Will Lee Jae-myung Attend or Refuse Summons... Divided Voices Within the Party (Comprehensive)

D-2 to Summons on 28th... Suggests Absence Due to Schedule
Park Yong-jin, Park Ji-hyun, etc. "Must Appear Confidently" Press Attendance
Park Beom-gye, Seo Young-kyo "Rudely Notified by Fax"

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Ji-eun] As Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, has indicated that he will not comply with the prosecution's summons scheduled for the 28th, there is a division within the party over whether to respond to the summons. While the 'Bimyeong faction,' including Representative Park Yong-jin and former Emergency Committee Chairperson Park Ji-hyun, is pressuring for attendance, saying "He should come forward confidently," representatives Park Beom-gye and Seo Young-kyo are showing a skeptical response to appearing.

On the 26th, Representative Park Yong-jin appeared on MBC Radio's 'Kim Jong-bae's Focus' and said, "Since he is asserting his innocence and criticizing the prosecution's political manipulation, he should face it confidently," adding, "Like General Yi Sun-sin's resolve that if you want to live, you will die, and if you want to die, you will live, he should respond to the investigation with a life-or-death determination and confidence."

Representative Park emphasized that Lee Jae-myung should comply with the summons for party unity. When asked by the host whether a 'confident response' means complying with the summons, he said, "After that, party unity is possible. (The summons) is part of the judicial process anyway," and added, "I believe the procedure will proceed in a way that responds confidently."

Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, is attending the Supreme Council meeting held at the National Assembly on the 26th and delivering opening remarks. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

Former Emergency Committee Chairperson Park Ji-hyun also appeared on CBS Radio's 'Kim Hyun-jung's News Show' the same day and said, "If he is confident, he should confidently respond to the prosecution's investigation, talk, and come out," adding, "He must go on the 28th."

She argued that "(The judicial risk) is something Lee Jae-myung must handle alone," and stated, "The party should unite around people's livelihood, and the lawmakers should really focus only on people's livelihood," emphasizing the need to separate Lee from the party.

On the other hand, Representative Park Beom-gye expressed on SBS Radio's 'Kim Tae-hyun's Political Show,' "I understand that he received the summons on the 28th, but since the prosecution is employing various tactics," implying that there is no absolute need to comply with the summons.

He said, "(Whether to comply with the summons) is not yet decided, and since it is a criminal case, circumstances can change moment by moment," and criticized the prosecution's approach, saying, "Usually, there is a schedule adjustment, but they rudely sent a fax and a single phone call telling him to just come out. He is the leader of the ruling party and the opposition."

He continued, "It is not about deciding 'whether to go or not,' but the leader is listening to various opinions," adding, "However, we must distinguish between cooperating with judicial procedures and one-sided political oppression and retaliation by prosecutorial dictatorship. Therefore, I think the Seongnam FC case and the Daejang-dong case should be viewed separately. Please wait in that regard."

Representative Seo Young-kyo also said on YTN Radio's 'News King Park Ji-hoon' that the prosecution's summons to Lee is "an unprecedented event in constitutional history," and criticized, "It was the budget negotiation period, and he was in the provinces, but notifying by fax is truly an outrageous act by the prosecution." She also stated that "The prosecution calls by phone to come out, but you should not just go," indicating that there is no need to appear.

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