Clash Between Ruling and Opposition Parties Over 'Lee Jae-myung Arrest Consent Bill'... Negative Impact on Legislation Processing

Approval for Arrest Motion to Be Reported at the Plenary Session on the 24th and Voted on the 27th

[Asia Economy Reporter Geum Boryeong] A fierce clash between the ruling and opposition parties is expected over the 'arrest consent motion' for Lee Jae-myung, the leader of the Democratic Party of Korea.

On the 19th, the Democratic Party announced, "Joo Ho-young of the People Power Party and Park Hong-geun of the Democratic Party agreed to hold a plenary session on the 27th after discussing the schedule."

Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, is seated at the emergency joint meeting of nationwide regional chairpersons and members of the National Assembly held on the 17th at the National Assembly Members' Office Building in Yeouido, Seoul. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@

The arrest consent motion for Lee, who has had an arrest warrant requested over the Daejang-dong development corruption and Seongnam FC sponsorship allegations, is expected to be reported to the National Assembly on the 24th. The Democratic Party, aiming to quickly resolve the political situation, reportedly pushed for a plenary session report on the 23rd and a vote on the 24th, but after discussions between the floor leaders of both parties, it was decided to report at the plenary session on the 24th and vote on the 27th.

The ruling party refers to Lee’s pledge during the presidential election to give up immunity from arrest, urging him to abandon 'bulletproof' protection and stand in court to reveal the truth.

Yang Geum-hee, chief spokesperson for the People Power Party, said in a statement that day, "The fastest way for the Democratic Party to follow the will of the people is to keep the promise to give up immunity from arrest," adding, "We hope they stop the fall into the abyss called the 'Democratic Bulletproof Party.'"

On the other hand, the Democratic Party opposed this as 'political oppression.' Kim Eui-gyeom, spokesperson for the Democratic Party, emphasized in a briefing, "Immunity from arrest is granted by the Constitution to members of the National Assembly to prevent political manipulation abusing criminal authority," and added, "It exists to stand against atrocious prosecutors like Yoon Seok-yeol’s prosecution. Immunity from arrest is meant to be used in such times."

As the vote on the arrest consent motion at the plenary session on the 27th approaches, the confrontation between the ruling and opposition parties is expected to intensify. In particular, the fierce conflict between the parties is likely to negatively affect the passage of various bills.

A representative example is the so-called 'Yellow Envelope Act' (amendments to Articles 2 and 3 of the Labor Union and Labor Relations Adjustment Act), which limits indiscriminate claims for damages by companies against striking workers. The opposition plans to approve this at the full meeting of the Environment and Labor Committee within this week, but the ruling party opposes it, arguing that it could encourage illegal strikes and hinder corporate activities.

The 'K-Chips Act,' mainly aimed at further increasing the tax credit rate for semiconductor facility investments, is regarded by the ruling party as a priority bill, but the opposition raises concerns about reduced tax revenue, making it difficult to pass during the February extraordinary session.

The February extraordinary session will end on the 28th, and the ruling and opposition parties are engaged in a tense standoff over the March extraordinary session.

Joo Ho-young, floor leader of the People Power Party, said at a press briefing that morning, "If the Democratic Party and Lee Jae-myung are confident, they should approve the arrest consent motion at the plenary session on the 27th," adding, "If not, they should not convene the March extraordinary session and immediately undergo the warrant's substantive examination. If the Democratic Party unilaterally reconvenes the extraordinary session, that would be cowardly."

In response, Lee Su-jin, spokesperson for the Democratic Party, told reporters at the National Assembly that day, "We need to hold the March extraordinary session to resolve pressing livelihood issues," and added, "Since the ruling party’s floor leader has declared that they will not work, it is very regrettable from the standpoint of representing the people."

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