Obsession with National Reform vs. All-Out Resistance Struggle... Escalating Extreme Conflict Between Ruling and Opposition Parties

Delay in Media Arbitration Act Processing

Democratic Party's Determination to Complete Progressive Reform Bills Within President Moon's Term
Negative Impact on Party and President's Approval Ratings

Opposition Parties Including People Power Party Protest
Considering Filibuster and Constitutional Appeal

[Asia Economy Reporters Oh Ju-yeon, Geum Bo-ryeong] Although the plenary session scheduled for the afternoon of the 25th was postponed for the time being through the mediation of National Assembly Speaker Park Byeong-seok, the Democratic Party of Korea still insists on pushing the bill through. Ahead of the last regular session of the Moon Jae-in administration in September, the party appears obsessed with completing national reform. The opposition party has announced plans to consider a filibuster to delay proceedings and to file a constitutional complaint, escalating the conflict between the ruling and opposition parties to its peak.

Kim Ki-hyun, floor leader of the People Power Party, attended the nationwide filibuster site in front of the National Assembly main gate on the 25th to block the passage of the amendment to the Media Arbitration Act in the plenary session and condemned it. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

The Democratic Party is pushing the Media Arbitration Act, which has been criticized not only in political circles but also by the media and academia as ‘gagging the press’ and ‘hasty processing,’ driven by a determination to complete progressive reform bills within President Moon’s term. Last year, the party unilaterally pushed through the three lease laws, the Corruption Investigation Office Act, and the Fair Economy Three Acts (Fair Trade Act, Commercial Act, and Financial Group Supervision Act). In June, the contentious Small Business Loss Compensation Act was also pushed through after removing the ‘retroactive application’ clause. This has led to criticism that the ruling party, with its 180 seats, is not just dominating legislation but running wild and acting tyrannically.

[Image source=Yonhap News]

In the early hours of the day, during the full session of the Legislation and Judiciary Committee, the Democratic Party passed the Media Arbitration Act along with the Operating Room CCTV Act, Private School Act, and the Google Abuse Prevention Act. This occurred around 4 a.m., after members of the People Power Party protested the unilateral proceedings and walked out.

The series of legislative dominance displayed by the Democratic Party is having a negative impact on both the party and the president’s approval ratings ahead of the presidential election. Professor Park Sang-byeong of Inha University analyzed, "Media reform is a progressive reform connecting the Roh Moo-hyun and Moon Jae-in administrations. Due to the trauma from the Roh Moo-hyun government, the Democratic Party cannot concede on media reform. It is unrelated to approval ratings." In fact, according to a public opinion poll commissioned by this outlet and conducted by Win-G Korea Consulting (targeting 1,024 voters aged 18 and over from the 21st to 22nd), both President Moon Jae-in’s positive evaluation of state affairs and the Democratic Party’s support rate declined due to the Media Arbitration Act controversy. The president’s positive evaluation dropped 1.5 percentage points from the previous survey to 44.3%, while negative evaluation rose 3.1 percentage points to 54.2%. The Democratic Party’s support rate fell 2.5 percentage points to 34.0%, while the People Power Party’s rose 3.7 percentage points to 33.8% (with a margin of error of ±3.1 percentage points at a 95% confidence level).

Kim Gi-hyeon, floor leader of the People Power Party, said at a press conference in front of the National Assembly main gate that morning, "A car with broken brakes is running wild," and added, "I can say with certainty that this administration is using all means to strengthen dictatorial power like a ‘wolf in sheep’s clothing.’ Only a united People Power Party can stop the 180-seat ruling party and the Moon Jae-in administration’s dictatorship." On the other hand, Yoon Ho-jung, floor leader of the Democratic Party, reaffirmed the determination to push the bill through at the party’s highest council meeting that morning, saying, "The fake news relief law is a significant achievement," and "All these laws must be passed in the August National Assembly session."

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