Five Press Organizations Demand Ruling Party to Immediately Withdraw the Media Arbitration Act Submission

[Asia Economy Reporter Kim Hyo-jin] As the ruling party, the Democratic Party of Korea, is pushing for the forced passage of the amendment to the "Act on the Mediation and Relief of Damage Caused by Defamation (Media Arbitration Act)" at the National Assembly plenary session, five major organizations representing the domestic media industry have called for the immediate withdrawal of the plan to submit the amendment.

The five media professional organizations?the Korean Federation of Media Workers' Unions, the Korea Journalists Association, the Broadcast Journalists Association, the Korea PD Association, and the Korea Broadcast Technicians Union?held a joint press conference on the morning of the 30th in front of the main gate of the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul, stating, "If the amendment is forcibly passed, the government ruling party elected by the most democratic power will bear the historical stigma of passing the most anti-democratic bill."

The Democratic Party leadership plans to decide the direction of the amendment's handling after a closed supreme council meeting, a party caucus, and meetings with opposition parties such as the People Power Party. The People Power Party has announced that if the amendment is submitted to the plenary session scheduled for 5 p.m. that day, they will defend it through a legal procedural obstruction known as a 'filibuster' by unlimited debate.

Source = Yonhap News

The five media organizations criticized, "(Today is) the day when an irreversible decision will be made in Korean politics and media history," adding, "It is the day when the media, which exposed the state manipulation and triggered a regime change, falls into the swamp of injunction lawsuits and becomes a target of punishment; the day when the citizens in the square who raised their voices against the Democratic Party delaying the impeachment decision of Park Geun-hye will be driven into irreversible division."

The five organizations repeatedly urged the Democratic Party to activate the social consensus body proposed on the 27th for sufficient discussion and agreement. They further condemned, "The Democratic Party should not confuse consultation with consensus," stating, "The Democratic Party has already decided on the bill and disguised repeated partial amendments as consultation."

The core of the Democratic Party's pushed amendment to the Media Arbitration Act is to allow punitive damages of up to five times the amount of damage for false or manipulated media reports. The purpose is to prevent the harm caused by so-called 'fake news.'

Opposition parties, the media industry, civil society, and the international community have criticized the amendment as a 'media suppression law' that weakens the media's role in monitoring and checking power by gagging the press. As voices of criticism arise domestically and internationally, even some within the Democratic Party are calling for caution.

Below is the full text of the press conference.

Withdrawal of Submission and Voting Against Are the True Beginnings of Media Reform.

Today is the day when an irreversible decision will be made in Korean politics and media history. It is the day when the media, which exposed state manipulation and triggered a regime change, falls into the swamp of injunction lawsuits and becomes a target of punishment. It is the day when the citizens in the square who raised their voices against the Democratic Party delaying the impeachment decision of Park Geun-hye will be driven into irreversible division.

On August 27, we proposed to the Democratic Party the activation of a social consensus body for sufficient discussion and agreement.

The Democratic Party should not confuse consultation with consensus. The Democratic Party has already decided on the bill and disguised repeated partial amendments as consultation. The order is wrong. Consensus is the process of listening to the causes of declining media trust, confirming the responsibilities required of media companies and media workers, and deriving effective remedies for media damage.

The social consensus body is the last opportunity for the Democratic Party, which received power from the candlelight citizens without any effort, to exercise legislative power democratically. If this proposal is also abandoned, the government ruling party elected by the most democratic power will bear the historical stigma of passing the most anti-democratic bill. Not only will it face an overwhelming backlash in the upcoming presidential election, but the freedom of the press and expression, which has expanded by breaking through long-standing military dictatorship and authoritarian oppression, will again be placed under the power's blockade, and South Korea's democracy, praised worldwide, will become a laughingstock in the international community. Isn't that already happening?

We also demand the Democratic Party leadership:

Withdraw the submission of the Media Arbitration Act amendment, which is too problematic to even point out one by one, from the plenary session. At the same time, immediately accept the social consensus body proposed by civil society and media professionals.

We demand the People Power Party:

Is the 'freedom of the press' you have long shouted, after years of media suppression and broadcast control, really the same freedom of the press we talk about? Not many citizens believe you oppose the amendment for the sake of press freedom. If your opposition is not to protect the vested interests of some conservative media and capital, immediately express your willingness to participate in the social consensus body proposed by media professional organizations and civil society and present constructive alternatives.

We demand all 300 members of the National Assembly:

Clearly oppose the flawed Media Arbitration Act amendment from the start if it is submitted to the plenary session, and reject it.

Freedom of the press and expression is the fundamental right that enables all other freedoms. Forcing a bill that restricts and suppresses this without social consensus is a regression that denies the painful history of South Korean democracy. We will clearly record and remember who in the National Assembly, a constitutional institution, creates and supports this unconstitutional law, marking a disgrace in constitutional history.

If, despite all these proposals, the political sphere passes the amendment at today's plenary session, we will record today as the day of destruction of press freedom and regression of democracy. We will fight to the end against anyone who demonizes the media as an enemy and ally, turning it into a target of hostility and hatred, wielding legal and political violence to serve partisan interests. This is not an attack on journalists but a threat to South Korean democracy.

The plenary session just hours away is a moment of choice to show whether the Democratic Party, which claimed to be the candlelight government, is truly a party for the people.

Finally, we demand the National Assembly: If you do not want the end of media reform, declare the true beginning of media reform by withdrawing the submission and voting against the bill.

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