"I've Never Seen Him Cry Like That"... Han Donghoon Weeps at the Memorial Altar for Former Lawmaker Lee Sangmin

Han Recruited Lee as Emergency Committee Chair
From Five-Term Democratic Party Lawmaker to Joining People Power Party

Han Donghoon, former leader of the People Power Party. Photo by Jo Yongjun

Han Donghoon, former leader of the People Power Party, was reportedly moved to tears at the memorial altar of the late former lawmaker Lee Sangmin, who recently passed away from cardiac arrest. Lee was known to have had a particularly close relationship with Han, as Han personally recruited him ahead of the last general election.

On the 16th, Yoon Heeseok, former spokesperson for the People Power Party, appeared on CBS Radio's "Park Jaehong's One Pan Show" and shared that he met Han at the memorial altar for Lee Sangmin, who died of cardiac arrest at his home in Daejeon on the morning of the 15th.

Yoon said, "In fact, it was Han Donghoon who recruited Lee to our party, so he was in a particularly emotional state when he came. It was the first time I saw Han cry like that. I think it was the first time I ever saw him cry at all."

Han reportedly visited the memorial altar set up at Eulji University Hospital in Daejeon at around 8:20 p.m. on the 15th and stayed for about an hour and a half. Later, through his social media account, Han said, "When I was the emergency committee chair in January last year, we agreed that we should pursue politics with principles. We both questioned how it would be possible to do principled politics in Lee Jaemyung's Democratic Party, and that is why, with great difficulty, I invited him to join the People Power Party."

He continued, "People often say that the longer you are in politics, the more you become attached to positions rather than principles, but Lee Sangmin, who served five terms in the Democratic Party, gave up everything to uphold principles and common sense and joined us. It must have been an extremely difficult decision for him. He endured hardships after joining our party, and now, to see him leave so suddenly, I feel both guilty and heartbroken. I cannot stop my tears. I pray for the soul of the great statesman, senior Lee Sangmin."