"Disclose Everything" - Kim Min-seok Confrontation Reveals Fissures in Democratic Party Leadership

The Democratic Party of Korea's leadership clashed publicly over allegations of mass entry by Shincheonji followers into the party. At the Supreme Council meeting presided over by Chairman Kim Min-seok, senior members raised their voices against each other, revealing factional conflicts within the party as rifts within leadership itself.

According to political circles on the 23rd, at the Democratic Party's Supreme Council meeting held at the National Assembly that day, Senior Member Lee Sung-yoon argued, "We must disclose the investigation results regarding the Shincheonji involvement allegations, which have divided our party and wounded party members, to the people and party members as they are."

Then Senior Member Park Seon-won, who had served as head of the task force for party membership reorganization, retorted, "Fine, disclose everything." At the end of the meeting, he even stated directly to Chairman Kim, "We will disclose everything. I am responsible for this. Why shouldn't we?" expressing his intention to make the announcement himself.

With Chairman Kim appearing bewildered, the leadership switched to a closed-door meeting, and the investigation results were not immediately disclosed.

This conflict stemmed from allegations of "anti-reformism, divisionism, and a secret Shincheonji alliance" raised by Chairman Kim during the party's national convention last August.

Subsequently, the Democratic Party formed a task force and began its investigation. On the 13th, media reports indicated that an estimated 30,000 to 50,000 Shincheonji followers had joined the Democratic Party. However, specific membership numbers and whether organizational involvement occurred have not been disclosed.

Senior Members Lee, classified as belonging to the "pro-Jung Cheong-rae" faction, Choi Min-hee, and former Chairman Jung Cheong-rae are demanding disclosure of the investigation results. In contrast, Chairman Kim and other leadership members argue that careful review is necessary considering the possibility of deepening internal party conflict.

Senior Spokesperson Park Sung-jun stated that day, "There was some consensus among senior members not to announce it," but added, "further discussion is needed."

This confrontation is also leading to controversy over Chairman Kim's intra-party leadership. This is because public expressions of internal leadership conflict have surfaced amid ongoing controversies surrounding Gyeonggi Province Governor Choi Mi-ae's recent "fire department financial straw" remarks and party-level warning measures.

As the leadership cannot even agree on whether to disclose investigation results regarding allegations raised directly by the party chairman, assessments suggest that Chairman Kim Min-seok's intra-party integration and leadership control are being tested over two months into his tenure.