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| Eight Bareun Party lawmakers announce their decision to defect to the main opposition Liberty Korea Party during a press conference at the National Assembly, Monday. From left are Reps. Hong Chul-ho, Kim Yong-tae, Kang Ghil-boo, Lee Jong-koo, Kim Young-woo, Hwang Young-cheul, Kim Moo-sung and Cheong Yang-seog. Rep. Joo Ho-young did not join the conference but he also decided to defect to the LKP. / Yonhap |
By Kim Hyo-jin
Nine lawmakers bolted from the minor conservative Bareun Party, Monday, vowing to rejoin the bigger conservative Liberty Korea Party (LKP).
The number of the Bareun Party's seats dwindled to 11 in the 299-member National Assembly, and the party lost its status as a legislative negotiating bloc, which requires 20 lawmakers at a minimum.
When the move is complete, the number of LKP members will grow to 116.
The lawmakers claimed there is a need to reunite the fractured conservative bloc so it can rein in the liberal Moon Jae-in government and the ruling party.
"Powerlessly, we are witnessing the self-righteousness of the Moon government. It's because the conservatives remain fractured with no pivotal power," they said during a press conference.
"For the future of the country, we believe conservative forces should be united, overcoming conflict and internal divisions."
They also admitted the Bareun Party failed to offer a conservative alternative to the LKP.
"Though we launched a new party with the aim of reforming the conservatives it failed to draw strong public support. What is left is the responsibility of splitting the conservative bloc."
The lawmakers said they will submit their written notifications of the move to the Bareun Party, Wednesday, and make a formal request to join the LKP, Thursday. They include Reps. Kim Moo-sung, Kim Young-woo, Kim Yong-tae, Kang Ghil-boo and Hwang Young-cheul.
Rep. Joo Ho-young, the incumbent floor leader of the Bareun Party, said he will join the LKP after the party's national convention, Nov. 13, at which it is scheduled to elect its new leader. He has taken the role of acting chief of the splinter party since former Chairwoman Rep. Lee Hye-hoon stepped down in September due to a corruption scandal.
The decision came after Bareun Party lawmakers failed to reconcile their differences over the issue of merging the party with the LKP.
The pro-merger faction led by Rep. Kim Moo-sung has pushed for uniting with the LKP while seeking to delay the party's leadership election. But the anti-merger members led by Rep. Yoo Seong-min opposed, claiming they should stay on the path to a new conservatism.
They held a meeting Sunday in last-minute efforts to persuade each other, but to no avail.
Their split was also propelled by the LKP's expulsion of the ousted former President Park Geun-hye and her loyalists Friday, a step the pro-merger Bareun Party members had called for as a precondition for their return to the LKP.
For the defectors, reconciliation with the pro-Park Geun-hye faction in the LKP is likely to be a challenge, political watchers say.
Some lawmakers still loyal to the ex-president remain disgruntled with Kim and his fellow lawmakers, who backed the impeachment of Park.
The returners are expected to build a "cooperative relationship" with LKP Chairman Hong Joon-pyo who has engaged in a faceoff with the pro-Park faction.
Both are in need of expanding influence in the party especially ahead of the floor leadership election in December so they can deter pro-Park members from winning the seat.
Meanwhile, the Bareun Party has a tough road ahead as the speculation is high that more lawmakers could abandon the party.
Shortly before the defection announcement, three contenders gave up their candidacy in the Bareun Party's chairmanship race, saying it could give momentum for party unity. Their withdrawal left Reps. Yoo and Ha Tae-keung and former lawmaker Chung Moon-hun in the contest.
The ruling Democratic Party of Korea denounced the defection as a move motivated only by political interest, saying it will receive a cold shoulder from the people.
"They deserted the cause of their earlier defection in search of their own survival," spokesman Rep. Park Wan-joo said.
Some say, with the extra defections, the LKP may step up as the largest party in the Assembly. The DPK has 121 seats now.
