Baek Hyeryun: "The Serious Accidents Act Subcommittee Will Definitely Convene Before Christmas"... Jo Sujin: "Ignoring the Opposition, Acting Arbitrarily"

13th Day of Hunger Strike by Justice Party and Industrial Accident Victims' Bereaved Families

Sim Sang-jung, former leader of the Justice Party, is encouraging Kim Mi-sook, mother of the late Kim Yong-gyun and director of the Kim Yong-gyun Foundation, Lee Yong-gwan, father of the late PD Lee Han-bit, and Lee Sang-jin, vice chairman of the Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, who are on a hunger strike in front of the National Assembly main building on the 17th, urging the enactment of the Serious Accidents Punishment Act. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Cheol-eung] The Democratic Party of Korea proposed to the People Power Party to hold a subcommittee meeting of the Legislation and Judiciary Committee (Legislation Subcommittee), the first step toward passing the Serious Accidents Punishment Act, on the afternoon of the 23rd or the morning of the 24th. Although People Power Party floor leader Joo Ho-young emphasized the necessity of legislation, it remains uncertain whether the members of the Legislation Committee from his party will attend the meeting. The Democratic Party insists that the meeting must be held on the 24th to officially begin reviewing the bill, if only to end the hunger strike of the bereaved families of industrial accident victims.

Kim Tae-nyeon, the Democratic Party floor leader, said at the Supreme Council meeting on the 23rd, "There are only two weeks left until January 8, the last day of the temporary National Assembly session, so every day is urgent," adding, "I hope the People Power Party will cooperate so that the Legislation Committee’s bill review meeting can be held starting today."

Baek Hye-ryun, the Democratic Party lawmaker and ruling party secretary of the Legislation Committee, said in a phone interview with Asia Economy the day before, "We proposed to the People Power Party to hold the subcommittee meeting on the afternoon of the 23rd or the morning of the 24th, but we are still waiting for a response," and added, "We are trying to hold the first meeting before the Christmas holiday so that the bereaved families can end their hunger strike."

The Serious Accidents Punishment Act involves many contentious issues, making it difficult to reach a conclusion in just one day. However, the goal is to open the way first and fulfill the ruling and opposition parties’ promise to handle the bill within this temporary National Assembly session (ending January 8 next year) through additional discussions after the holiday. The hunger strike by the Justice Party and bereaved families of industrial accident victims demanding the enactment of the Serious Accidents Punishment Act has entered its 13th day. Holding the subcommittee meeting to put the bill on track would be the first step, so they hope the strike will be lifted.

However, the Legislation Committee has not yet healed the extreme conflict between the Democratic Party and the People Power Party that arose during the passage of the amendment to the High-ranking Officials’ Crime Investigation Office (HOCI) Act. Kim Do-eup, the opposition party secretary of the Legislation Committee from the People Power Party, submitted a resignation from the standing committee, taking responsibility for failing to block the HOCI Act amendment. It has not been reported whether floor leader Joo Ho-young accepted the resignation.

Cho Soo-jin, a People Power Party lawmaker on the Legislation Committee, criticized in a phone interview with Asia Economy, "The subcommittee is basically supposed to be held by agreement between the ruling and opposition parties, so when was this agreement made?" She added, "There are also confirmation hearings for ministerial candidates scheduled until the 24th, so how can the subcommittee be held? Above all, the Democratic Party has never sincerely treated the opposition party as an opposition party."

She continued, "As we have done before, if they want to hold it before Christmas this time as well, I want to say let them do as they please. We do not have the authority to stop it, do we?"

Lawmaker Cho also said, "The purpose of the 'Min-sik Act' is good, but there was so much controversy due to fairness with other laws. The Serious Accidents Punishment Act is the same. Before holding the subcommittee, the Democratic Party must come up with a unified proposal." Floor leader Joo Ho-young also told reporters on the same day, "If the Democratic Party first comes up with a unified proposal, we will engage in discussions."

Baek said, "Once the subcommittee is held, we intend to discuss and handle the issues together with the opposition party." There is also a possibility that the Democratic Party may hold the subcommittee alone. Kim Jong-min, a Democratic Party lawmaker on the Legislation Committee, said in a phone interview, "We need to hold the subcommittee as soon as possible within this week, and if it is absolutely impossible, we should do it alone," adding, "The Democratic Party should take the initiative to break through so that at least the hunger strike can be stopped."

The Serious Accidents Punishment Act aims to impose a duty on business owners to prevent risks and punish them with imprisonment or fines amounting to billions of won if a serious accident occurs due to violation of this duty. Not only the Democratic Party and the Justice Party but also Im Eui-ja from the People Power Party have proposed bills. Contentious issues include the clause in the Democratic Party’s bill that grants a four-year grace period for workplaces with fewer than 50 employees and the presumption of causation for punishing business owners.

Meanwhile, eight economic organizations, including the Korea Employers Federation (KEF), held a press conference the day before, calling the Serious Accidents Punishment Act "excessive legislation that is very difficult for the business community to bear" and requested a halt to its promotion.

This content was produced with the assistance of AI translation services.