[the300] On the 18th, investigators from the special investigation team led by special prosecutor Min Joong-ki attempted to conduct another raid on the central party headquarters of the People Power Party (PPP). This decision sparked strong backlash from the PPP, who accused the move of being a diversion to cover up other judicial scandals. The party urgently convened all its lawmakers and office staff.
Choi Bo-yoon, the chief spokesperson for the PPP, issued a statement criticizing the special prosecutor for targeting the heart of their organization yet again. He stated, “What the special prosecutor is after is none other than the party membership list, which contains sensitive personal information, including the names, resident registration numbers, addresses, and party fee payment status of millions of people.” He argued that this effort violates the constitutional guarantee of political freedom and the basic rights of citizens.
Choi further claimed that this pattern of unwarranted searches emerges whenever the ruling party faces unfavorable public opinion, pointing to recent calls for the resignation of Supreme Court Chief Justice Cho Hee-dae as an example. He accused the prosecution of politically oppressing the opposition with the support of the president and the legislative power of the ruling party.
The special prosecutor’s actions were characterized as a “political stunt” that undermines the legitimacy of the justice system and contravenes established constitutional order. In response, Choi firmly declared that the PPP would resolutely oppose any unconstitutional attempts to undermine the opposition force.
Simultaneously, the special prosecutor’s team is investigating allegations of a mass membership enrollment of Unification Church members into the PPP. Despite prior attempts to execute a search warrant at the party’s Yeouido headquarters to check the membership status of these individuals, these efforts were previously stalled.
On the day of the attempted search, the situation escalated to a standoff between the special prosecutor’s team and the PPP. Yoo Sang-beom, the PPP’s Deputy Floor Leader, requested that the investigators wait for their lawyers to arrive. The special prosecutor insisted on proceeding with the warrant execution, stating that an hour had already passed since being informed. Even after the party’s lawyers inspected the warrant, a struggle ensued, preventing the execution of the search.
In response, Song Eon-seok, the PPP’s Floor Leader, issued an emergency alert asking all lawmakers present within the National Assembly compound to congregate on the first floor of the central party headquarters to protect the party’s membership list, with the party’s General Affairs Department also calling all office staff to convene at the headquarters immediately.