'He Wasn't Always Right!' Kim Min-seok Publicly Targets Rhyu Si-min, Asking "Why Did He Speak Beyond Commentary?"

[Joo Young-jin's News Briefing]

When quoting this interview, please clearly credit the program 'SBS <Joo Young-jin's News Briefing>'. Copyright belongs to SBS.

■ Broadcast: SBS <Joo Young-jin's News Briefing> Mon–Fri (14:00–15:20)
■ Host: Anchor Joo Young-jin
■ Guest: Kim Min-seok, Former Prime Minister
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● Kim Min-seok / Former Prime Minister

"At a time when the success of state administration is most important... Confidence in successfully running the general election in two years"
"Announcing the 'Four Major Innovation Plans'... Now is the time to transition to a competition of visions"
"Youth, unity, party member sovereignty, and nominations—tasks I have always pondered"
"Rhyu Si-min also attacked during the Kim Dae-jung and Roh Moo-hyun administrations... I wonder what the reason is for his current remarks"
"Rhyu Si-min has stepped out of the usual realm of commentary... He isn't always right"
"I once said, 'I want to be a bridge connecting DJ and Lee Jae-myung'... Their philosophies on public livelihood and pragmatism are similar"
"The essence of Lee Jae-myung's politics is looking at all issues from the perspectives of pragmatism, unity, and public livelihood"
"The current leadership must finalize the supplementary investigative power issue before the August national convention"
"The cold medicine controversy? Everything will be revealed over time... Justice will prevail"
"What if there is a difference of opinion with the president? We can debate fiercely and forge a direction"
"The artificial political realignment mentioned by Rhyu Si-min is not possible"
"If elected, I will immediately start the 'winning grand unity'... A massive recruitment effort is needed"

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▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: Joining us is Kim Min-seok, former Prime Minister and candidate for the Democratic Party leadership. Welcome.

▶ Kim Min-seok / Former Prime Minister: Hello.

▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: You must be very busy lately. Are you continuing to travel across the country like this?

▶ Kim Min-seok / Former Prime Minister: I travel around, and when there are broadcasts like this, I stay in Seoul.

▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: It seems you are doing a lot of interviews as well.

▶ Kim Min-seok / Former Prime Minister: Yes.

▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: What do you talk about the most? When you meet party members or the public, or during interviews, if people ask why you decided to run for party leader?

▶ Kim Min-seok / Former Prime Minister: That would naturally be the basic question. When asked, "Why did you run?" my answer is that right now, the success of state administration is the most important. So, it is about the stability in the partnership with the president to best support state affairs. Also, the confidence, experience, and preparation to best lead us to victory in the general election in two years. That is the basis.

▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: You mentioned, "From now on, I am entering a full-scale competition of visions," and spoke of four key areas. Are these your visions for the future?

▶ Kim Min-seok / Former Prime Minister: Yes, yesterday I announced the "Four Major Innovations." Next week, I will present the "Four Major Reforms," and the week after that, the "Four Major Policies." The four innovations are mainly about the party, the four reforms are about social reform, and the policies will focus on national policy. I believe we have done enough defining the overall situation or pointing out the opposition's flaws, so it is time to compete on vision. That is why I transitioned to a full-scale vision competition starting yesterday.

▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: A Democratic Party of youth, a winning grand unity, a deliberative sovereignty AI cultural party, and fair system nominations.

▶ Kim Min-seok / Former Prime Minister: Youth, unity, party member sovereignty, and nominations. I first spoke about these four, which are the most fundamental tasks for the party.

▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: Yesterday, right here in this studio, there was a positive evaluation that Candidate Kim Min-seok prepared these four themes exceptionally well, calling them the most necessary discussions for the Democratic Party right now.

▶ Kim Min-seok / Former Prime Minister: I have been continuously involved in party reform for over 30 years, proposing and implementing many ideas. For instance, the 5-to-5 public primary system that almost all citizens are familiar with, and the participation of party members in the elections for the National Assembly Speaker and floor leader, which the party recently introduced—these were all proposed and realized by me. Since I have been reflecting on these issues for a long time, they are not hastily put together. Party member sovereignty, the nomination system, and youth issues were my main focus during my one year as Prime Minister. I have also long contemplated the issue of unity, including unification of candidates and coalition integration. These are the most critical tasks, and I have prepared them thoroughly. I presented them with the intention of running these four tracks simultaneously right after the national convention.

▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: Continuing with positive terms like innovation, policy, and vision.

▶ Kim Min-seok / Former Prime Minister: Four major innovations, four major reforms, and four major policies.

▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: The four major policies, I see. But since you are here today, I must ask you about this. Did you have any chance to meet with reporters today? I assume you didn't have any such schedule today?

▶ Kim Min-seok / Former Prime Minister: No, I didn't have any today.

▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: I will ask on behalf of the many reporters covering the Democratic Party who are likely waiting to hear your thoughts. Writer Rhyu Si-min's remarks yesterday seem to have sent a significant shockwave through the Democratic Party and the ruling camp. He is someone you know well. He predicted, foretold, and anticipated that "prosecution reform is not happening because of President Lee Jae-myung," "whatever President Lee Jae-myung chose will not succeed," and "President Lee Jae-myung's political realignment will fail." What are your thoughts on this?

▶ Kim Min-seok / Former Prime Minister: Writer Rhyu Si-min has strongly attacked our presidents—presidents of our camp, presidents of the democratic camp—multiple times in the past. He did so during President Kim Dae-jung's time and President Roh Moo-hyun's time. And those predictions were not always correct. Rather than focusing on that, I actually wondered what his reason is this time.

▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: You thought about it, but what conclusion did you reach as to why writer Rhyu Si-min made such remarks?

▶ Kim Min-seok / Former Prime Minister: It is not important for me to draw a conclusion; he probably knows best himself.

▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: Do you think he wants to get involved in the party leadership race in some way?

▶ Kim Min-seok / Former Prime Minister: He seems to have stepped out of the usual realm of commentary, so I suppose he made his own judgment on that.

▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: You think it is his own judgment. Many people might speculate that he is trying to help former leader Jung Chung-rae.

▶ Kim Min-seok / Former Prime Minister: In any case, he did cross the line of conventional commentary.

▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: I see. Was it former lawmaker Kim Young-choon who said this in the past? Whenever writer Rhyu Si-min is mentioned, that famous quote is often brought up: "To speak such correct words in such an ill-mannered way."

▶ Kim Min-seok / Former Prime Minister: But as I said earlier, what he says is not always correct. Especially on big and important issues, in the realm of his assertions, he claimed President Kim Dae-jung would fail. But that did not happen; he succeeded. He also spoke strongly against President Roh Moo-hyun's KORUS FTA, but the evaluation of that is different now. Since what Writer Rhyu says on such major issues is not always correct, and because similar things happened in the past, I am just wondering why he did it this time.

▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: "Why did he do it?" I see. I don't think you will answer further even if I ask more. It seems your desire to compete primarily with positive messages is being reflected here. Since former President Kim Dae-jung was mentioned, we cannot talk about the starting point of politician Kim Min-seok without mentioning President Kim Dae-jung.

▶ Kim Min-seok / Former Prime Minister: You could say he is my political starting point, my origin, and my mentor.

▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: Even now, among the things I heard as a reporter, the idea of "a scholar's problem-solving consciousness and a merchant's sense of reality" as essential elements of a politician still resonates deeply. It is a virtue truly needed for politicians.

▶ Kim Min-seok / Former Prime Minister: That is true. Personally, my political motto is to solve the most idealistic and progressive matters in the most realistic way. While it shares the same sentiment, President Kim Dae-jung's phrasing is much more elegant.

▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: The "merchant's sense of reality" seems to align with what President Lee Jae-myung has consistently said since taking office—"I want to be a president for all citizens"—and his line of pragmatism.

▶ Kim Min-seok / Former Prime Minister: It is in the same vein. During the national convention before last, when Representative Lee Jae-myung was serving his second term as leader and I became the senior supreme council member, I said this when visiting the Honam region: "I want to be a bridge connecting Kim Dae-jung and Lee Jae-myung." That was truly how I felt, and I thought it would be the closest way of thinking and philosophy. Now, I am confirming that this is indeed correct. The public livelihood, pragmatism, moderation, and unity you mentioned, as well as the combination of the scholar and the merchant—I think they are all very similar.

▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: You initially said you ran for leader because the success of the Lee Jae-myung administration's state affairs is an incredibly urgent task. Having worked closely to run and support the administration for the past year, how would you explain the path chosen by President Lee Jae-myung for the people to our viewers? What is this path like?

▶ Kim Min-seok / Former Prime Minister: President Lee Jae-myung is an instinctive, natural advocate for public livelihood, pragmatism, and unity. Rather than just an advocate, it is in his nature. Around the time of the martial law and the civil unrest, we had the situation in Ukraine. At that time, the Yoon Suk-yeol administration got involved in Ukraine, creating a situation where South Korea was being dragged into it. There was public concern and opposition. While we were discussing this—he was the party leader back then—the President summarized it as, "Is it war, or is it the public livelihood?" I was so surprised that I slapped my knee. People from the typical '86 generation' like me, or those accustomed to the old 'democracy versus anti-democracy' grammar, would have framed it as "war or peace." That is what is conventional for us.

▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: Right.

▶ Kim Min-seok / Former Prime Minister: "War or peace." But he framed it as "war or public livelihood." And that is actually correct, because the essence of peace is public livelihood, and peace is for the sake of public livelihood. However, for people like us who were in the student movement, it is not easy to frame it that way. I realized this could be a truly fundamental difference. Even though I tend to prefer practical thinking, action, and language compared to others who did student activism, I thought to myself back then, "This is truly remarkable." That is what it is. The perspective of pragmatism, unity, and public livelihood that he always maintains when looking at or approaching problems—I believe that is the essence of Lee Jae-myung's politics.

▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: Reporters constantly ask Candidate Kim Min-seok about the supplementary investigative power issue. Even if the questions seem the same, the situation changes daily with new updates. Recently, there have been reports of party members bombarding lawmakers with text message bombs for proposing bills suggesting that some supplementation is needed and should be allowed. How do you view this issue? Should it be passed before the national convention, or should there be more deliberation afterward? I have heard you state that your position is to abolish supplementary investigative powers.

▶ Kim Min-seok / Former Prime Minister: Regarding that issue, both the government and the party have long raised the need for deliberation. Since I was tasked with overseeing that process, we did so. Based on such deliberation, I raised the issue and suggested to the party that we should wrap it up around May so that it wouldn't become a subject of conflict. That position remains unchanged. Looking at the current situation, while we deliberate, we cannot drag this on forever. We must finish it within the given time because the new systems are set to launch in October.

▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: Currently scheduled for October 2.

▶ Kim Min-seok / Former Prime Minister: Since it needs to launch, it is best to have the law sorted out before August. In terms of timing, the national convention is currently scheduled for August 17.

▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: Right.

▶ Kim Min-seok / Former Prime Minister: To avoid going past that date, and because other political schedules will proceed after the national convention, I believe it is best to wrap it up as quickly as possible under the current leadership.

▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: So it must be wrapped up before the national convention. The amendment to the Criminal Procedure Act must be passed.

▶ Kim Min-seok / Former Prime Minister: Otherwise, it will be too late.

▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: Writer Rhyu Si-min claimed that the reason prosecution reform has not been achieved for over a year is because the President does not want the complete separation of investigation and indictment. He argued that we have reached this point because the President did not want it, and there is no other explanation.

▶ Kim Min-seok / Former Prime Minister: I do not believe Writer Rhyu is necessarily speaking based on facts; it seems he is making a lot of assertions. How could such a thing happen solely because the President did not want it? If the President had such thoughts, wouldn't it be because of the various public opinions he is observing? In fact, if a poll were conducted today, wouldn't there be more public opinion suggesting that we should approach this by making certain supplementations to the supplementary investigative powers? Taking that into account, the President suggested we continue discussions and proceed with sufficient deliberation. However, as Prime Minister, I concluded that it would be best to define the government's stance as abolishing supplementary investigative powers, despite the various public opinions I mentioned, and the President and the Blue House accepted the Prime Minister's stance as the government's position. So, while he stated the principle of separating investigation and indictment and mentioned there were various considerations requiring continued deliberation, he did not object to the government finalizing its stance on abolishing supplementary investigative powers. The entire nation knows the President had various thoughts. But the entire nation also knows the President stated that investigation and indictment must be separated and that he agreed with the government's stance on abolishing supplementary investigative powers.

▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: He made the same or similar remarks during his last two press conferences.

▶ Kim Min-seok / Former Prime Minister: It is unreasonable to keep claiming that things are dragging on because his actual thoughts are different.

▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: Recently, after Candidate Kim Min-seok announced his candidacy, some politicians from the opposing camp, those helping other candidates or running for the supreme council, have brought up your past. You must have expected this. In fact, when thinking of the politician Kim Min-seok and past Democratic presidents and administrations, one might say the name Kim Min-seok had disappeared for a while. That was actually during the Roh Moo-hyun administration, wasn't it?

▶ Kim Min-seok / Former Prime Minister: Yes, since then, I was away from politics for nearly 18 years.

▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: Right. When you endured those years and finally returned, even those who knew Kim Min-seok were surprised, wondering how you overcame that long period.

▶ Kim Min-seok / Former Prime Minister: Who would have thought that I would revive politically, become a lawmaker, and even become Prime Minister? As we both know well, it is a miracle for me too.

▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: In any case, you probably expected that stories from those days would inevitably be exhumed, and indeed, such issues have been raised, haven't they?

▶ Kim Min-seok / Former Prime Minister: Since I have always spoken about those things exactly as they were, I don't think of it as anything new. Just as I have done so far, I am sharing what needs to be said honestly.

▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: You even ended up disclosing what kind of cold medicine you took on the day of the emergency martial law. You did disclose the cold medicine, right? What ingredients it had.

▶ Kim Min-seok / Former Prime Minister: In the end, just like during my confirmation hearing when the opposition questioned whether it was even possible for me to study at Tsinghua University in China during that period—which was eventually fully verified—I believe everything, including this issue, will be revealed in due time and justice will prevail. So I wasn't particularly anxious. Since you asked, I was able to explain the situation of that day in detail. I ran diligently and managed to take my seat by a margin of just one second. On my way there, I organized and submitted thoughts on the law, prepared an English statement to be released immediately afterward, and published it right away. I was able to explain all these efforts, so in a way, it turned out to be a good thing.

▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: Was it right after that? Did you contact Professor Baek Tae-ung, who is currently serving as the OECD Ambassador, asking him to help with the English statement?

▶ Kim Min-seok / Former Prime Minister: The moment I left my house, I saw a black sedan, so I avoided it. It took time to climb over a wall and take a detour. In the midst of that, as you know, I had fought almost to the death with Kim Yong-hyun while warning and predicting the martial law in advance.

▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: I have seen that video many times myself.

▶ Kim Min-seok / Former Prime Minister: I honestly thought that if I got caught, I would be trampled to death. But I had to get to the National Assembly, and since I might get caught on the way, I needed someone to organize this. One person who came to mind was Professor Baek Tae-ung, who is now the OECD Ambassador. I told him, "This reminds me of May 18. We need to inform foreign countries first, so please prepare an English statement on this critical situation." He did, and fortunately, things went well. Ten minutes after the resolution to lift the martial law was passed, I read that statement in English during the party's press conference. At the very end, I said, "It is essentially a coup d'état." Looking back, we got through a time that felt like a dream.

▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: By running this time, you seemed to raise the question of who would be the best next party leader for the success of the Lee Jae-myung administration's state affairs. But it also occurred to me that the President and the party cannot always be of the same mind.

▶ Kim Min-seok / Former Prime Minister: Of course.

▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: There are times when the government and the party have different ideas. In those cases, how will you handle it? Will you persuade them, follow them, or what?

▶ Kim Min-seok / Former Prime Minister: I believe we can do just as we have done so far. We have worked closely for about three years, raising issues through dialogue and debate, and forging new directions. I did so as Prime Minister. A Prime Minister has to express things a bit more carefully, and of course, a party leader does too, as the party and the government are one body. However, just like before, there is nothing we cannot say to each other to shape a direction. We can debate fiercely and create a path forward. I believe the President also hopes we will continue to communicate and raise issues from that standpoint, just as he has done so far.

▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: Is there any plan in the minds of the President or Candidate Kim Min-seok to reshape or realign the political landscape for the sake of political development and public livelihood? I am quite curious to hear your answer to this.

▶ Kim Min-seok / Former Prime Minister: I have never thought of the term "political realignment" or any such plan. I have never considered an artificial political realignment. However, when announcing my candidacy and sharing my intentions, I recall saying this—and I will indeed put it into practice. As I announced yesterday, once elected, there are several tasks I will begin immediately regarding youth, party member sovereignty, and nominations. Among them is the other task I mentioned earlier: solidarity and unity.

▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: The winning grand unity.

▶ Kim Min-seok / Former Prime Minister: And expansion. I will immediately work on resolving integration with those we need to integrate with, forming coalitions where needed, and pursuing a massive expansion. I don't know if you remember, but after taking power through the National Congress for New Politics, President Kim Dae-jung restored the name Millennium Democratic Party, the Democratic Party, and in doing so, strengthened the ruling party's presence. I handled all the practical work for that back then.

▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: All the reporters covering the beat back then know that.

▶ Kim Min-seok / Former Prime Minister: Party founding, planning...

▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: Mostly in a certain hotel.

▶ Kim Min-seok / Former Prime Minister: ...recruitment, and nominations. While we are not at that stage yet, I believe we must strengthen our reform DNA, form coalitions with other progressive parties where necessary, and carry out a massive recruitment drive. This naturally includes the fact that we currently have ministers in our cabinet who come from the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions (KCTU) and the Korean Teachers and Education Workers Union (KTU). Therefore, I believe we must practice the politics of addition across the board, bringing in competent and reasonable progressives, conservatives, and moderate reformers.

▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: The politics of addition.

▶ Kim Min-seok / Former Prime Minister: I have said I would do it, and I want to do it. I believe the ruling party should naturally do so. This is a completely different matter from the artificial political realignment that Writer Rhyu spoke of yesterday—which probably involves cutting out all our reform DNA and abandoning those who have worked hard. That is an impossible scenario. I believe this is entirely different.

▷ Joo Young-jin / Anchor: Understood. This was an interview with Kim Min-seok, former Prime Minister and candidate for the Democratic Party leadership. Thank you for your time today.

▶ Kim Min-seok / Former Prime Minister: Thank you.

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※ Please note: This article was translated by AI and may contain errors.