Liberal parties split over creating coalition

By Lee Tae-hoon

Amid growing discord within liberal forces, the main opposition Democratic Party (DP) and the Innovation and Combination (IC), a new civic group supporting the launch of a coalition, have unveiled a roadmap for creating a new unified party.

DP officials said Monday the two have agreed to hold the first joint meeting of opposition camps and liberal groups on Nov. 20 and a national convention to pick the leadership of the new coalition front on Dec. 17 by inviting figures from liberal parties to join the race.

They said the leaders of the DP and the IC decided to finalize the rules of picking the new leadership by Nov. 27 in a democratic process that allows other political groups to participate in the negotiation and execution of the new regulations.

DP Chairman Sohn Hak-kyu urged other liberal parties and civic groups to participate in the joint meeting and national convention, but it remains uncertain whether he will be able to unite them.

“Liberal camps in the forefront of advocating labor rights and introducing better welfare systems should take part in the (tentatively named) Democratic Liberal Coalition Party (DLCP),” he said.

The launch of the DLCP is still in the conceptual stage as the DP and other parties have yet to decide whether they will actually merge exiting parties to create a new one or form an alliance without dismantling existing parties.

Meanwhile, minor liberal parties have shown little interest in taking part in the DP-initiated move to create a coalition by the end of the year to face off the ruling Grand National Party (GNP) in National Assembly and presidential polls next year.

In fact, the three minor liberal parties, including the Democratic Labor Party and People’s Participation Party, have agreed to make a separate coalition group on fears that they will lose their vested interests in the process of a merger with the DP.

According to a survey of 81 DP lawmakers, 39 support the idea of launching a new party through the national convention slated for Dec. 17. Thirteen DP lawmakers said their party should hold its own national convention to pick its own leadership and hold another race to elect leaders of the coalition.