Can Rep. Moon revive pro-Roh faction?

By Jun Ji-hye

Rep. Moon Jae-in

Rep. Moon Jae-in, a former liberal presidential candidate and chief of staff for the late President Roh Moo-hyun, recently expressed hope for an administration change in five years time.

His remarks are seen as a signal that the lawmaker of the main opposition Democratic Party (DP) will resume political activities after months of maintaining a low profile following his defeat in the Dec. 19 presidential election.

Moon is the main figure of the pro-Roh faction within the party. The faction lost influence both inside and outside the DP following defeats in the general and presidential elections held last year.

Moon did not attend the party’s convention on May 4, but is now making statements both in public forums and via his Twitter account.

He took part in a memorial service for Roh at Seoul Plaza, Sunday, where about 8,000 supporters of the late President gathered. Thursday is the fourth anniversary of his death.

“I feel sorry about the failure to change the government. We now have to wait for five years, but we will make preparations and change the balance of power,” he said at the ceremony.

Some interpreted his comments as indications that he is willing to run in the next presidential election.

The former DP presidential candidate is also seeking to keep Ahn Cheol-soo, his backer during the presidential poll, in check. Ahn is seeking to expand his political circle by courting likeminded individuals in preparation for by-elections in October.

“What the public wants is not a struggle for power between a certain party and an influential politician,” said Moon, referring to the complex relationship between the DP and Ahn.

Ahn Hee-jung, governor of South Chungcheong Province, who has been dubbed “little Roh Moo-hyun,” joined the move, expressing his respect for the former president.

“Roh was a great president who sincerely attempted to push ahead with eradicating the unfair activities of the privileged class. I will definitely remain faithful to him to the very end,” Ahn said in an interview with a local daily, Saturday.

Analysts say the faction is seeking to recover political influence, using the fourth anniversary of Roh’s death as a turning point.

“The move is an attempt to emerge from difficult times and Moon is playing a pivotal role. Although he was beaten, he ran neck and neck with then presidential candidate Park Geun-hye. This gave the faction confidence and they might expect Moon to run again in the next poll,” said Hong Hyung-sik, a director at Hangil Research and Consulting.

Hong said, although members of faction have been excluded from the party leadership, they are set to persevere until the general election in 2016 and the presidential poll in 2017.

However, Shin Yul, a political science professor at Myungji University, is skeptical about the faction regaining enough clout to change the current political landscape.

“They are in a very disadvantageous position following consecutive unsuccessful elections. This means the people have already turned their backs on them. They seem to be deluding themselves that the situation could become better. It’s merely wistful thinking,” said Shin.

The professor added that the only election that the pro-Roh faction won was the 17th general election in 2004 when an attempt by the then opposition Grand National Party, now the Saenuri Party, to impeach Roh swayed public sentiment.