'Waiving Immunity from Arrest' Pledge by 51 Ruling Party Members to the Public... "Time to End the Bulletproof National Assembly"

Targeting Lee Jae-myung, National Pledge Announcement

On the 23rd, 51 members of the People Power Party declared that they would waive the 'parliamentary immunity from arrest.' This move is interpreted as targeting Lee Jae-myung, the leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, who is embroiled in judicial risks.

The parliamentary immunity from arrest, stipulated in Article 44 of the Constitution, is the right that except in cases of being caught in the act, members of the National Assembly cannot be arrested or detained during a session without the consent of the Assembly. The motion to consent to the arrest of Lee was rejected at the plenary session of the National Assembly on the 27th of last month.

Lee Tae-gyu, a member of the People Power Party, is speaking at a press conference for the public pledge to waive immunity from arrest held at the National Assembly Communication Office on the morning of the 23rd. [Image source=Yonhap News]

On the same day, 10 members of the People Power Party held a press conference at the National Assembly Communication Office and announced a pledge to waive their immunity from arrest. The pledge stated, "If a motion to consent to arrest is submitted during a session due to the member's criminal allegations, I promise the public to waive the parliamentary immunity from arrest stipulated in Article 44 of the Constitution and to request fellow members of the National Assembly to pass the motion through a personal statement at the plenary session."

They said, "The era and the people will no longer tolerate the abuse of parliamentary immunity as a means to defend members' corruption," and added, "It is time for the political circle itself to end the 'bulletproof parliament' that deepens public distrust in politics and causes conflicts between the ruling and opposition parties."

They continued, "This pledge will have strong political binding power on each member who signed it," emphasizing, "When members of the National Assembly themselves carry out reforms to eliminate the term 'bulletproof parliament,' our politics will change." The pledge was signed by 51 members of the People Power Party, including Floor Leader Joo Ho-young and Secretary-General Lee Cheol-gyu.

Meanwhile, the National Assembly is scheduled to handle the motion to consent to the arrest of Ha Young-je, a People Power Party member who has had an arrest warrant requested on charges including illegal political fund receipt, at the plenary session on the 30th. Since the People Power Party is pressuring to waive the motion to consent to the arrest of Lee Jae-myung, it is analyzed that the motion regarding Representative Ha is effectively set to be 'approved.'

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