Opposition Launches State Investigation into 'Itaewon Tragedy'... Ruling Party Pressured with "No Reason to Oppose" (Summary)

Park Hong-geun "Will reveal every second through an unreserved state audit"
Urges processing at next week's plenary session

Lee Won-wook "Park Geun-hye also had a special prosecutor for state manipulation... The ruling party will have no choice but to accept the state audit"
Park Chan-dae "People Power Party also said they would clarify the truth, so they cannot refuse"

Park Hong-geun, floor leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, is attending the policy coordination meeting held at the National Assembly on the 3rd and delivering opening remarks. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

[Asia Economy reporters Oh Ju-yeon and Park Jun-i] The Democratic Party of Korea announced on the 3rd that it will submit a 'request for a national investigation' to the National Assembly regarding the Itaewon tragedy. The plan is to handle it at the plenary session of the National Assembly next week, but whether the People Power Party will accept it remains a key issue. Within the Democratic Party, there are calls for prompt handling, saying "there is no reason for the ruling party to oppose it."

On the morning of the same day, Floor Leader Park Hong-geun stated at the policy coordination meeting, "It is beyond the threshold of public outrage to entrust the government, which is the subject of the investigation, with a 'self-investigation,'" and added, "The Democratic Party will promptly submit the 'Request for a National Investigation to Uncover the Truth of the Itaewon Tragedy and Punish Those Responsible.'

Floor Leader Park said, "There are more than enough reasons for a national investigation, including negligent police personnel deployment, poor response to 112 emergency calls, delayed reporting, and private surveillance," and added, "The Democratic Party will conduct a 'no sanctuary national investigation' to reveal every single minute and second the state abandoned its people."

Addressing the People Power Party, he said, "Since the ruling party also insists on a thorough investigation of the causes, there should be no reason to oppose the national investigation," and added, "If the People Power Party agrees, the Democratic Party is willing to jointly submit the request for a national investigation with the Justice Party." He emphasized, "However, for a swift fact-finding, the request must be processed at next week's plenary session."

Within the Democratic Party, there is a growing expectation that the national investigation will inevitably proceed.

Representative Lee Won-wook appeared on SBS Radio's 'Kim Tae-hyun's Political Show' on the same day and said, "The reason why former President Park Geun-hye's state affairs manipulation case had to go to a special prosecutor was not because they wanted to at the time, but because public demand grew so large that it could not be refused," and predicted, "The Itaewon tragedy will eventually follow the same path."

He pointed out, "At the very least, it will have to go to a national investigation," and added, "If the government and ruling party delay or refuse the national investigation, suspicions will only grow, and trust in the president and the government will further decline."

When asked by the host, "Do you think the People Power Party can suddenly accept this (national investigation)?" he replied, "I believe the situation where they have no choice but to accept it will definitely come."

Park Chan-dae, Supreme Council member and head of the Democratic Party's Itaewon Tragedy Countermeasures Headquarters, also appeared on MBC Radio's 'Kim Jong-bae's Focus' on the same day and predicted, "Since the ruling party has clearly stated it will investigate the truth, they will not be able to refuse this part."

Supreme Council member Park said, "Through a thorough investigation, the causes and responsibilities must be clearly identified," and criticized, "If the investigation reveals the government's incompetent response, that should also be taken into account."

He referred to the controversy over Prime Minister Han Duck-soo's press conference with foreign media, saying, "The prime minister's inappropriate remarks ultimately fail to show how seriously they regard citizens' safety and lives," and added, "Although this (Itaewon tragedy) has further angered the public, considering economic and safety issues, I think the (Yoon Suk-yeol administration) cabinet is generally precarious."

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