[Interview] Hwang Woo-yeo: "If the Conservative Party Fails to Maintain Legitimacy, Division Will Follow"

"Party Convention to Be Held Sooner Than August for Democratic Party"
"Yoon Should Pay Attention to Low Birthrate, Environment, and Unification Discourse"

"This emergency response committee cannot be distinguished as either a management type or a reform type. We will follow the requirements and procedures according to the party constitution and regulations for revising the rules of the party convention."

Hwang Woo-yeo, the emergency response committee chairman of the People Power Party, said this in an interview with Asia Economy at the central party office in Yeouido, Seoul, on the 8th. Regarding the timing of the party convention, he said, "The Democratic Party of Korea will hold its party convention in August. We will not fall behind that."

Chairman Hwang is known as a leader who values compromise but is also strong-willed and practical. Nicknamed 'Eodangpal' (meaning '8th dan party leader' despite appearing naive), Hwang said with his characteristic smile, "Mayor Hong Joon-pyo of Daegu and Representative Yoon Sang-hyun are fighting now. Mayor Hong says, 'What kind of leader are you? Step down quickly,' and Representative Yoon attacks daily, saying, 'Why is there no reform and nothing is being done?' But if we try to fight, things will fall apart. We can defend by receiving strength from one side to the other and vice versa."

Hwang Woo-yeo, Emergency Response Committee Chairman of the People Power Party, is giving an interview to Asia Economy at the party headquarters in Yeouido, Seoul on the 8th. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

Hwang, a former judge, was elected as a proportional representative for the New Korea Party in the 15th National Assembly and served five consecutive terms until the 19th. He held all key party positions, from deputy chairman of the policy committee of the Grand National Party to secretary-general, floor leader, and served as the first Saenuri Party leader for two years during the 19th National Assembly. We first asked him how he views the nature of the emergency response committee.

There seems to be much debate about whether the emergency committee is a management type or a reform type.

In the past, emergency committees were management types. When the party leader was vacant, the floor leader acted as interim. Then, when Park Geun-hye was invited as emergency committee chairman to reform the party, the party constitution was changed. She was granted stronger powers than the party leader, enough to run for president. Since then, there has been no management-type emergency committee chairman. To avoid delays in holding the party convention, the term was set to six months for the first term. Former emergency committee chairman Kim Jong-in was guaranteed one year initially. I have no intention of doing that.

There seems to be a strong sense of crisis.

We failed twice in general elections. This time, we barely secured the constitutional amendment blocking line. The National Assembly's advanced legislative procedure law has been nullified. As the ruling party, we deeply feel the crisis as a legislative body and must consider whether we have failed to understand public sentiment. The people are the most fearful entity. In that regard, we feel a sense of crisis and must start anew. We have no choice but to thoroughly analyze the causes.

There is ongoing discussion about the timing of the party convention.

If we want to hold the party convention at the end of June, the election campaign committee must be launched by May 20. But there are opinions about the convention rules now. Considering various opinions, even if it starts after the floor leader election on the 13th, can it be arranged within a week? Thinking this way, a delay of one or two weeks is expected. When asked if it would then be completed in July, I asked not to cut off the discussion repeatedly. The Democratic Party will hold its convention in early to mid-August. We will not lag behind that. That is, in a way, the deadline. If fierce debates and noise occur, it is uncertain, but I think we should not be later than the Democratic Party.

Are you also open to discussing revisions to the convention rules?

Of course. It is inappropriate for me to comment on either side. Instead, if we properly organize the requirements and procedures according to the party constitution and regulations, that will suffice. We should not overcomplicate things and proceed steadily. As the executive body, we will faithfully and diligently execute. We must act neutrally and can do nothing else. I will discuss well with the emergency committee members and execute accordingly.

How will you appoint emergency committee members?

Generally, I said I would arrange well, and there are four to six appointed members. I have discussed this with floor leader Yoon Jae-ok. When the new floor leader comes, I do not know what Yoon will think, but I want to hear the new leader's opinion once.

You emphasize the need to restore the conservative party's original identity day after day.

I hope we maintain the legitimacy of the only conservative party. Otherwise, even we could be divided.

There is criticism that you are giving up on expanding the party's base.

Such criticism certainly exists. But when we recruited Lee Jae-oh and Kim Moon-soo before, they joined because they agreed with our values. To bring them in, there was a difficult and narrow path with a hard process of persuasion. But now, we seem to be ashamed of our own values.

Is freedom the most important value of conservatism?

People may think differently. I plan to suggest to the Yeouido Institute (People Power Party think tank) to create a 'manifesto' (a concrete action plan). Although it is included in our platform, if we make it more specific, such as 'we uphold this well, and deviation from this is considered a distortion of conservatism,' it could serve as a criterion. This could be a standard to judge whether something is conservative or not. Conservative parties should also feel threatened. Things are different from before. Public sentiment is shaken through social network services (SNS). Unlike before, people do not endure silently, so something can happen in an instant.

Hong Cheol-ho, Senior Secretary for Political Affairs at the Presidential Office (right), visited the People Power Party headquarters in Yeouido, Seoul on the 7th to present a congratulatory flower arrangement to Hwang Woo-yeo, the Emergency Response Committee Chairman, on his inauguration. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

What should the president do going forward?

In diplomacy and defense, I believe the president has achieved immortal accomplishments. Going forward, we need to address issues like low birthrate, environmental problems, and discourse on unification. Although much effort is being made, concrete economic achievements should be delivered in the next three years. There is also a need to raise a banner for national unity like the 'Government of the People.'

What goals do you have in leading the emergency committee?

Even if it is just for a day, the emergency committee chairman should manage party affairs as he thinks best. I have many thoughts in my mind, but I plan to discuss and proceed with the emergency committee members.