UDP Leader Blames Party Members Over KORUS FTA

United Democratic Party leader Sohn Hak-kyu, who has a firm conviction that the free trade agreement between Korea and the United States will boost national interests, is finding himself caught between a rock and a hard place. With a majority of party members standing up against the ratification of the KORUS FTA, and the presidential office and the ruling Grand National party promising to submit the ratification of the deal to the extraordinary National Assembly session in April, he faces a critical moment in his political career.

“Inside the party, there are many who are less competent than former President Roh Moo-hyun (who succeeded in clinching the KORUS FTA),” lamented UDP Chairman Sohn. His remark meant he was unable to agree with many party members, who once shared their political fate with the former president who managed to reach the agreement despite opposition even from his staunch supporters, are now against to the ratification on the ground that it goes against their political interests.

A close aide to Sohn said on Sunday, “Chairman Sohn is pressing those who oppose the ratification to propose their own alternatives, if they are going to continue to resist expanding trade between the two countries.” He also added, “Those in favor or the deal have previously been reluctant to present their opinions. However, they are now set to raise their voices as Sohn began to take up the issue openly.”

Regarding the issue on which interests between urban and rural areas clash, the UDP is mired in a situation where its chief who are not a parliament member locks horn with many party lawmakers. As such, rather than voting based on the party’s official positions, UDP lawmakers are expected to vote based on their own opinions in the National Assembly. “When the ratification of the KORUS FTA is put to a vote in the 18th National Assembly, the Grand National Party will vote for the ratification. So, it is desirable for the UDP to take the lead in forcing the government to come up with compensation measures for victims of the FTA during the ratification process,” Sohn’s aides claim.

However, Sohn’s role as an ardent advocate of the FTA does not go down well with party members. Progressive members, including Kim Geun-tae and Chun Jung-bae explicitly expressed their dissatisfaction, saying, “After all, Sohn is the one who came from the GNP. He differs from us significantly.” Lawmakers from rural districts, such as the Jeolla and Chungcheong provinces, have expressed their opposition to the ratification. The opposition from left-leaning figures in the Seoul metropolitan area particularly rings out. Against this backdrop, the approval of the KORUS FTA is likely to trigger controversy over the party’s identity, driving Sohn into a corner ahead of the selection of the party’s floor leader in May and the party convention in June.

Facing this unfavorable development, however, Sohn has decided his course of action on the conviction that a passive response would not solve the problem, according to his close aides.

For Sohn, who should start from scratch after stepping down as party leader at the party convention in July, it is the people that he can resort to.

“These days, Sohn appears to not mind criticism from party members if he can win support from the people. I feel for him. But I believe it is not something a party leader has to do,” said one party official who once affiliated with the former Democratic Party on Friday.

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