Negotiations Over Search and Seizure Related to 'Unification Church Membership' Allegations
Song Eonseok: "We Cannot Hand Over a Single Piece of Information on 5 Million Members"
On August 18, the special prosecutor's team led by Min Jungki, which is investigating various allegations related to First Lady Kim Keonhee, visited the People Power Party's office to discuss securing the party membership list and other materials. The People Power Party declared, "We will never yield to unjust political oppression or political retaliation," and added, "We cannot hand over even a single piece of personal information of our 5 million members."
According to the People Power Party, in the afternoon, the special prosecutor's team sent investigators and engineers to the party's office in the main building of the National Assembly to discuss the submission of materials, including the party membership list, for the search and seizure. Since the special prosecutor's team had previously stated its intention to consult with the party regarding the execution of the search and seizure warrant, it is interpreted that they chose to negotiate first rather than proceed with a forced search and seizure.
Members of the People Power Party, including Song Eonseok, Emergency Response Committee Chairman and Floor Leader, are shouting slogans at the on-site emergency members' meeting held in front of the Seoul Central District Court in Seocho-gu, Seoul on the 18th. Photo by Yonhap News
Kwak Gyutaek, the party's chief spokesperson and legal advisory committee member, told reporters, "The warrant, just like during the previous search and seizure, includes not only the contact information and resident registration numbers of all our party members, but also account numbers used for paying party dues, as well as information about party membership status and withdrawal dates." He added, "If they are here to execute the warrant, the People Power Party cannot comply."
Previously, on August 13, during the first attempt to execute the search and seizure, the special prosecutor's team tried to secure electronic data containing the list of party members from December 2021 to April 2024, but failed due to resistance from People Power Party officials. After attempting the search and seizure at the party's central headquarters, the special prosecutor's team changed the location to the office of the party’s secretary general in the main building of the National Assembly, requesting cooperation for an investigation to cross-check the membership lists of the Unification Church and the People Power Party.
The special prosecutor's team suspects that the Unification Church organized a campaign for its followers to join the People Power Party as members in order to help elect Kwon Seongdong, who was seen as having President Yoon's support, as party leader during the 2023 party convention. The special prosecutor explained that verifying the People Power Party's membership list is necessary to substantiate the allegations against Jeon Seongbae, also known as Geonjin Bopsa, and Yoon Youngho, former head of the Unification Church World Headquarters.
At a regular briefing, Special Prosecutor Oh Jeonghee stated, "The list comparison process does not involve checking the entire People Power Party membership list," and explained, "As far as I know, it is an internal system check for identity matching."
The People Power Party strongly objected. Song Eonseok, Emergency Response Committee Chairman and Floor Leader of the People Power Party, held an emergency members' meeting in front of the Seoul Central District Court in Seocho-gu, Seoul, and said, "The special prosecutor, acting as the enforcer for the Lee Jaemyung administration, is storming our central headquarters and trying to seize the personal information of 5 million party members in its entirety. This is an unprecedented act of violence against a political party, a clear case of opposition party oppression, and political retaliation."
After the emergency meeting, Song told reporters, "It appears that today, forensic experts and investigators from Min Jungki's special prosecutor team came. Perhaps realizing that a search and seizure of the party membership list is practically difficult, they came to the main building to discuss ways to obtain our party's cooperation." He added, "We will reconvene the general meeting of lawmakers at the National Assembly to gather opinions on how to respond to this situation and determine our course of action."
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