The dissolution of the Unified Progressive Party is expected to spark a series of lawsuits by its former members despite the lack of public support for them, according to sources on Thursday.

But experts said the lawsuits would have little effect, as they are unlikely to overturn the Constitutional Court ruling on Dec. 19 disbanding the minor opposition UPP, a leftist party with pro-North Korea leanings. The court ruled that the UPP wanted to turn the nation into a socialist state similar to the North.

The ruling effectively ousted the party’s five lawmakers in the National Assembly, and six more lawmakers in provincial legislatures. Ex-UPP members are preparing to file lawsuits to overturn the sackings.

Members of the now-dissolved party say that the removal of its lawmakers is “unfounded” as the Constitutional Court had violated their defense rights during the trials leading up to the landmark ruling last week. They did not offer details as to how the court had done so.

Prosecutors are considering whether or not to charge UPP supporters of treason.

The UPP’s members have been accused of harboring pro-Pyongyang beliefs in a country still technically at war with North Korea. They include ex-lawmaker Lee Seok-ki, who was found guilty of attempting to overthrow the government earlier this year. Lee has appealed the ruling to the Supreme Court.

The party’s dissolution also touched off a series of protests against the Constitutional Court. Critics of the court include members of the main opposition New Politics Alliance for Democracy. The dissolution had “damaged” the nation’s hard-won democracy, NPAD Rep. Park Soo-hyun said, although his party did not share the UPP’s pro-North ideologies.

Public support for the forthcoming lawsuits by ex-UPP officials is expected to be low, however.

In a poll on Monday by the JoongAng Ilbo, a right-leaning local daily, 64 percent of the respondents supported the UPP dissolution, while 24 percent were against it. Close to 70 percent of the survey’s participants said the UPP was a threat to South Korea’s national security. The poll surveyed 1,000 adults.

The party’s approval rating leading up to the ruling was also low. According to Gallup Korea, the party’s public endorsement ratings measured weekly since July hovered between 2 and 3 percent. Most of the polls surveyed about 1,000 South Korean adults, with a margin of error of about 3 percent, at a 95 percent confidence level.

By Jeong Hunny (hj257@heraldcorp.com)