Met for about 15 minutes to wish him a speedy recovery
Democratic Party leader Jeong Cheong-rae visited Rep. Ahn Ho-young, who was hospitalized after staging a hunger strike over a dispute in the party primary for governor of North Jeolla Province.
According to political sources on the 24th, Jeong went to Green Hospital in Seoul’s Jungnang District with Rep. Kim Young-hwan at about 4:50 p.m. They met with Rep. Ahn for roughly 15 minutes.
Rep. Ahn launched the hunger strike after losing to Rep. Lee Won-taek in the party primary for governor of North Jeolla Province on the 11th. He was demanding a reinvestigation into allegations that Lee had a third party cover his meal expenses. On the twelfth day of the strike, April 22, his health deteriorated and he was taken to the hospital.
At the bedside, Jeong told Rep. Ahn that since he had fasted for 12 days, he should undergo 12 days of hospitalization and treatment. He wished him a speedy recovery and, according to party officials, suggested they have a meal together after Ahn is discharged. He did not raise the issue of reopening the probe into Rep. Lee.
Earlier, some party members criticized Jeong for not visiting Ahn’s hunger-strike site outside the National Assembly main building. On the 22nd, Supreme Council member Lee Eon-ju said, “His office was on the way, yet (Jeong) never went; he didn’t even offer a handshake. I feel deeply ashamed.”
Supreme Council member Kang Deuk-gu also criticized the party leader, saying, “I do not agree with a party leader who turns his back and walks away while one of our lawmakers has been on a hunger strike for about 10 days.”
In response, Rep. Choi Min-hee targeted the two council members on Facebook, saying, “There are Supreme Council members who are indirectly encouraging defiance of party nominations. What is the point of attacking the party leader by using a nomination-protest hunger strike as a pretext?”
Kang replied on Facebook, “If any member of our party continues a hunger strike for more than 10 days for any reason, we will, of course, visit them, offer comfort, and urge them to end the strike. I cannot agree with framing this as a political act.”
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