Encouraging Online Membership for New Political Party
Filtering Fails if Occupation Is Falsified
Election Commission Reviews Only Formal Requirements
Ahead of the 22nd general election, new political parties are encouraging online membership enrollment, but the issue of public officials, military personnel, and others who are legally prohibited from holding party membership joining parties is causing controversy. Although applicants are required to state their occupation when joining a party, there is practically no way to filter out those who falsify their occupation as office workers or employees. The National Election Commission also finds it difficult to verify, resulting in illegal memberships being tolerated.
May 12, 2022, Central Election Commission in Gwacheon-si, Gyeonggi Province. / Photo by Moon Honam munonam@
Only Formal Procedures... Election Commission Hands Off
An official from the Election Commission explained in a phone interview with Asia Economy on the afternoon of the 10th, “When registering a political party, we review a copy of the party membership application form and examine formal requirements. If the occupation is falsified, it is practically impossible to verify,” adding, “The Election Commission does not have investigative authority, so any investigation must be conducted by investigative agencies based on reports or tips.”
Under the Political Parties Act, public officials, military personnel, and citizens under the age of 16 cannot become party members. The membership application process requires submitting a membership application form, electronic document submission, or online submission as stipulated in the party constitution or regulations, to the city/provincial party or the party founding preparatory committee.
Political parties decide whether to approve membership after review by the party’s membership qualification review body and then register the member in the party membership list. The Election Commission only reviews copies of membership application forms submitted by the parties. Ultimately, both the party and the Election Commission’s reviews are merely formal procedures.
Desire for More Members... Encouraging Illegal Practices
New parties prefer online membership enrollment for rapid party formation. However, while joining is easy, leaving the party is complicated, and people who do not meet the eligibility criteria can also join easily.
In fact, the Reform Party (tentative name), promoted by former People Power Party leader Lee Jun-seok, met the central party founding requirements and the establishment requirements of seven city/provincial parties within 18 hours of launching its website. However, the Reform Party’s bulletin board has over 30 posts requesting withdrawal from membership.
A person in their 20s from Seoul, A, said, “I thought it was just a simple website membership registration, so I joined. Currently, I am an active-duty soldier, so I am not allowed to join a political party. Please help me with the withdrawal process.” B, a person in their 30s from Incheon, wrote, “I am in a profession that cannot join, so I am applying for withdrawal,” and C, a person in their 30s from Chungnam, wrote, “I didn’t know my occupation was not eligible for party membership.” D, a teenager from Seoul, said, “I am still a youth and not of age to join a political party, but I was able to join. Please tell me how to withdraw.”
There were also posts openly encouraging illegal practices as if increasing the number of members was all that mattered. A person in their 40s from Incheon, A, claimed, “The documents submitted at the party founding preparatory committee stage are not illegal. The regulation is effectively obsolete,” and “In cases of dual party membership, the Election Commission cannot verify. There has been no case of a public official being punished for holding party membership.”
The Reform Party maintains that there are no procedural problems with member recruitment. Cheon Ha-ram, the founding preparatory committee chairman of the Reform Party, said, “There is no way to verify the actual occupation of the person applying for membership. We judge only based on what is written in the occupation field,” adding, “The withdrawal procedures and methods will be announced soon.”
A request to withdraw from the party has been posted on the Reform New Party (provisional name) bulletin board. [Image source=Reform New Party official website]
The situation is similar for other parties besides the Reform Party. Accordingly, voices are emerging in the political sphere calling for the establishment of a standard method for online party membership enrollment.
Gwak Dae-jung, spokesperson for New Choice, wrote on Facebook on the 8th, “We have already completed the party founding procedures. However, even though the internet and mobile phones have been part of our lives for decades, the Political Parties Act still lacks clear standards regarding online membership enrollment,” adding, “PASS authentication has loopholes. It is possible to use a trick where Gap-dol applies for membership under Gap-soon’s name, saying, ‘Now PASS authentication will be sent to your phone, so please proceed with the verification.’”
Professor Shin Yul of Myongji University’s Department of Political Science and Diplomacy pointed out, “Public officials and military personnel joining political parties is a clear violation of the law. Even if it is impossible to filter them all in advance, they should face legal punishment if caught,” and “Online voting and membership enrollment make it difficult to uphold the principles of being ordinary, direct, secret, and equal. It is impossible to know whether the person themselves or someone else is performing the action.”
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