2 Blocs in Ruling Party Continue Fighting

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2 Blocs in Ruling Party Continue Fighting

Calls within the ruling Millennium Democratic Party for the powerful "Tonggyo-dong" faction to resign from the party leadership began developing Wednesday into a full-fledged internal battle, with the presidential ticket for 2002 as the ultimate prize.

The "Tonggyo-dong" faction, led by Kwon Roh-kap, President Kim Dae-jung's closest ally and a member of the party's Supreme Council, discussed the possible filing of a complaint with the National Assembly's Special Committee on Ethics against a fellow lawmaker, Rep. Chung Dong-young.

The Kwon camp decried Mr. Chung's proposal that Mr. Kwon surrender party management as a "conspiracy to overthrow" him and suggested that a more senior lawmaker, in particular Rep. Hahn Hwa-kap, was pulling the strings.

With such accusations, political observers saw the ruling party splitting into a pro-Kwon camp, which is pushing Rep. Rhee In-je as its presidential contender, and the anti-Kwon camp, which is led by Rep. Hahn, another presidential contender.

Rep. Chung is a first-term lawmaker who enjoys clout in the party as a member of the Supreme Council. After Tuesday's calls by a group of first-time lawmakers of the ruling party for the "Tonggyo-dong" faction to yield leadership, it was learned that during Sunday's meeting between President Kim Dae-jung and Supreme Council members, Rep. Chung proposed that Mr. Kwon give up party management.

Mr. Chung accused Mr. Kwon of exercising a heavy hand in government appointments as one of the closest of the president's men. He compared the 70-year-old Mr. Kwon to a second "Kim Hyun-chul," the son of the former President Kim Young-sam who peddled his influence as the presidential son among businessmen and politicians.

"Rep. Chung has criticized me, based on some groundless rumor," Mr. Kwon charged.

For his part, Rep. Chung said he did not care about retaining his seat in the parliament nor about his membership in the Supreme Council. "I said what I had to say, and I put everything I have at stake," he said.


by Kim Gyo-joon

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