Will the 'Yoon Seok-yeol X-File' Lead to Opposition Party Division?

Song Young-gil "I Know Hong Well" Hong Joon-pyo "Regret Over Yoon's Allegations" Remarks

Lee Jun-seok "Why Create This in the Opposition?" Backlash
Kim Jae-won "Should Send Message to Help Even If Not Joining"

Former Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-yeol attended the opening ceremony of Namsan Yejang Park and the Lee Hoe-young Memorial Hall in Jung-gu, Seoul on the 9th, greeting Song Young-gil, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea. Photo by Yoon Dong-ju doso7@

[Asia Economy Reporter Hyunju Lee] Will the 'Yoon Seok-yeol X-File' become a catalyst for the opposition's division?

The People Power Party has drawn a line by demanding a direct explanation from former Prosecutor General Yoon Seok-yeol regarding the X-File, seemingly taking preemptive measures to prevent this controversy from escalating into a dispute among opposition presidential candidates. The atmosphere is particularly cautious as this coincides with the reinstatement of Representative Hong Joon-pyo, who has been delivering direct blows to former Yoon.

On the 24th, at the Supreme Council meeting, Lee Jun-seok, leader of the People Power Party, pointed out, "It was very inappropriate speculation that opposition figures would have organized the X-File, as mentioned by Song Young-gil, leader of the Democratic Party, on Kim Eo-jun's News Factory." Lee said, "Who in the opposition, when, where, how, and why would have created and distributed the X-File?" He added, "When pointing fingers at the opposing party or opposing forces on politically sensitive matters, one must at least raise suspicions based on the basic journalistic principles of who, what, when, where, why, and how."

Initially, Lee stated that he would not interfere with former Yoon's issues as they were not internal party matters, but the situation changed after Song mentioned that Representative Hong Joon-pyo would know well about the X-File. This is because the X-File could spread beyond former Yoon's personal issues to the entire opposition.

Representative Hong Joon-pyo, who decided to rejoin the People Power Party after 1 year and 3 months, is holding a press conference at the National Assembly Communication Office on the 24th. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

On the 23rd, Song appeared on TBS's Kim Eo-jun's News Factory and, when asked if the X-File arose from a fight between the mainstream and non-mainstream factions of the conservative opposition party, he answered "Yes," speculating that the opposition had organized the X-File during the personnel screening process of former Yoon. He mentioned that Hong, a senior prosecutor, would know the most accurate details. In response, Representative Hong stated on his Facebook that he had neither seen nor known about the X-File but expressed regret that there were about 20 allegations against Yoon and his family, redirecting the criticism.

Won Hee-ryong, governor of Jeju Province and a presidential candidate within the party, criticized this on social media, saying, "Even Jang Sung-chul, director of Sympathy and Debate, who is being used in political manipulation, says it was created by the ruling party, yet Leader Song Young-gil is turning the blame toward the opposition," calling it "a shameless divide-and-conquer tactic exploiting Representative Hong Joon-pyo's emphasis on Yoon's verification."

Based on this incident, there are also claims that even if former Yoon does not join the party immediately, the People Power Party should provide more support to eventually field a unified opposition candidate in next year's presidential election. Kim Jae-won, a Supreme Council member of the People Power Party, appeared on KBS Radio's 'Choi Kyung-young's Strong Current' on the 25th and said, "We must now extend our hand so that (former Yoon) comes to our party even more." Kim added, "Furthermore, if there is a candidate who does not join the party during the primary process, we must continue efforts to create a unified opposition candidate until the very end, even after our party's candidate is selected. If we do not do this now, how likely is it that our party's candidate will win? Moreover, how will the many citizens who desire a regime change view our party? We must consider all of this."

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.