LKP accepts Bareun Party defectors

Ex-ruling party slammed for regressing to old, pro-Park days

By Jun Ji-hye

The Liberty Korea Party (LKP), successor to the former ruling Saenuri Party, is facing criticism over two controversial decisions to lift disciplinary actions against key loyalists to former President Park Geun-hye and to accept lawmakers who defected from its splinter, the Bareun Party.

Critics say the LKP is virtually returning to the old, pro-Park party despite its earlier promise to be renovated into a new and rational conservative party. That public promise was made when the party changed its name from the Saenuri Party to the LKP in February as part of efforts to end the crisis caused by the massive corruption scandal involving Park, who was removed from office the following month.

Rep. Lee Cheol-woo, an LKP campaign chief, announced Saturday that the two decisions were made in accordance with the “special order” from the party’s presidential candidate Hong Joon-pyo.

Hong Joon-pyo

“We made the decision on Hong’s special order designed to win the election and consolidate conservative forces,” Lee told a news conference at party headquarters.

Following the decisions, disciplinary actions imposed by the party’s ethics committee against seven lawmakers, including three pro-Park figures ― Suh Chung-won, Choi kyoung-hwan and Yoon Sang-hyun ― were lifted.

The committee earlier suspended the memberships of Suh and Choi for three years and Yoon’s membership for one year to hold them responsible for the scandal.

Also, 56 people, including 13 lawmakers who defected from the Bareun Party, were allowed to return to the LKP. This increased the LKP's National Assembly seats to 107.

The defectors, including Reps. Kweon Seong-dong and Kim Sung-tae, quit the Bareun Party on May 2, to support Hong because his popularity was increasing among conservative voters, while Bareun Party candidate Yoo Seong-min was suffering from low support.

But LKP pro-Park lawmakers opposed the defectors’ return, claiming they previously left the Saenuri Party when it suffered a severe blow from Park’s corruption scandal and voted in favor of Park’s impeachment.

The two decisions came after Hong asked the party leadership to approve them, Thursday, saying, “Everyone needs to be forgiven, and we need to be consolidated into one party to win the election.”

The leadership, including floor leader Rep. Chung Woo-taik, opposed the move because of a possible adverse impact on party harmony. So the decisions, made on Hong’s special order without the leadership’s approval, are inviting criticism not only from rival parties and outside critics, but also from party members.

The Bareun Party strongly criticized the LKP, calling the decisions “backdoor dealings” that ridiculed voters ahead of the election.

“The LKP will not be able to avoid judgment by the public,” Rep. Kim Se-yeon, campaigning chief for Yoo, said Sunday.

Rep. Kim said that 13 lawmakers’ defection showed dubious morality because they had done so simply because Yoo’s popularity was lower than Hong’s.

Kim added that disciplinary actions against pro-Park figures were lifted even before they had done any self-reflection at all.

“The LKP has crippled its own ethics committee by making unethical decisions,” Kim said.