Two Disciplinary Proposals Passed in 31 Years... What Is the Ethics Committee For?

Only One Case of Disciplinary Proposal by Ethics Committee Voted in National Assembly Plenary Session
No Deadline for Disciplinary Action, More Than Half Left Untouched Until Term Ends and Discarded
Park Wan-joo's Expulsion Proposal Also Feared to Be a 'Show' for Local Elections Ending in Complaint

Democratic Party co-emergency response committee chairs Park Ji-hyun and Yoon Ho-jung announced the party's position and officially apologized on the afternoon of the 12th at the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul, regarding lawmaker Park Wan-joo, who was expelled due to a sexual misconduct case. / Photo by National Assembly Press Photographers [Image source=Yonhap News]

[Asia Economy Intern Reporter Yunjin Kim] The Democratic Party of Korea has submitted a disciplinary proposal against lawmaker Park Wanju, who was expelled due to allegations of sexual misconduct, to the National Assembly's Ethics Special Committee. However, looking back at the disciplinary process of the Ethics Committee so far, there is an analysis that it will remain a symbolic measure.

On the 17th, 24 Democratic Party lawmakers submitted the disciplinary proposal against Park to the Ethics Committee. This move is interpreted as being conscious of the impact on the June 1 local elections, but it is unclear when the disciplinary decision will be made. Since the Ethics Committee was established 31 years ago, including the 21st National Assembly, no lawmaker has ever been expelled through a plenary session vote. Therefore, questions about its effectiveness have continuously been raised.

The Ethics Committee, established in 1991, is an ad hoc special committee of the National Assembly that reviews matters related to the qualification examination and discipline of lawmakers. When a disciplinary proposal is submitted, the Ethics Review Advisory Committee within the committee submits an opinion, based on which the Ethics Committee subcommittee reviews the proposal and then the full committee votes on the level of discipline. According to the National Assembly Act, disciplinary actions against lawmakers include warning, apology, suspension of attendance, and expulsion. If the disciplinary proposal is approved by the Ethics Committee, it is finalized after a vote in the plenary session of the National Assembly.

However, the Ethics Committee has shown a lukewarm attitude toward disciplining lawmakers and has been criticized as a "plant committee." Until the 16th National Assembly, the Ethics Committee had no disciplinary decisions, and from the 17th to the 20th National Assembly, out of 177 disciplinary proposals submitted, more than half?97 cases?were discarded due to term expiration. More than half of the disciplinary proposals were automatically discarded without discussion during the four-year term. To date, only two disciplinary proposals have been approved by the Ethics Committee, and among them, only one was voted on in the plenary session.

Even that was downgraded in the plenary session. In 2011, the Ethics Committee decided on the highest level of discipline, expulsion, for lawmaker Kang Yongseok, who caused controversy with sexual harassment remarks, but it was rejected in the plenary session and replaced with a "30-day suspension from the National Assembly." In 2015, an expulsion proposal for lawmaker Shim Hakbong, who was accused of sexual assault, was approved and submitted to the plenary session, but it was automatically discarded when Shim resigned.

Why is the Ethics Committee not proactive in its review? First, the structure where incumbent lawmakers decide on the discipline of their fellow lawmakers is cited. Without detailed regulations on the review process, individual lawmakers find it difficult to take the lead in discipline and tend to protect members of the same party. In 2014, when the Unified Progressive Party strongly opposed the disciplinary proposal against former lawmaker Lee Seokgi, the ruling Saenuri Party at the time convened the Ethics Committee alone.

The dysfunction of the Ethics Committee continues in the 21st National Assembly as well. The full meeting of the Ethics Committee was convened in November last year, 1 year and 2 months after the first meeting where the chairperson was elected. At that time, 16 disciplinary proposals had been submitted, starting with the proposal against lawmaker Yoon Meehyang, who was accused of embezzlement of donations in September 2020. At the second meeting, it was decided to refer four disciplinary proposals to the Ethics Review Advisory Committee, and at the third meeting on January 27, three proposals were submitted and referred to the subcommittee.

As a result, there is speculation that the disciplinary proposal against lawmaker Park will not be processed or discussed for expulsion before the June 1 local elections. Even disciplinary proposals against independent lawmakers Yoon Meehyang and Lee Sangjik, and People Power Party lawmaker Park Deokheum, which have been submitted to the Ethics Committee full meeting, have not proceeded with follow-up procedures.

However, some within the party are calling for the disciplinary proposal against Park to be expedited. On the 20th, Park Jihyun, co-chair of the Democratic Party's emergency committee, expressed a firm will for discipline on MBC Radio's "Kim Jongbae's Focus," saying, "This is an issue that must be dealt with promptly regardless of the local elections."

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