단상斷想

The fact that former President Moon Jae-in conveyed to the Presidential Office that a special pardon for former Justice Minister Cho Kuk, leader of the Innovation Party, was necessary for the 8/15 Liberation Day, contains a more desperate political statement than any attitude Moon has shown in the past 8 years. However, like a bad move after much deliberation, this request for amnesty on the historic first day of the Kim Keon-hee special investigation is like holding in poop wanting to comfortably relieve yourself in a clean bathroom, only to end up doing it on the street. Although various political calculations were at play, it only reflects the situation and future strategy of the pro-Moon forces in the current political landscape, as there was no prior political arrangement mentioned regarding what political function Cho Kuk's amnesty, which has been accepted for 8 months, has with the president. Moon Jae-in's repeated mentions that 'I owe Cho Kuk a debt' is strongly in the realm of personal feelings, and it is puzzling, beyond thought, that he is elevating this to a sense of political solidarity and aiming for clumsy watermelon politics such as prioritizing public incitement and subsequent amnesty, and even feels like something is urgent.

Cho Kuk was not an ordinary politician but a ‘political icon’ of the pro-Moon Jae-in camp. During the Cho Kuk scandal in 2019, pro-Moon supporters launched large-scale rallies and online activities under the perception that ‘protecting Cho Kuk is protecting Moon Jae-in.’ For the pro-Moon forces, whose political standing has weakened under the current Lee Jae-myung administration, Cho Kuk’s pardon and return to politics would be a powerful means of reviving past solidarity. For the pro-Moon camp, which has defined the legal offensive against Cho Kuk as political repression, the request for Cho Kuk’s pardon is a strong message that Moon Jae-in is still with them. This can strengthen internal unity within the pro-Moon forces and contribute to expanding their voice within the party, but the appearance of pressuring the Lee Jae-myung administration, which has barely been in office for two months, is disgusting from the public's perspective. Cho Kuk's resignation from the post of Minister of Justice in just one month was Moon Jae-in's political insight. If that choice was right at the time and I feel very sorry now in retrospect, then instead of calling for Cho Kuk's pardon that day, the basic duty as a human being was to apologize to the public for the Kim Keon-hee special prosecutor and the insurrection. The public, swayed by various political media outlets that gloss over the practice of pushing ahead with political acts without this basic decency, is now participating in letting the situation get out of hand.

First, the Lee Jae-myung government must reorganize the national administration system, which has been devastated by the martial law situation, and dissolve the National Power Party, the party of insurgents and the main culprits of the insurrection, as soon as possible. The words and actions of the former president, who knows the priorities of these national tasks better than anyone else, forgetting his public responsibility and trying to fulfill his personal wishes by gaining the power of society or certain media, have clearly dispelled the suspicion that he is a person who shares the same path as the insurgents. Excessive investigations or indictments by the prosecution are nothing new. The anti-national and anti-humanitarian abuse of power and investigations by the judiciary, which have continued since liberation, have claimed the lives of many people. However, the fact that a former president has put his name at the apex of repeated factional politics, completely ignoring this context, makes me think that there is something that even Moon Jae-in cannot help.

It is also possible to anticipate the aspect of checking and securing negotiating power against the Lee Jae-myung government. After the launch of the Lee Jae-myung government, pro-Moon factions faced a situation where they were largely pushed out of the party's leadership. Moon Jae-in's request for the pardon of Cho Kuk places a political burden on the Lee Jae-myung government, and it is an act of demonstrating that the pro-Moon camp still possesses a political influence that cannot be ignored. This method is interpreted as a political sentiment that overturns the gangster culture of the dictatorial era while watching high school gangster movies of the 70s. The power of pardon is the president's inherent authority, and there is no one who does not know that Moon Jae-in did not want Lee Jae-myung to be elected president, and they have come to realize the fact that Moon Jae-in's prosecutor general caused an insurrection as his successor. Most media outlets say that this arrogant Moon Jae-in and the pro-Moon forces publicly put pressure on the government, creating a political dilemma for President Lee Jae-myung. If the pardon is rejected, the conflict with the pro-Moon forces may intensify, and if the pardon is carried out, they make a bizarre interpretation that it may face criticism as a 'political deal'. It would be over with one word that there will be no pardon for politicians, but I don't understand how they are trying to continue the low-level politics of the 80s.

The Cho Kuk incident was one of the Moon Jae-in government's representative political wounds, demonstrating the limits of the president's will for prosecutorial reform. Ironically, the situation of facing the prosecution's targeted investigation in the process of promoting prosecutorial reform raised questions about Moon Jae-in's will and ability to implement reforms. In the end, the Moon Jae-in regime proved that it is not at all reflecting on the political misjudgment of handing over power to investigators even after being driven into a defensive position of failing to reform the prosecution and being investigated. Moon Jae-in's inauguration speech, "Opportunity is equal, the process is fair, the result is just," was formal and showed Moon Jae-in's characteristic of only caring about image, and as time passes, he tries to attempt learned thievery, forgetting all the past mistakes. It seems he learned politics after his retirement. The request for Cho Kuk's pardon contains the intention to reconfirm the legitimacy of the past government's policies and personnel, and to improve historical evaluation through the frame of 'political retaliation'. Moon Jae-in's daughter, who wants to defend the legitimacy of the past regime and improve historical evaluation, should realize that she has the humanity to make animal calendars and let go of the dogs she raised. The people should think first about how shallow and disgraceful it is to force the values and policies promoted during the Moon Jae-in administration on the Yoon couple, who caused an insurrection and pushed the country into chaos, and to push them on the Lee Jae-myung government, which is doing completely different colored politics. Even if he didn't know that he would hand over power to a prosecutor general who married a prostitute, shouldn't he realize at least a moral responsibility for causing this situation as a result?

It is no coincidence that the request for Cho Kuk's pardon came at the point when the investigation into Kim Gun-hee's special prosecution was beginning. In the current political landscape, the biggest issue within the Democratic Party was the state administration of the Lee Jae-myung government and factional conflicts. By putting the Cho Kuk issue at the forefront, the pro-Moon faction is strategically attempting to shift the focus of the media and public opinion away from the pro-Lee Jae-myung vs. anti-Lee Jae-myung structure and towards the core pro-Moon framework of 'prosecution reform and judicial injustice'. This is an effective way to temporarily cover up issues unfavorable to the pro-Moon camp (loss of party leadership, reorganization centered on Lee Jae-myung) and reactivate emotional frameworks that are favorable to them. In a situation where a major political issue like the special prosecution investigation is receiving attention, the request for Cho Kuk's pardon contains the intention to turn public attention back to the issues of 'political justice' and 'judicial justice'. This is, to put it bluntly, an 'overreach'. Based on distrust of the prosecution and the judiciary, the strategic move by the pro-Moon camp to create public opinion favorable to them is nothing more than a strategy of cutting off feces little by little, which will only result in the smell vibrating and the stomach feeling uncomfortable. If you look at it from a little further away, you will hear the demands of the public, and you will be able to judge how the trend of the times will flow, but the fact that they took out the 'Liberation Day special pardon' as a menu like an annual event written on the calendar only two months after the inauguration of the new government. In a situation where the heat of Lee Jae-myung's inauguration has not yet cooled down, the astonishing foolishness of politicians stands out in the speed with which they attempted to shift the issue frame and create public opinion.

Moon Jae-in's performance demanding the pardon and political return of Cho Kuk is an expression of impatience to quickly lay the foundation for the formation of a 'post-Moon Jae-in' pro-Moon politician group centered around Cho Kuk, going beyond the restoration of an individual's honor, and to see the pro-Moon/Cho Kuk line emerge as an independent political force in the post-Lee Jae-myung political landscape. What Cho Kuk, who is actually in prison, said about the pardon is not important, and it seems they are turning a hopeful circuit that if he returns to politics, he will emerge as an alternative leadership resource to Lee Jae-myung and the pro-Lee Jae-myung forces. For the pro-Moon faction, the 'Cho Kuk card' is a strategic asset that allows them to throw a political check on Lee Jae-myung's side and increase their bargaining power in the competition for party leadership. The intention is to increase the pro-Moon faction's voice in future nominations or party decision-making processes by securing issue leadership. This is an expression of the political desire to bring about changes in the party's power structure, which is currently being reorganized around pro-Lee Jae-myung, and to rebuild a post-Moon Jae-in system.

The controversy surrounding the pardon of Cho Kuk is fueling factional conflicts within the Democratic Party. As the conflict between pro-Lee Jae-myung and pro-Moon Jae-in factions becomes apparent, it is likely to have a negative impact on the party's unity and solidarity, and if that happens, the public's desire for an end to the internal strife will be gone. If the pardon is carried out, the conflict between the pro-Moon supporters who support it and those who oppose it may reignite, which could negatively affect the approval rating of the entire Democratic Party. Pardoning in a situation where the essential problem of the Cho Kuk case, the admission irregularities, is not entirely a political issue can raise questions about political morality. As the private equity fund has been proven innocent, it is difficult to claim political oppression. Public opinion on Cho Kuk was not a matter of controversy before various media outlets joined in. The anti-Lee Jae-myung faction of the Democratic Party, which is framing the ruling party as divided over this issue, is the real agitator hindering the definite end to the internal strife. Park Ji-won's mention of the dissolution of the People Power Party and the creation of a new party, Min Hyung-bae's statement that Cho Kuk's pardon is the end of the internal strife, the media pushing Choi Kang-wook, who can become the Prosecutor General if he receives a pardon, and Moon Jae-in's political 행보 mean that the pro-Lee Jae-myung faction of the Democratic Party, which is hasty in post-Lee Jae-myung politics, has no brains.

Moon Jae-in's request for Cho Kuk's pardon is a strategic move that goes beyond personal loyalty or humanitarian considerations, aiming for the weakened pro-Moon faction in the current political landscape to regain its political footing and secure leadership in the future power structure. Whether or not Cho Kuk is pardoned is likely to be a crucial turning point that goes beyond the fate of one individual and could influence the reorganization of the power structure within the Democratic Party and the future landscape of Korean politics. President Lee Jae-myung's final decision is expected to have a decisive impact on the dynamics between the pro-Moon and pro-Lee factions, as well as the Democratic Party's unity and future strategy. Above all, this case is an example of how personal relationships and political interests operate in a vaguely complex manner in Korean politics, and how the failed legacy of past regimes affects current politics.

Hoping for a clean Independence Day without political pardons.