Choi Minhee: "Pressured Behind Closed Doors Not to Make 'Shincheonji Remarks'... Only the One Who Tied the Knot Can Untie It"

"I Did Not Attend Because Showing Hostility Would Be Disrespectful"
"Apologizing to Hurt Party Members Is a Basic Duty"

Choi Minhee, a Supreme Council member of the Democratic Party of Korea, delivers opening remarks at a Supreme Council meeting at the National Assembly on the 7th of last month. Photo by Yoon Dongju

Choi Minhee, a Supreme Council member of the Democratic Party of Korea, explained on November 4 why she had skipped the party's open Supreme Council meeting, saying, "Supreme Council members' right to speak must be guaranteed."

In a social media post that day, Choi said, "At a closed-door Supreme Council meeting, party leader Kim Minseok pressured me not to make remarks related to Shincheonji." She added, "I decided that showing strong emotions toward each other at an open Supreme Council meeting would be disrespectful to party members and supporters, so I did not attend."

Choi said, "At yesterday's parliamentary group meeting, Kim apologized, saying there was no basis for the 'secret alliance among three parties: the anti-Kim faction, divisive forces, and Shincheonji.' I tried to believe he was sincere, but afterward, young lawmakers and political appointees posted on social media and engaged in media play, implying that 'there was a problem, but the party leader covered it up with his decision.'"

A nameplate bearing the name of Supreme Council member Choi Minhee is removed after she was absent from a Supreme Council meeting at the National Assembly on the 4th. Yonhap News Agency

She continued, "If the party does not disclose what should be disclosed and take responsibility for what it should take responsibility for, the party's crisis will continue amid the 'Shincheonji fog.' If Kim apologizes in public while pro-Kim lawmakers keep posting on social media and engaging in media play behind the scenes to create a smokescreen over Shincheonji, what is that? I feel even more humiliated."

Choi said, "Apologizing to party members who have been hurt is a basic duty. Shouldn't we have at least a minimum of conscience and sense of justice, even as politicians? Taking responsibility and resolving the issue is the only answer. Is it enough to apologize after confining and assaulting someone?"

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