment and the Moon Jae-in government took office, and now with the Yoon Seok-youl government, political parties have not talked about the direction our society should take or the issues politics should address. Instead, they have only said, 'This person is excellent,' or 'This person will solve our problems,'" adding, "But once a person becomes president, people only watch that person's mouth. The same phenomenon continues now." He continued, "When asked who will participate in the forum, it is fine if people with open minds join, but if it becomes personality-centered, it will fail."

At the debate held that day, former Chairman Kim criticized both major parties collectively. Kim said, "The president should strive to fulfill promises made to the people during the term, but instead, by seizing party leadership to make the party their own, discord arises within the party," calling it "the reality of our politics today." He added, "I feel sorry for the lawmakers, but for the future of South Korea, what should politics do? Most politicians have become people who only watch others' reactions," criticizing them.

He continued, "We have had nine National Assembly elections, but no true leader has emerged," saying, "You can see this from our party ecosystem. New things cannot arise within parties." As an example, he mentioned 'Youth Power,' an internal organization of the People Power Party. He said, "While leading the emergency committee, I tried to nurture young people, but somehow it fizzled out and disappeared without a trace," emphasizing, "When the ruling party forms, it only creates a presidential-centered party, but nothing remains."

Former Emergency Response Committee Chairman of the People Power Party, Kim Jong-in, is greeting attendees at the "Reflection and Exploration Forum for a Different Future" held at the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul on the 18th. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

Former Chairman Kim criticized former President Park Geun-hye for winning the general election on the platform of 'economic democratization' but failing to implement it properly, saying, "It was all forgotten," and added, "The problem in our country is that when the ruling party has the president, the party cannot function normally and only watches the president's face." He also noted the lack of political efforts to solve issues such as low birth rates and suicide rates.

Former lawmaker Geum, who gave a presentation, criticized 'personality-centered' politics and argued for change. He explained, "When the Lee Myung-bak administration was ending, former President Park Geun-hye, who advocated 'value conservatism,' received voters' expectations. At one point, the Ahn Cheol-soo phenomenon also attracted great attention. After Park's impeachment, former President Moon Jae-in was praised for politics of integration. When the Moon administration failed to meet expectations, President Yoon Seok-youl appeared with hopes of changing politics by emphasizing 'fairness and common sense,' but he also failed to show significant change."

He added, "If failed presidents continue to appear one after another, we should think that the problem lies not with individuals but with our system," criticizing, "In a system where winner-takes-all, an imperial presidency, and the ruling party monopolizes all power and responsibility while the opposition party opposes and blocks as a rational choice, healthy and good politics cannot grow."

He also predicted the emergence of a new political force. Former lawmaker Geum said, "If a force emerges that directly points out and corrects the problems of existing politics and creates a momentum to address truly important issues, I would definitely consider supporting it," emphasizing, "Specifically, if a party capable of securing about 30 seats in the general election, mainly in the metropolitan area, appears, it could become a driving force to change Korean politics from the ground up. Voters expect such change, and personally, I believe that is the only way to make our politics different."

Democratic Party lawmaker Lee Sang-min, who also participated as a presenter, said, "Listening to former Chairman Kim, I suddenly thought it would be good if the Democratic Party I belong to and the People Power Party merged," adding, "The two parties don't seem very different." Lee said, "Their pledges are actually not much different despite some back-and-forth. They only fight for power," and suggested, "Why not merge completely into something like Together People Power or People’s Democratic Party, and then reorganize and work with other political forces to upgrade Korean politics?" He added, "Isn't this a forced choice now? People vote for Yoon Seok-youl because they dislike Lee Jae-myung, and vote for Lee Jae-myung because they dislike Yoon Seok-youl. We need to break out of this vicious cycle of forced choices."

The possibility of forming a new party was also mentioned. Lee said, "Both major parties are hated by the people, but if a new political behavior is shown with fresh slogans, they will surely receive support, cheers, and trust," adding, "I think starting with a loose and gradual coalition rather than immediately forming a party with great determination is also fine." He said, "Various minority factions can later unite and exert great influence when forming a negotiation group in the National Assembly," emphasizing, "The gathering, courage, and passion of centrists are needed."

Meanwhile, on the same day, pro-Lee Jun-seok faction People Power Party lawmaker Kim Woong and others also attended, hinting at the possibility of joining.