Ahn Cheol-soo Opposes Han Dong-hoon's Reinstatement: "He Should Not Come Near the Party"

[Financial News] Ahn Cheol-soo, a People Power Party lawmaker, said on the 12th that he "officially opposes Han Dong-hoon's reinstatement" and that he "hopes he will not come near the party." Ahn recently clashed over whether Han, then party leader, or Choo Kyung-ho, then floor leader and now Mayor of Daegu, first instructed party members to gather at the party headquarters during the Dec. 3 emergency martial law crisis. In that regard, Ahn criticized Han, saying, "He acted as if I had distorted the facts and stirred up public sentiment," and asked, "Is he saying that, to protect his own narrative, it is fine to attack a fellow lawmaker who testified to the facts, even if the People Power Party is branded as an 'insurrection party'?"
Ahn held a press conference at the National Assembly of the Republic of Korea that day to oppose Han's reinstatement.
He said, "I had kept open the possibility of Han's reinstatement," adding, "If there is a clear explanation regarding the Party Members' Bulletin Board controversy, there would be no reason to oppose his return."
He added, "After testifying in Mayor Choo's trial, I encountered a reaction I could never have imagined," and said, "If Han returns to the party, I could see a preview of how the party would be thrown into chaos."
Earlier, Ahn testified in Mayor Choo's trial that he remembered Han, who was the party leader at the time, as the first to suggest gathering at party headquarters. Regarding that, he said, "I heard from people who were gathered together at the headquarters that it was Han who first suggested going there, and later I confirmed through the party's official materials that this was true."
Han responded by calling it "false agitation" and hinted that he would not rule out legal action. In response, Ahn pointed out that "turning testimony that told the truth into something false is clearly the spread of false information and defamation."
Ahn emphasized, "Han himself was summoned as a witness in the same trial several times, yet he never appeared once," adding, "If he has something to say, he should not hide behind a refusal to accept service and should instead appear in court and testify."
He continued, "Han took part in stopping the emergency martial law on Dec. 3. But he was by no means the only one who stopped it that night," and explained, "Our party lawmakers were at the vote, and those who remained at party headquarters and could not take part in the vote also issued a joint statement opposing martial law."
Ahn asked, "Why should the history of that day become the heroic narrative of Han Dong-hoon alone?" He added, "Is he saying that, to protect his own narrative, it is fine to attack a fellow lawmaker who testified to the facts, even if the People Power Party is branded as an 'insurrection party'?"
He also criticized the behavior of so-called pro-Han voices, saying, "Not only Han, but the so-called pro-Han camp speakers behaved the same way. They attacked, mocked, and vilified a senior lawmaker from their own party who testified to the facts in court." He added, "Defining fellow party members as enemies and focusing on public opinion warfare is both defamation of an individual and a clear act of disloyalty to the party."
Ahn said, "If this is how things are while Han is still outside the party, it is obvious what would happen if he were reinstated," adding, "They would put on armbands, label anyone who slightly disagrees with Han's position as someone to attack, and subject them to public shaming. The entire party would fall into factional conflict and a wasteful internal war, and the damage would be borne entirely by conservative and right-leaning citizens. It would spiral into a disastrous situation in which even winning the general election would be out of reach."
Finally, he added, "I hope he will not come near our party anymore," and said, "If he is thinking about founding a new party, I would support that."

haeram@fnnews.com Lee Hae-ram Reporter