SEOUL - In a strategic move ahead of the April general elections, South Korea's ruling People Power Party (PPP) announced the recruitment of a North Korean defector engineer and four other distinguished figures.
According to Yonhap News Agency, head of the PPP's recruitment committee, these new members are poised to assume various roles within the party, ranging from potential parliamentary election candidates to policy advisors. Among the new recruits is Park Choong-kwon, a 37-year-old who defected from North Korea in 2009. Park, a graduate of the National Defense University, now known as the Kim Jong Un National Defense University, has since been employed as a researcher at Hyundai Steel Co. "Park represents a new role model for North Korean defectors in South Korea, and we expect him to significantly contribute to the fields of engineering and human rights for North Koreans," stated Lee.
The PPP has also enlisted the expertise of pediatrician and best-selling infant care author Ha Jeong-hun, lawyer and TV pundit Koo Ja-ryong, known for his criticism of opposition leader Lee Jae-myung, Yoon Do-hyun, who heads a nonprofit organization for orphans, and criminal psychology professor Lee Soo-jung from Kyonggi University. Professor Lee has already announced her intention to run for office.
These recruitments are part of the conservative PPP's ongoing efforts to diversify and strengthen its ranks. The party currently has two North Korean defector-turned-lawmakers serving in the National Assembly: Rep. Tae Yong-ho, a former North Korean diplomat representing Gangnam in southern Seoul, and Rep. Ji Seong-ho, who became a lawmaker as a proportional representative.