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Unified Progressive Party

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Unified Progressive Party
통합진보당
LeaderLee Jung-hee[1]
Founded5 December 2011 (2011-12-05)
Banned19 December 2014 (2014-12-19)
Merger of
Succeeded byMinjung Party (de facto)
HeadquartersNoryangjin-ro 12, Solbom Building 12th floor, Dongjak-gu, Seoul
IdeologyProgressivism (South Korean)[2]
Political position
Colours  Purple
^ a: By September 2012, Minjungminju-wing [ko] (People's Democracy faction) within the UPP left in large quantities, and the Minjokhaebang-wing [ko] (National Liberation faction) (anti-American/pro-North Korean or left-wing nationalists) became the main players.[11]
Unified Progressive Party
Hangul
통합진보당
Hanja
統合進步黨
Revised RomanizationTonghap Jinbodang
McCune–ReischauerT'onghap Chinbodang
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The Unified Progressive Party (UPP; Korean: 통합진보당; RR: Tonghapjinbodang) is a banned political party in South Korea. It was founded on 5 December 2011 as a merger of the Democratic Labor Party, the People's Participation Party of Rhyu Si-min, and a faction of the New Progressive Party.[2][12] Until 12 May 2012 it was jointly chaired by Rhyu Si-min, Lee Jung-hee, and Sim Sang-jung.[4][13]

History

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The UPP proposed an alliance with the major liberal Democratic Party, which the Democrats rejected.[4]

In the 2012 National Assembly election the party gained eight seats for a total of thirteen seats out of 300, advancing to the third position, well ahead of the conservative Liberty Forward Party (which lost most of its seats).

On 24 April 2012, the party provisionally voted to drop the "Unified" component of its name, and adopt the name "Progressive Party". The change was subject to a vote of the party's Central Committee on 13 May.[14] On 3 May 2012, the party internal investigation revealed that wide-ranging irregularities occurred in selecting UPP's proportional representation candidates.[15][16] UPP won six proportional representatives in 11 April general election,[17] but one legislator resigned amid the election scandal. All four co-leaders of the party subsequently resigned on 12 May.[18]

The South Korean government petitioned the Constitutional Court of Korea to dissolve the UPP due to their alleged pro-North Korea views in November 2013, two months after the UPP members allegedly involved in the 2013 South Korean sabotage plot were arrested. On 19 December 2014 the Constitutional Court of Korea ruled 8–1 in favour of the dissolution. The five UPP lawmakers were also deprived of their National Assembly seats.[19][20] According to Amnesty International, the UPP's ban raised "serious questions as to the authorities' commitment to freedom of expression and association".[21][22][23]

After the dissolution, some of the members joined People's United Party in 2016.

Political positions

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Since the United Progressive Party was a big tent party until 2012 and before, there was no consistent ideology except for the motto of a "leftist" party. Before the 2012 party's controversy over fraudulent elections, the United Progressive Party was led by moderates, so some[who?] evaluated that "progressivism" was closer to "American (modern) liberalism" than "socialism".[24][25] However, after 2012, liberals and social democrats within the party left the party, and left-wing nationalists led the party much more, and afterwards were embroiled in controversy over allegations of being "far-left" or "pro-North Korea" (종북).[26]

Lee Seok-ki sabotage plot

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Main article: 2013 South Korean sabotage plot

On 5 September 2013, South Korea's intelligence agency, NIS, accused UPP lawmaker Lee Seok-ki of plotting a pro-North Korean rebellion. The case triggered a political and media firestorm in a nation where even praising the North can be considered a crime.[27] He allegedly led a May 2013 meeting, comprised partly of UPP members, in which reference was made to the prospect of attacking South Korean infrastructure in the event that recently heightened tensions between the Koreas led to war.

South Korean prosecutors subsequently indicted Lee on charges of plotting a pro-North Korea rebellion to overthrow the government, saying his plan posed a "grave" national security threat.[28] However, UPP lawmakers say that while the meeting in question did take place, they had no intention of destroying South Korean government infrastructure.[citation needed]

On 17 February 2014, Lee was sentenced by a district court to 12 years in prison.[29]

Electoral results

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Legislative

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Election Leader Constituency Party list Seats Position Status
Votes % Seats Votes % Seats
2012 Lee Jung-hee 1,291,306 5.99
7 / 246
 2,198,405 10.31
6 / 54
13 / 300
 3rd Opposition

Local

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Election Leader Metropolitan mayor/Governor Provincial legislature Municipal mayor Municipal legislature
2014 Lee Jung-hee
0 / 17
0 / 789
0 / 226
34 / 2,898

References

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  1. ^ http://www.goupp.org/kor/intro/greeting.php UPP intro page(korean)
  2. ^ a b "Minor parties launch 'Unified Progressive Party'". The Korea Times. 5 December 2011. Retrieved 1 February 2012.
  3. ^ Tom Lansford (19 March 2019). Political Handbook of the World 2018-2019. CQ Press. p. 745. ISBN 978-1544327112.
  4. ^ a b c Bae Hyun-jung (20 January 2012). "Minority parties struggle". The Korea Herald. Retrieved 1 February 2012.
  5. ^ Rüdiger Frank, Jim Hoare (13 September 2013). Korea 2013: Politics, Economy and Society. BRILL. p. 26. ISBN 9789004262973.
  6. ^ James E. Hoare, ed. (2020). Historical Dictionary of the Republic of Korea. Rowman & Littlefield. p. LXIX. ISBN 9781538119761. NIS raids offices and homes of 10 officials of the left-wing Unified Progressive Party on charges of conspiring to mount a pro–North Korean insurrection.
  7. ^ [5][6]
  8. ^ Chung Min Lee, ed. (2016). Fault Lines in a Rising Asia. Brookings Institution Press. p. 323. ISBN 9780870033131. The far-left Unified Progressive Party (UPP) was South Korea's most pro–North Korean political party, and its leadership was in near-perfect alignment with the policies espoused by North Korea, but it was disbanded when the ...
  9. ^ Oul Han, ed. (2021). Polarized Politics in South Korea: Political Culture and Democracy in Partisan Newspapers. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 22. ISBN 9781793635921. ... In 2014 for example, a far-left party (Unified Progressive Party) was dissolved due to pro-North Korean activities that threaten national security.25 Accordingly, ...
  10. ^ [8][9]
  11. ^ 노회찬, 심상정, 유시민 통합진보당 탈당: 민노당 전 최고위원, 지방의원, 참여계 당원 3000여명도 '탈당 러시' [Roh Hoe-chan, Sim Sang-jung, and Yoo Si-min left the Unified Progressive Party: About 3,000 former supreme council members, local councilors, and participating members of the DLP are also leaving the party.]. Pressian. 13 September 2012. Retrieved 4 December 2021.
  12. ^ "S. Korea's minor parties coalesce to form new progressive party". People's Daily Online. 5 December 2012. Retrieved 1 February 2012.
  13. ^ "Progressive parties unified". Yonhap News Agency. Archived from the original on 7 July 2012. Retrieved 1 February 2012. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  14. ^ Progressives drop ‘united’ from party name, The Korea Herald. 24 April 2012, retrieved 24 April 2012.
  15. ^ "UPP should clearly settle vote irregularity scandal". Yonhap News. 2 May 2012. Retrieved 3 May 2012.
  16. ^ Huh Yun-seok(허윤석) (3 May 2012). '지도부 사퇴' 밝힌 진보당, 비례대표 거취 '충돌' [UPP party leader resigned. Internal conflict is widening.]. SBS (in Korean). Retrieved 3 May 2012.
  17. ^ Kim Hee-jin (3 May 2012). "UPP admits its primary was rigged". Korea JoongAng Daily. Archived from the original on 27 January 2013. Retrieved 3 May 2012.{{cite news}}: CS1 maint: unfit URL (link)
  18. ^ "Leftist party leaders resign over election scandal". The Korea Times. 12 May 2012. Retrieved 12 May 2012.
  19. ^ S Korea Court Orders Dissolution of Leftist Party
  20. ^ Official court opinion (in Korean)
  21. ^ "South Korea court orders party with 'pro-North Korea' views be disbanded". DW. 19 December 2014.
  22. ^ "South Korea court orders breakup of 'pro-North' leftwing party". The Guardian. 19 December 2014.
  23. ^ Steven Borowiec (19 December 2014). "In unprecedented move, South Korea bans 'pro-North' political party". Los Angeles Times.
  24. ^ 보수적인, 너무나 보수적인 우리의 '진보' [Conservative. Our "progressive" that's too conservative.]. Pressian. 1 December 2011. Retrieved 4 December 2021.
  25. ^ "UPP's biggest faction denies rigging". Korea JoongAng Daily. 7 May 2012. Retrieved 2 January 2022. The internal strife in the liberal Unified Progressive Party continued with the leader of the party's largest faction demanding a vote on whether the candidates elected in a rigged primary should step down.
  26. ^ '종북논란' 벗어날 방안 없는 통합진보당 (in Korean). The Hankyoreh. 4 November 2014. Retrieved 4 December 2021.
  27. ^ "South Korea Lawmaker Arrested in Alleged Rebellion Plot". Time. Archived from the original on 7 September 2013.
  28. ^ South Korean prosecutors charge leftist lawmaker with plotting pro-North Korea rebellion
  29. ^ "(LEAD) Leftist lawmaker gets 12-year prison term for rebellion plot". 17 February 2014.
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