"Former President Moon to Avoid Meeting Politicians Including Those from the Democratic Party for the Time Being"

Former President Moon Jae-in has reportedly expressed his intention not to meet with politicians for the time being.

Yoon Gun-young, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea who served as the head of the National Policy Planning Situation Room at the Blue House during the Moon Jae-in administration, conveyed this in a phone call with Yonhap News on the 3rd, stating, "He also plans not to meet with politicians affiliated with the Democratic Party." Yoon also mentioned that there is no special background behind Moon's decision.

However, in political circles, there is an interpretation that the controversy caused by the messages from politicians who met with former President Moon being disclosed through the media and social networking services (SNS) has become a burden.

On the afternoon of the 3rd, the 75th anniversary of the April 3rd Victims Memorial Day, former President Moon Jae-in visited the April 3 Peace Park in Bonggae-dong, Jeju City, to honor the spirits of the victims. Photo by Yonhap News

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Earlier, Park Ji-won, former director of the National Intelligence Service, mentioned in a YTN radio interview on the 17th of last month that when he recently visited former President Moon, "Moon said, 'The Democratic Party must unite and do well. There is no alternative other than Representative Lee Jae-myung.'" In political circles, Park's message was interpreted as relating to Lee's position, sparking a debate between pro-Lee and anti-Lee factions.

Regarding Park's message, Lee Sang-min, a lawmaker from the anti-Lee faction, said on CBS Radio's 'Park Jae-hong's One-on-One Match' that "Former President Moon spoke excessively, and the person who conveyed it was also wrong," adding, "Are we subordinates of former President Moon? There are things that should be said and things that should not be said," expressing opposition.

Additionally, lawmaker Park Yong-jin posted on Facebook last month that he had met with former President Moon, writing, "(The former) President also said that if the Democratic Party changes, makes some decisions, and unites around that, it could gain trust in the general election," which became a topic of controversy.

There was an interpretation that the 'decision' mentioned by lawmaker Park implied Representative Lee's resignation. Both Park Ji-won and lawmaker Park Yong-jin conveyed statements from former President Moon at the time of their meetings, but the meanings of the messages were completely opposite. The interpretation of former President Moon's remarks sparked intense debate within the Democratic Party.

As the messages from politicians who met with him led to various interpretations and controversies, it is analyzed that former President Moon intends to distance himself from the political circle first.

Meanwhile, on the same day, former President Moon visited Jeju Island to mark the 75th anniversary of the Jeju 4·3 incident. It is reported that aside from meeting with victims' families, he excluded any schedule to meet with politicians.

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