'Orderly internal review a step toward overcoming the issue within the party'
'Accountability questions will resolve themselves naturally'
Democratic Party of Korea leader Kim Min-seok said Thursday that even if the results of the party's internal probe into allegations of Shincheonji church members infiltrating the party had been made fully public, it would have triggered "the same or even greater controversy internally."
Speaking on the Democratic Party's YouTube channel "Minti07" that day, Kim addressed the backlash over the decision not to release the probe's findings publicly. "I feel sorry, grateful, and frankly quite uncomfortable toward our party members," he said.
Kim said the issue had been difficult to handle from the start. "When the Shincheonji matter was first raised, it was uncomfortable, and it remained so throughout the investigation and now the resolution process," he said. "The question of religious interference in politics — interference within the party itself — is genuinely not an easy problem to resolve."
Kim said the party had chosen a less disruptive path. "We opted for a relatively less shocking and more orderly approach — allowing members to review the findings internally, identify concerns, and then work through how to address them institutionally and through the party's own capabilities," he said. "We intend to work through it that way."
Kim also said he was not greatly concerned about questions of accountability. "The question of whether something without any basis was raised — that is a separate matter and one I think will resolve itself naturally," he said. "The core issue will take a little time, but I proposed one approach and the lawmakers accepted it at the general assembly."
He added that the approach was better suited to the party's current priorities. "As we enter the regular session of the National Assembly, I believe this is the relatively better path for consolidating the party internally and focusing on people's livelihoods," Kim said. "We will handle livelihood issues as livelihood issues, while also resolving this matter."
Earlier, the Democratic Party had convened a general assembly of lawmakers on Tuesday and initially agreed to release the results of its internal Shincheonji probe. Kim then apologized and the plan was revised, with individual lawmakers allowed to review the findings privately instead. Allies of Jung Chung-rae have continued to push back, demanding a public apology from Kim and commensurate accountability.
Meanwhile, Kim reiterated that the party had decided to defer taxation on virtual asset income. "There is broad agreement that moving ahead with taxation while the basic framework law — the Digital Asset Basic Act — has yet to be enacted would create various problems," he said. "Since the National Assembly must make the final call on this, we have conveyed that position to the government."
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