Former North Korean diplomat announces bid for Assembly seat

Former North Korean diplomat Thae Yong-ho, center, smiles after a press conference at the National Assembly, Tuesday, to announce his bid for the April 15 general election as a member of the main opposition Liberty Party of Korea (LKP). He is joined by LKP Chairman Hwang Kyo-ahn, right, and former National Assembly Speaker Kim Hyung-o, leader of the LKP panel for selecting election candidates. Korea Times photo by Bae Woo-han

By Do Je-hae

Former North Korean diplomat Thae Yong-ho who defected to the South in 2016, has announced his bid for the April 15 general election, saying his winning of a National Assembly seat will show South Korea's matured democracy to North Koreans and eventually expedite unification.

Thae, a former minister at the North Korean Embassy in London and the highest-ranking diplomat to defect to the South, will join the race as a member of the main opposition Liberty Korea Party (LKP). He arrived here with his family three years ago and has found a new life as an analyst on North Korea affairs. With his unique background, he could likely emerge as one of the key figures to watch in the elections.

Previously, a North Korean defector served in the Assembly as a proportional representation lawmaker; but Thae will be the first to run in a constituency, according to former Assembly Speaker Kim Hyong-o, who leads the LKP's candidate selection panel. Thae is expected to run in a constituency in southern Seoul where the LKP has strong support.

He said that one of the biggest reasons for participating in the election was his “deep frustration” at the North Korea policy of the Moon Jae-in administration.

“After starting my life in Seoul, I tried to explain the North Korean regime's strategies and intentions to the outside world and have them reflected in government policy. Unfortunately, the current policies on North Korea and unification have gone in the wrong direction. I have been deeply frustrated by this,“ the former diplomat said during a press conference at the Assembly, Tuesday.

He expressed his wish to heal the deep division among conservatives and liberals in South Korea. “After observing Korean society, one of the most remarkable things was a dichotomous way of thinking that liberals are pro-unification and conservatives are anti-unification. If such misunderstandings and hatred toward each other continue in the form of a South-South confrontation, we will never be able to overcome our fate as a divided nation. One of the reasons I will be running in the general election is to contribute to our society in overcoming division and taking one step closer to unification.”

He said that his election could reassure North Koreans of a life in the South, and that's why he chose to become a candidate of a constituency, not a proportional representative. “By being elected by voters of a district, I want to show my former North Korean diplomat colleagues and workers overseas who will watch the situation via the internet, and moreover to all North Korean citizens, how a true free democratic system and representative democracy work,” he said.

“If North Korean people and elite see that a life-long North Korean diplomat, Thae Yong-ho, can become the representative of a district elected by South Korean people as an Assemblyman, this will speed up unification.”

Thae, who has consistently denounced the Kim Jong-un regime, said his activities have not been restricted or interfered with by the Moon administration, which has been seeking engagement with the North.

But he was negative about current North Korea policy, commenting, “As I have always said, North Korean leader Kim Jong-un does not have any real determination for denuclearization.”

He said that his experience and knowledge of the North Korean regime gives him an advantage in establishing realistic policies on North Korea. “I hope the Moon government will regard me not as an opposition candidate but as a partner in unification policy,” he said.