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Korea Herald
4 days ago
- Politics
- Korea Herald
Assembly ends filibuster, passes DP-led broadcasting bill
The National Assembly on Tuesday passed one of the three contentious broadcasting bills proposed by the ruling Democratic Party of Korea, after voting to end a 24-hour filibuster by the opposition People Power Party. The amendment to the Broadcasting Act, which seeks to expand the board of directors at KBS, passed the Assembly with 178 votes in favor and 2 against. A total of 180 members participated in the vote, which People Power Party lawmakers boycotted. This followed the National Assembly's vote to end the filibuster Tuesday morning, with 187 votes in favor. Ending a filibuster requires votes from at least three-fifths — or 179 — of the current 198 parliament members, according to the National Assembly Act. The conservative party lawmakers walked out of the parliamentary chamber in protest of this vote as well. The Democratic Party currently holds a parliamentary majority with 167 out of 298 seats. The revision to the Broadcasting Act is one of three proposed bills aimed at limiting the government's and politicians' power to name directors to the boards of public broadcasters, KBS, MBC and EBS. The other two bills in the set are revisions to the Foundation for Broadcast Culture Act and the Korea Educational Broadcasting System Act. These propose similar changes to the governance structures at MBC and EBS, while the Broadcasting Act affects KBS. The conservative People Power Party has repeatedly denounced the bills as a means to appoint more liberal-minded officials as board members of the broadcasters. People Power Party floor leader and interim leader Rep. Song Eon-seog, in an intra-party meeting held ahead of the plenary session, threatened to file an adjudication with the Constitutional Court on the constitutionality of the law. Several other contentious bills were tabled by the Democratic Party during Monday's plenary session, including the revision to the Trade Union and Labor Relations Adjustment Act. These are expected to be put to a vote at the next earliest plenary session scheduled for Aug. 21. The revision focuses on restricting companies from claiming damages against legitimate disputes involving labor unions. The bill's nickname, the 'Yellow Envelope' bill, stems from the donations that the public sent to support SsangYong Motor workers in 2014, after they were laid off and faced court orders to compensate their employer for the damages made to company properties during a strike. South Korean business lobby groups, the American Chamber of Commerce in Korea, and the European Chamber of Commerce have all voiced concerns that the passage of the bill could prompt foreign companies to withdraw from the Korean market. The three broadcasting bills and 'Yellow Envelope' bill were previously vetoed by former President Yoon Suk Yeol. Yoon worked with the Assembly with the Democratic Party as the parliamentary majority throughout his term, before he was impeached after his failed attempt to impose martial law on Dec. 3, 2024.
Korea Herald
5 days ago
- Politics
- Korea Herald
PPP launches filibuster to delay DP-led legislation
Parliamentary vote for 'Yellow Envelope' bill likely to be delayed to mid-August The main opposition People Power Party launched a filibuster Monday to delay the vote on a contentious bill proposed by the Democratic Party of Korea, denouncing what it called a "unilateral" legislative push by the ruling liberal bloc. The filibuster is the first by the conservative party in over a year. It targeted a revision of the Broadcasting Act, concerning the governance structure of public broadcaster KBS. Dozens of Democratic Party lawmakers walked out of the session as Rep. Shin Dong-uk, a first-term lawmaker of the People Power Party, kicked off the debate just after 4 p.m. Similar revisions of the Foundation for Broadcast Culture Act and the Korea Educational Broadcasting System Act were also due to be voted on at Monday's plenary session for the National Assembly. The three revision bills are designed to limit the government and politicians' power to name directors to the boards of KBS, MBC and EBS TV. When a filibuster is initiated, a continuous debate session begins that cannot be halted by a vote until 24 hours have passed. After that, it can be broken with the support of three-fifths of all 298 lawmakers of the National Assembly — or 179 votes. Five left-leaning parties in South Korea, including the Democratic Party, hold a combined 185 seats at the National Assembly. This means the parties have enough power to not only pass legislation with a majority of seats, but also end the filibuster after 24 hours have passed. But a 24-hour delay would push the legislation beyond the end of the current session effectively delaying it for several weeks. Another contentious bill tabled at Monday's plenary session was the Trade Union and Labor Relations Adjustment Act, aimed at broadening the scope of an "employer" when it comes to dealing with labor unions. It seeks to ban companies from claiming damages against labor unions, even if their strikes incurred damages for the company. All four bills were previously vetoed by former President Yoon Suk Yeol, who worked with the National Assembly dominated by the Democratic Party throughout his short-lived term. He was removed from office in April after a failed martial law attempt in December. The People Power Party was also poised for a filibuster against a revision of the Commercial Act aimed at banning listed companies with over 2 trillion won ($1.44 billion) in assets from rejecting the cumulative voting system, which would boost minority shareholders' rights to elect a corporate boardroom director. The bill, also led by the Democratic Party, was vetoed by ex-acting President Han Duck-soo while Yoon was impeached. Before Monday's filibuster, the order of which bill would be brought to the parliamentary vote was the focal point. The filibuster is to last until Tuesday afternoon, although the monthlong 427th session of the National Assembly was to end Monday night. With the following 428th session of the Assembly kicking off on Wednesday, votes for the remaining contentious bills, including the Trade Union Act revision — also known as the "Yellow Envelope" bill — are likely to start in its earliest plenary session, which is currently scheduled on Aug. 21. Regarding the sequence of the bills to be voted, Rep. Jung Chung-rae, chair of the Democratic Party, said just before the plenary session on Monday that his party chose a bill over broadcast governance "after some twists and turns," given the gravity of the problem in the current media governance structure that was prone to political influence.
Korea Herald
10-06-2025
- Politics
- Korea Herald
Ruling party delays push to pass bill halting criminal trials for president-elect
The ruling Democratic Party withdrew its plan Tuesday to hold a plenary session of the National Assembly this week to pass contentious bills, including one aimed at halting criminal trials for a president-elect. A parliamentary plenary session will not be held on Thursday and various bills at issue will not be dealt with this week, DP floor spokesperson Noh Jong-myeon told reporters at the National Assembly. "Once the new leadership is in place, we are going to move forward with the legislation at full speed, and what happens after that is up to the new leadership to determine with its members," he said. The move delays the ruling party's plan to vote on the bills this week, passing on the decision to the new floor leadership, set to take office on June 13. Last month, the DP unilaterally passed the revision to the Criminal Procedure Act during a subcommittee meeting of the legislation and judiciary committee despite protest from the People Power Party. The PPP has strongly opposed the bill, claiming the bill was specifically introduced to favor President Lee Jae-myung. The DP had initially planned to convene the plenary session to pass three contentious broadcasting bills. The bills call for amending the Broadcasting Act, the Foundation for Broadcast Culture Act and the Korea Educational Broadcasting System Act. The proposed changes aimed to alter the governance structure of public broadcasters -- KBS, MBC and EBS -- by significantly increasing the number of their board directors and granting media and broadcasting associations, as well as related professional organizations, the right to recommend board members. (Yonhap)
