Korea's progressive umbrella union on Tuesday announced it will withdraw support for the minor Unified Progressive Party (UPP), citing failure of the party to push forward meaningful reforms.
The decision by the Korea Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU) made after marathon discussions, comes after the UPP failed last month to pass a motion expelling Reps. Lee Seok-ki and Kim Jae-yeon, who have been accused of unfairly winning proportional representative seats during the April 11 parliamentary elections.
Lee, a leader of the so-called pro-North Korea faction within the party, also sparked a nationwide uproar when he said that South Korea does not have an official national anthem.
The failure to deal with the alleged pro-North Korea faction has fueled a fierce feud within the left-leaning party with reformist members, who make up the minority, threatening to leave and create their own political entity.
Party loyalists claimed that such a move could break up the progressive camp ahead of the critical Dec. 19 presidential election.
The KCTU action, meanwhile, is expected to impact the UPP, since the union is the single largest support base for the party. Of the UPP's 75,000 members with voting rights, 46 percent or 35,000 belong to the large umbrella union. (Yonhap)