- Condition for returning to Ethics Committee? Resignation of Chairman Yoon Min-woo
- Committee composition alone doesn't mean disruption... The issue lies largely with Yoon Min-woo personally
- Me, pro-Han for voting to expel Han Dong-hoon? Makes no sense
- Disciplinary actions should be strict... Kwon Young-jin, Suh Bum-soo, Jin Jong-oh, Cho Kyoung-tae deserve heavy penalties
- Disciplinary actions against Kim Jong-hyuk and Bae Hyun-jin invalidated; there is something to feel ashamed of
- Two new ethics members seem gentle... Unlikely to push back
- Never made disciplinary judgments based on the party leader's stance
- Party leader suddenly appearing in guidelines... Enough to invite misunderstanding
- Yoon Min-woo referring to Jang Dong-hyuk as 'boss'? Never heard of it
■ Broadcast: SBS Kim Tae-hyeon's Politics Show (FM 103.5MHz 7:00 – 9:00 AM)
■ Date: August 11, 2026 (Tuesday)
■ Host: Attorney Kim Tae-hyeon
■ Guest: Woo Jong-hwan, former Vice Chairman of the People Power Party Central Ethics Committee
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: Has a political party's ethics committee ever been mentioned in the political news as frequently as it is these days? Not in my memory. Sitting beside me is former Vice Chairman Woo Jong-hwan of the People Power Party's Central Ethics Committee. Hello, Vice Chairman.
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: Nice to meet you.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: You stepped down, correct?
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: Yes.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: I saw news that you tendered your resignation, has it been accepted?
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: I don't know that far. I handed in my resignation and left.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: So you plan not to attend future meetings when they are held?
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: Yes. I even heard through a reporter that a meeting is scheduled for August 18. No one told me to attend.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: So you won't be going. And after you stepped down as former vice chairman, Committee Member Hwang Kyung-sung also resigned, right?
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: When he communicated with me before, he said we would resign together. But I don't know if his resignation letter was submitted.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: You don't know about that.
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: Yes.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: Have you received any contact from Ethics Committee Chairman Yoon Min-woo or the party since your resignation?
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: None.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: So is the party taking the stance that "if you want to leave, just submit it and go"?
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: It seems so.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: If your resignation hasn't been processed yet, you have no intention of returning?
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: I took pride in being a member of the Ethics Committee in my own way. But I resigned out of disappointment seeing Chairman Yoon Min-woo proceed like this without communication. If I were to return, I have one condition: Chairman Yoon Min-woo's resignation. That is the sole condition.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: You are calling for Chairman Yoon Min-woo's resignation and saying the Ethics Committee currently has issues—essentially saying, "If you won't resign, I'll resign first."
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: Yes.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: What is the underlying reason?
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: It's not that the Ethics Committee itself has a problem; from my perspective, it seems to be an issue with the Ethics Committee Chairman as an individual.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: Rather than the other committee members?
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: Yes. For example, even when we made decisions based on reasonable judgment, when drafting the written decision, he communicated with outsiders instead of us. Recently, on July 22, when setting guidelines, he unilaterally announced them without communicating with us at all. I see major problems with these aspects.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: When making the decision to expel Lawmaker Han Dong-hoon—who was the former party leader at the time—not only the result, but the expressions in the written decision were actually revised several times because the facts didn't align.
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: Yes.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: And among those expressions, the one most criticized by the media was something like "the party leader represents the sum of the free will of party members."
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: Yes.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: So did Chairman Yoon Min-woo act arbitrarily, without sharing such expressions, the severity of disciplinary action, or the determination of facts with you and other committee members?
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: We decided the severity together. We decided on expulsion together. However, he handled the process of drafting the judgment and written decision by himself. It was not shared with us.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: Then did he do it alone, or do you think he received assistance from someone outside?
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: I don't know for sure, but from what I heard, I understand it was done in consultation with an outsider. As for that, I think Chairman Yoon Min-woo himself needs to clarify.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: Who do you understand this outsider to be?
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: I think it has all been mentioned on broadcasts.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: Really? I don't know. Do you understand it to be Leader Jang Dong-hyuk, or a close associate of Leader Jang Dong-hyuk?
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: I don't know what kind of close relationship that person has with Leader Jang Dong-hyuk. I don't know that far. However, when we first greeted each other back then, we did exchange greetings once.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: Simply communicating with an outsider—because one could seek advice or ask questions if they don't know something well.
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: Yes.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: Do you believe it went beyond seeking advice to the level of consultation, receiving orders, or reporting?
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: Exactly. Seeking advice means asking an expert about things one doesn't know.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: Yes.
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: But if it's asking an expert about something he didn't know, most of the Ethics Committee members are lawyers, so he could have asked them. Yet he didn't ask them and asked an outsider instead. And whether that outsider is an expert in that field is also something that cannot be guaranteed. So my guess is that it wasn't consultation, but mutual agreement.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: Is that so? I see. Looking into the outsider consulted, some people are raising suspicions that it might be Professor C from K University. It is said to be a person known to be close to Kim Keon-hee. Is that correct?
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: According to what that person said, they said they are not close with Ms. Kim Keon-hee.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: Then is Professor C from K University correct?
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: I don't know about K University, but Professor C is correct.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: Then is it someone named Choi?
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: That is correct.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: Really? So you didn't just hear rumors, but received a tip-off in your own right?
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: Yes. I actually spoke with that person.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: Really?
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: Yes. That is why I mustered up the courage like this.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: But another perspective on you from some quarters is: why is he quitting right now when they are trying to discipline the pro-Han faction? Could he have some connection with the pro-Han faction? Is that true?
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: I was right there participating when we expelled former Leader Han Dong-hoon. How could I possibly be pro-Han? From my view, it really... I don't understand how people can say such things.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: When you joined, on whose recommendation did you join?
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: An acquaintance of mine who is a former party official. Upon his recommendation, I received an offer and submitted my resume. My resume was shared with Supreme Council members and discussed, as far as I know. The person who recommended me is neither pro-Han nor pro-Jang.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: So you have no ties with Supreme Council members including Leader Jang Dong-hyuk?
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: None at all.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: Needless to say regarding former Leader Han Dong-hoon's side.
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: Yes.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: Next week, the Ethics Committee will convene regarding four lawmakers: Kwon Young-jin, Jin Jong-oh, Suh Bum-soo, and Cho Kyoung-tae. You said you won't be attending.
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: I cannot.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: Then from your perspective as a former Ethics Committee member, what severity of disciplinary action do you predict?
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: I believe there must always be a benchmark when deciding the severity of disciplinary action. In the previous Ethics Committee, disciplinary actions might have been mild, but during my tenure, we raised the bar. Disciplinary actions need to be strict for the party to stand firm. I think the benchmark should be the level of discipline given to former Supreme Council member Kim Jong-hyuk or Lawmaker Bae Hyun-jin.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: Yes.
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: Looking at it that way, based on the grounds for discipline I saw when attending the last Ethics Committee meeting, it constituted a considerable degree of anti-party activity. If those are true, I believe heavy penalties beyond that should be imposed. If they instead issue light penalties, I think those people—more precisely, Chairman Yoon Min-woo himself—might actually be pro-Han.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: So heavy disciplinary action is bound to come out for these four?
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: That's right.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: But Lawmaker Bae Hyun-jin and former Supreme Council Member Kim Jong-hyuk, whom you mentioned as benchmarks, survived through court rulings.
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: Even if they survived through the courts, I believe the benchmark maintained by the Ethics Committee should be clear. I think that issue was disputed more over disciplinary procedures rather than the grounds for discipline—questions like why it was rushed or done so urgently, rather than whether the underlying conduct was truly problematic.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: We will have to wait and see how the discipline turns out, but the Ethics Committee is currently in disarray. You, as former Vice Chairman, called for Chairman Yoon Min-woo's resignation, and issues regarding the current five-member system are being pointed out. In this situation, if disciplinary action is taken, some say it has political legitimacy issues. Under current circumstances, people ask, "Who is the Ethics Committee led by Chairman Yoon Min-woo disciplining whom?"
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: That is the problem. I don't view the composition of the Ethics Committee alone as a disruption. Five members are sufficient to deliberate, and if all five attend and vote, there is no problem. However, the person leading this Ethics Committee is Chairman Yoon Min-woo, and because he is currently at the center of all suspicions—being called pro-Han, pro-Jang, or the party leader's henchman—I feel it is very regrettable. I believe only if he makes a decision will anyone accept the outcome.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: So you're saying that if Chairman Yoon Min-woo wields the gavel now, it could lose legitimacy. Is that correct?
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: My position is that if a quorum is met, the validity cannot be denied legally.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: You mean political legitimacy, right?
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: Right. Would the disciplined individuals just sit quietly?
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: Regardless of the reason, three pro-Han figures have been disciplined so far. But former Leader Han Dong-hoon has politically made a complete comeback, having been chosen by the residents of Buk-gu.
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: Yes.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: Lawmaker Bae Hyun-jin and former Supreme Council Member Kim Jong-hyuk survived legally. Ultimately, all past decisions by the Ethics Committee failed in outcome, as different results came about.
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: Yes.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: Do you feel a burden about that, along with other committee members?
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: I don't know about others, but personally, I feel somewhat sorry and embarrassed. However, in our own way, we examined and judged very diligently. As for Lawmaker Han Dong-hoon, the public rendered judgment, so that was beyond our control.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: Yes.
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: Regarding former Supreme Council Member Kim Jong-hyuk and Lawmaker Bae Hyun-jin, we agonized a lot in our own right. I just want to say it's regrettable that there were procedural aspects and things we missed.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: Last month, two additional Ethics Committee members were appointed. You were quoted as saying, "Just looking at them, their inclinations seemed clear." What did that mean?
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: What I meant was that they seemed very gentle. Having strong inclinations means being assertive—meaning even if Chairman Yoon Min-woo speaks, they should voice strong dissenting opinions. I meant that part seemed lacking.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: Yes.
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: Nevertheless, if one examines them closely, I believe they will perform well if given a role.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: The Ethics Committee must be an independent body. It shouldn't listen to the party leader's opinions, nor should it be used as a tool to strengthen the party leader's personal political standing.
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: It shouldn't.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: Right?
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: Yes.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: Do you believe the People Power Party's Central Ethics Committee has adhered well to that principle so far?
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: That's why many people misunderstand. When I was active, we never judged according to the party leader's stance. When matters came up to the disciplinary committee, we reviewed the documents, discussed them reasonably, and made judgments. The only difference was that we set stronger disciplinary measures than before; we never made judgments bound by political interests.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: I understand that you, former Vice Chairman Woo, didn't make decisions based on political interests.
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: Yes.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: What about Chairman Yoon Min-woo? The most important person is the chairman.
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: This time as well, as soon as he came in, he repeatedly said he has no political intentions whatsoever. If so, it would be good if he resigned properly, but he isn't resigning. Therefore, it's difficult for me to guarantee that he has no political interests.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: So you're saying that in Chairman Yoon Min-woo's case, it appears there might be a close relationship with Leader Jang Dong-hyuk, right?
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: Many reporters ask me about that.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: That's actually what people are most curious about.
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: Yes. They ask, "Is this true?" But since I wasn't there, I can't say. And even if I wanted to talk to the chairman, he wouldn't make eye contact, so I couldn't ask him either.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: Because previously, when you criticized Chairman Yoon Min-woo and his communication style, you said he was operating the organization to show loyalty to the party leader.
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: Yes.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: That means you suspect Chairman Yoon Min-woo might have too close a relationship with Leader Jang, right?
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: Up until then, I didn't think so, but on July 20, when he released a statement and announced guidelines—if you look at that,
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: Methodical, organizational, continuous criticism.
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: That's also a problem, but if you look, "party leader" appears next. It mentions cases that "severely disrupt the party leader or the operation of the party." There's no phrasing about what to do to the party leader. "Party leader" is abruptly included out of nowhere. Anyone looking at that can only view it as guidelines designed to protect the party leader. Because it conveys that while others might be fine, criticizing the party leader will be taken issue with. Anyone would see that as enough to invite misunderstanding.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: Vice Chairman, I'd like to ask you to confirm something. This is based on reporting by a reporter who appeared on our broadcast before. It was said on air. A reporting detail mentioned that Chairman Yoon Min-woo calls Leader Jang Dong-hyuk "boss" or "client" in private settings. Have you ever heard that?
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: I have never heard that even once.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: Really?
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: Yes.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: Then how does Chairman Yoon Min-woo usually evaluate Leader Jang Dong-hyuk?
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: We don't have conversations about Leader Jang Dong-hyuk.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: Really?
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: Yes.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: So there was never any mention at all.
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: Yes.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: Understood. Regarding Chairman Yoon Min-woo, you expressed that "he is not the chairman I used to know, he seems unfamiliar." Did you two originally have a personal connection?
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: We didn't, but during the first half, we spent a lot of time together. We held meetings, and if it ran late afterwards, we had meals together. And if necessary, he would call me. But during the process of appointing Committee Member Jung Kyung-wook around that time, he stopped contacting me altogether, and when scheduling meetings, it felt like he picked days when I couldn't make it. And this time when I went, he didn't even make eye contact.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: So you're saying it became like that recently?
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: Yes. So I suspect there was a change in the overall atmosphere.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: Briefly, Vice Chairman: Should the People Power Party Central Ethics Committee be dissolved and reconstituted?
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: I don't think so.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: Then what?
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: It would be best if only the Ethics Committee Chairman resigns, and we proceed with the remaining members, or supplement two or three members afterwards.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: You're saying only the Ethics Committee Chairman needs to resign.
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: Correct.
▷ Kim Tae-hyeon: Understood. We will conclude today's interview here. That was Woo Jong-hwan, former Vice Chairman of the People Power Party Central Ethics Committee. Thank you.
▶ Woo Jong-hwan: Thank you.
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