Novelist Jo Jung-rae and Actor Moon Sung-geun to Serve as Sponsorship Chairpersons for Jo Guk New Party

"End the Prosecutorial Regime" Former Minister Cho Kuk's Party Formation
Preparatory Committee Reports "Over 30,000 Supporters Applied for Membership"

Former Minister of Justice Cho Kuk's newly formed party, the 'Cho Kuk New Party (tentative name),' has appointed novelist Jo Jung-rae, author of the novels Taebaek Mountains and Han River, and actor Moon Sung-geun as co-chairmen of its sponsorship committee. The Cho Kuk New Party Preparatory Committee announced on the 21st, "Jo Jung-rae, a senior literary figure who is a representative novelist of Korea and has woven Korea's turbulent modern and contemporary history into long novels with elegant prose, and Moon Sung-geun, a cultural artist who led the renaissance of Korean cinema and an actor who has lived a life standing against injustice whenever Cho Kuk faced difficulties, will serve as co-chairmen of the sponsorship committee for the newly established Cho Kuk New Party."

Novelist Jo Jung-rae (left in the photo), who wrote "Taebaek Mountain Range" and "Han River," and actor Moon Sung-geun have been appointed as co-chairmen of the joint sponsorship committee for the provisional "Joguk New Party."
[Photo by Asia Economy DB]

Jo Jung-rae is known to have supported former Minister Cho Kuk from the past. In April 2022, he submitted a petition to President Moon Jae-in requesting a special pardon for Cho Kuk's wife, former Dongyang University professor Jeong Gyeong-shim. Jo Jung-rae appealed to citizens, saying, "Since this is a newly starting party, citizens who support and encourage the Cho Kuk New Party must help."

Moon Sung-geun is a prominent pro-Roh figure in the entertainment industry, having been active in groups supporting the late President Roh Moo-hyun, such as 'Nosamo (People Who Love Roh Moo-hyun)' and the Roh Moo-hyun Foundation. He once served as the acting party leader of the Democratic United Party and has experience running for the National Assembly in Busan Buk and Gangseo-eul districts. He is also well known as the son of the late democrat activist Pastor Moon Ik-hwan. On the 13th, he declared his support early by posting on his social networking service (SNS), "In the upcoming April general election, I will vote for the 'Cho Kuk New Party' in the 'party vote' for proportional representation."

Former Minister of Justice Cho Kuk is delivering a congratulatory speech at the Social Democratic Party founding report meeting held at the Roh Moo-hyun Citizen Center on the 18th.
[Photo by Social Democratic Party YouTube] [Image source=Yonhap News]

Earlier, on the 13th, former Minister Cho declared the party's founding, saying, "I will fight at the forefront to end the incompetent prosecutorial dictatorship." The Cho Kuk New Party Preparatory Committee claimed that on the 21st, the first day of officially accepting membership applications, over 30,000 supporters gathered in just one day. The committee stated, "Including pre-registrations received via email and fax before the temporary website was launched, the number reaches over 30,000. This is an unprecedentedly rapid party formation in our political history." The Cho Kuk New Party plans to hold its founding convention early next month and begin full-fledged party activities.