Ruling Party in Turmoil Over Lee Jae-myung's Arrest Warrant... Opposition Faces 'Rejection' Dilemma

[Asia Economy Reporter Lee Ji-eun] The Democratic Party is in an uproar over the prosecution's arrest warrant for Lee Jae-myung, the leader of the Democratic Party of Korea. Amid a strong atmosphere for the rejection of the arrest consent motion, voices are emerging that the party should officially decide to reject it. However, since Lee had previously pledged to abolish the 'parliamentary immunity from arrest,' there is also a dilemma regarding the rejection. In response, Supreme Council member Kim Nam-guk and Legal Committee Chair Yang Bu-nam emphasized that they have no choice but to use the parliamentary immunity from arrest.

Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, is speaking at the Supreme Council meeting held at the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul on the 17th. Photo by Hyunmin Kim kimhyun81@

On the 17th, Legal Committee Chair Yang said on CBS's 'Kim Hyun-jung's News Show,' "The waiver of parliamentary immunity from arrest applies only when the investigation involves something disgraceful or personal corruption," adding, "We define this investigation as a political case aimed at killing political opponents and destroying the opposition party. In that case, parliamentary immunity from arrest is a guaranteed right intended to be exercised in such situations."

During his past presidential campaign, Lee pledged to waive one of the privileges of lawmakers, the parliamentary immunity from arrest. This immunity is one of the privileges of lawmakers, which means that except for being caught in flagrante delicto, they cannot be arrested or detained during a session without the consent of the National Assembly. To execute an arrest warrant on a sitting lawmaker, the National Assembly must pass a motion consenting to the arrest.

The problem is that the pledge has now become a shackle for Lee. Ruling party lawmakers such as Park Soo-young and Cho Soo-jin are pressuring him to undergo the warrant hearing, emphasizing that Lee had previously pledged to waive parliamentary immunity from arrest. However, Legal Committee Chair Yang rebutted that the pledge to waive immunity was "limited to cases where the investigation process is normal and the investigation involves disgraceful acts or personal corruption." He argued that the current investigation process is not normal and that the investigation concerns political matters rather than Lee's personal corruption.

Supreme Council member Kim also stated on KBS's 'Choi Kyung-young's Strong Current Affairs,' "The parliamentary immunity granted to lawmakers by the Constitution is not a right that an individual can waive at will," emphasizing, "Even if I say I will waive it and go to court, the court does not necessarily accept the warrant review." He stressed that regardless of Lee's intention, the vote on the arrest consent motion must proceed.

Since the Democratic Party holds a majority with 169 seats, the arrest consent motion is likely to be rejected. If 28 dissenting votes occur, the motion will pass, but within the party, it is expected that the number of dissenting votes will be fewer than five due to a strong 'unified front' atmosphere. Former National Intelligence Service Director Park Ji-won expressed confidence on YTN's 'News King Park Ji-hoon' that "The Democratic Party traditionally has the DNA to unite and fight against oppression," and predicted no dissenting votes.

However, there is also a dilemma. If the arrest consent motion for Lee is rejected following that of lawmaker Noh Woong-rae, the 'bulletproof National Assembly' frame will become stronger. Given that a prolonged prosecution investigation is anticipated, if the second and third arrest consent motions are also rejected, the Democratic Party will inevitably face increased political burdens. Moreover, since Lee had previously pledged to waive parliamentary immunity but is now utilizing it himself, perceptions of double standards may intensify.

Within the party, although a minority opinion, there are voices calling for the approval of the arrest consent motion. Former emergency committee member Park Ji-hyun stated on social media the day before, "We must relinquish parliamentary immunity and approve the arrest consent motion," urging, "As promised during the presidential election, waive parliamentary immunity and strongly instruct all Democratic Party lawmakers to participate in the vote on the arrest consent motion and cast affirmative votes."

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