Lee Jun-seok "Let's promptly revise the National Referendum Act"... Park Ju-min "Not realistic"

Tensions Between Ruling and Opposition Parties Over Referendum on 'Geomsu Wanbak'
2014 Overseas Citizens Voting Restrictions Deemed Unconstitutional... Legal Revisions Needed First
Lee Jun-seok "Will Actively Support Holding the Referendum"
Park Ju-min "Constitution Allows Referendum Only on Diplomacy, Defense, Unification, and Other National Security Issues"

Lee Jun-seok, the leader of the People Power Party, urged that the bill be revised in order to hold a national referendum on the 'Complete Removal of Prosecutorial Investigation Rights (Geomsu Wanbak)' bill. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

[Asia Economy Reporter Park Hyun-joo] When President-elect Yoon Seok-yeol's side proposed holding a national referendum on the 'Complete Removal of Prosecutorial Investigation Rights (Geomsu Wanbak)' bill, the National Election Commission responded that a national referendum would be impossible unless the National Referendum Act is amended first. In response, Lee Jun-seok, leader of the People Power Party, expressed the position that the National Referendum Act, which lost its effect due to a constitutional inconsistency ruling, should be promptly revised to hold the referendum, while Park Ju-min, a member of the Democratic Party of Korea, showed a negative stance, saying, "We need to examine whether it is realistic."

After the highest council meeting held at the National Assembly on the morning of the 28th, Lee told reporters, "The proposal for a national referendum is an exclusive right of the president. Whether President-elect Yoon Seok-yeol intends to exercise it after taking office is probably being closely reviewed by the transition committee," adding, "If that happens, the ruling party should actively support it."

Lee emphasized, "In the situation of constitutional inconsistency, the Democratic Party should be making efforts to legislate this first, but they have a habit of selectively pushing through only what they need," and added, "Of course, prompt revision should be undertaken." He further said, "We will communicate with the transition committee, and if there are parts where support from the party is needed, we should immediately proceed with revising the provisions related to overseas voters in the national referendum."

To put the 'Geomsu Wanbak' bill to a national referendum, an amendment to the National Referendum Act must precede. In 2014, the Constitutional Court ruled the first paragraph of Article 14 of the National Referendum Act, which restricts overseas voters from participating in national referendums, as constitutionally inconsistent, and the National Referendum Act has lost its effect since 2016.

Democratic Party lawmaker Park Ju-min expressed a negative stance on the national referendum regarding the 'Complete Removal of Prosecutors' Investigation Rights' (Geomsu Wanbak) bill.
[Image source=Yonhap News]

However, the Democratic Party expressed a negative view on amending the National Referendum Act. Park Ju-min, the Democratic Party's floor leader on the National Assembly's Legislation and Judiciary Committee, appeared on CBS Radio's 'Kim Hyun-jung's News Show' that day and said, "The People Power Party does not seem to view the legislative process related to prosecutorial reform as politically disadvantageous to themselves; rather, they seem to see it as advantageous," adding, "They want to fix the law quickly and create a voter list to hold the referendum during the local elections, but whether this is realistic needs to be examined further."

Park also said, "According to Article 72 of the Constitution, the president may submit major policies related to diplomacy, defense, unification, and other matters concerning national security to a national referendum when deemed necessary," and stated that the Geomsu Wanbak legislation is not subject to a national referendum.

He supported the National Election Commission's position that a national referendum is impossible. He argued, "If the president can exercise the veto power on legislation and submit it to a national referendum, effectively nullifying the law, this would make the president's authority truly overwhelming," and added, "The requirements for holding a national referendum are not met. Article 14 of the National Referendum Act relates to the preparation of the voter list, but since it has lost its effect, that provision no longer exists. Without the ability to prepare a voter list, a referendum cannot be held."

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