Does the Democratic Party truly support a special counsel on the Unification Church?

 

Kim Byung-kee, the floor leader of the Democratic Party, center right, and Song Eon-seog, the floor leader of the People Power Party, center left, pose for reporters while shaking hands during a meeting of floor leaders on pending issues, including a special counsel probe into the Unification Church, at the National Assembly in Yeouido, western Seoul, on Dec. 22. Kim Eun-hye, the senior policy deputy floor leader of the People Power Party, stands to Song's left, and Moon Jin-seog, the senior floor operations deputy leader of the Democratic Party, to Kim's right. [YONHAP]

 
The ruling Democratic Party (DP), despite formally accepting a special counsel investigation into alleged ties between politicians and the Unification Church, remains locked in procedural disputes with opposition parties over how the prosecutor should be chosen and what the investigation should cover. The confidence displayed at the party’s Supreme Council meeting on Monday, when leaders said there was “no reason not to accept” the probe, has since faded. Opposition lawmakers have accused the DP of deliberately delaying progress, raising doubts about whether its acceptance was genuine or merely tactical.
 
The DP is opposing a third-party nomination plan agreed upon by the People Power Party (PPP) and the Reform Party. Under that proposal, the National Court Administration would recommend two candidates, and President Lee Jae Myung would appoint one. The DP says it cannot trust Supreme Court Chief Justice Jo Hee-de or the court administration and instead proposes that the ruling and opposition parties each nominate one candidate, with the president making the appointment. That would effectively place an investigation into alleged church–state collusion involving both major parties in the hands of a prosecutor recommended by one of them.
 
Critics have pointed out the inconsistency. During earlier special counsel cases, including probes related to insurrection allegations, the DP insisted that the PPP, then a subject of investigation, be excluded entirely from the nomination process. Opposition lawmakers argue that the party’s current stance undermines its claim of sincerity — a criticism that is not easily dismissed.
 
Other alternatives floated by the DP include allowing the Constitutional Court to recommend candidates. The PPP has rejected that idea, arguing that the court is dominated by justices seen as progressive. The resulting standoff, in which the ruling party says it cannot trust the Supreme Court while the opposition says it cannot trust the Constitutional Court, underscores the depth of political mistrust. The DP has even suggested granting nomination rights to Lawyers for a Democratic Society, prompting former PPP leader Han Dong-hoon to mock the idea by suggesting that a partisan special counsel would make little sense.
 

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Disagreements extend to the scope of the investigation itself. The opposition wants the probe to include allegations of illegal political donations by the Unification Church, as well as claims that former special counsel Min Joong-ki suppressed aspects of an earlier investigation. The DP opposes including allegations related to Min. Some lawmakers in the DP and the Rebuilding Korea Party have also proposed adding claims involving Shincheonji Church members joining the PPP en masse.
 
Reaching a political agreement will not be easy, as both camps could become targets of the investigation. Even so, given the public's shock and seriousness of the allegations that surfaced during former first lady Kim Keon Hee's special counsel probe, this is not a moment for procedural delay. President Lee has said that church-state collusion allegations must be investigated rigorously. If the ruling party accepts a special counsel in principle but stalls in practice, voters are likely to hold the party with an overwhelming parliamentary majority most responsible.


This article was originally written in Korean and translated by a bilingual reporter with the help of generative AI tools. It was then edited by a native English-speaking editor. All AI-assisted translations are reviewed and refined by our newsroom.