Outspoken political commentator joins Justice Party again

Political commentator Chin Jung-kwon / Korea Times file

Minor opposition candidate Sim Sang-jung seeks breakthrough in presidential bid

By Jung Da-min

An outspoken political commentator has joined the minor opposition Justice Party again, two years after he left the progressive political group to protest its approval of the Moon Jae-in government's appointment of former Justice Minister Cho Kuk, when the corruption scandals surrounding the former minister and his wife had reached a fever pitch.

Political commentator Chin Jung-kwon, who has long represented narratives of the country's progressive bloc, wrote on his Facebook, Friday: “I'll side with Sim Sang-jung. I'm rejoining the Justice Party. I'll look for what I can do to help young politicians from behind the scenes, for the reconstruction of the country's progressive bloc.”

The leadership of the Justice Party welcomed Chin's return.

Justice Party leader Yeo Young-kug, also posted to his Facebook on the same day: “The Justice Party is urged to make its identity as a progressive party more clear, while also expanding the scope of its support base. We would welcome those rejoining or newly joining the party with gratitude, while dealing with related procedures based on the party's regulations.”

Chin rejoined the Justice Party as the party and its presidential candidate Sim Sang-jung struggle to win more support from the public.

Sim, a four-term lawmaker and a veteran politician, is running for her fourth presidential campaign ahead of the election to be held March 9, but her support rate has remained at less than five percent in recent opinion polls.

Sim Sang-jung, presidential candidate of the minor opposition progressive Justice Party, speaks during a policy debate event of presidential candidates held at the Korea Press Center in central Seoul, Thursday. Joint Press Corps

Sim had been on a break from election campaigning to overhaul her strategies from Jan. 12 and resumed campaigning on Jan. 17, vowing to focus more on social minority groups including workers subject to poor conditions, women struggling to achieve social equality and the disabled fighting for their basic rights.

The presidential competition had mainly been about the race between the rival candidates of the country's two major parties, Lee Jae-myung of the ruling liberal Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) and Yoon Suk-yeol of the main opposition People Power Party (PPP). But Ahn Cheol-soo, the presidential candidate and leader of the minor opposition conservative People's Party has recently risen as a third candidate with a growing support rate.

Vowing to help Sim find a breakthrough in the presidential competition, Chin also expressed support for the Justice Party strengthening its feminism policies, while criticizing the PPP and Yoon's election camp for unjustly taking advantage of gender conflicts by promoting policies focusing on the rights of young male voters only, while excluding discussions on women's rights.

“The essence of politics is to come up with ideas to solve social conflicts, but some political forces are unjustly using such conflicts for their own political gains, which is very disappointing,” Chin said during a phone interview with local newspaper The Hankyoreh.

Chin left the Justice Party in January 2020, accusing it of remaining silent about the corruption scandals of former minister Cho, including accusations that he and his wife used their influence to secure certificates and other qualifications for their children to ensure their acceptance to top universities.

In a radio interview with local broadcaster MBC, Jan. 18, Sim said it was “the most painful misjudgment” in her political career over the past two decades that the Justice Party under her leadership did not issue a critical message on the corruption scandals of the former minister.