Park Ji-won is a writer for The Korea Times who has been covering a wide range of topics from Korea’s culture to its politics. An avid journalism enthusiast to the core, Ji-won brings a thoughtful and unique perspective to every topic she covers. On weekends, you'll often find her contemplating life’s purpose on a yoga mat — with a cup of quality tea in hand. A native Korean speaker by birth and fluent in English through her work, she went to college in Japan and is learning Chinese and French — hoping to add Polish, Russian and Thai to the mix.
BMP internal strife deepens over by-election results
The minor opposition Bareunmirae Party holds a party meeting at the National Assembly, Wednesday, without its three Supreme Council members ― Rep. Ha Tae-keung, Lee Jun-seok and Kwon Eun-hee ― who are boycotting the meeting calling for a confidence vote on the leadership body following the defeat in the April 3 by-elections. / Yonhap
By Park Ji-won
By Park Ji-won
Bareunmirae Party (BMP) Chairman Sohn Hak-kyu is facing calls to resign from his post as a factional feud is deepening inside the third-largest party over disappointing results from the April 3 by-election.
Three Supreme Council members ― Rep. Ha Tae-keung, Lee Jun-seok and Kwon Eun-hee ― began boycotting party meetings on Sunday, demanding a confidence vote on Sohn. The chairman led campaigns for the party's candidate Lee Jae-hwan in Seongsan-gu, Changwon, South Gyeongsang Province, but he gained only 3.57 percent of the votes.
The three members are asking Sohn to take responsibility for the defeat, but Sohn has instead called for unity to ensure a smooth transition to next year's general election.
“It took 10 months since the current leadership body was formed, but there is no specific direction for the 2020 general elections and support rate increase. If the leadership body cannot create those, I think the party should hold a confidence vote on it or it should resign,” Lee said, reaffirming his determination during a radio interview, Wednesday. Ha said he will hold a national convention to hold the confidence vote.
Sohn, however, will likely try to remain in place, expressing regret Wednesday for what happened in the party while rejecting the calls for his resignation.
“I hope party members calm down and understand each other. I will lead the party in that manner as well,” Sohn said Wednesday. He also urged the three to participate in the Supreme Council meetings so they can lead the party together.
Following the differences, rumors circulated again the party will split into pieces and merge with other parties. Even some members of the Party for Democracy and Peace (PDP), which split off from the People's Party and rooted in the traditionally progressive Jeolla provinces, have proposed some BMP lawmakers join hands with them.
It appears the internal clashes lie with the creation of the party, which was a result of the merger of two parties with different political ideologies ― the People's Party led by Ahn Cheol-soo which pursued so-called “reasonable progress,” and the Bareun Party led by Yoo Seong-min which pursued “reformist” conservatives. It is said the two parties failed to narrow the differences between members and map out a new political direction.
The three, who are boycotting the party's meetings, are from the Bareun Party.
The minor liberal People's Party and the minor conservative Bareun Party merged last year to secure the third-largest portion, claiming to eradicate the hegemony of regionalism and ideology in the nation. Yoo and Ahn jointly led the party at the time. The People's Party had broken away from the ruling Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) while the Bareun Party had broken away from the Saenuri Party, predecessor of the main opposition Liberty Korea Party (LKP).
The strife between the two factions has continued whenever conflicts arose.
Members of the two former parties disagreed about electoral reform and fast-tracking key bills. The current leadership body led by Sohn has pushed for fast-tracking bills, but the lawmakers from the Bareun Party opposed it.
Eyes are on whether the co-founders of the party, Yoo and Ahn, will come forward to settle the continuing disputes. Yoo is refraining from making political remarks after stepping down from the co-chair post after a defeat in the June local elections. Likewise, Ahn is taking a break from political life staying in Germany after his defeat as Seoul mayoral candidate for the BMP in the same election.
Ahn had initially planned to return to Korea in September, but calls are rising for his early return to settle the dispute. Ha has been urging Ahn to come back as early as possible as he is de facto leader of the faction and responsible for the current strife.