Democratic Party, "Aiming to Pass Privatization Prevention Act Within Regular National Assembly Session"

[Asia Economy Reporter Oh Ju-yeon] Ahead of the June 1 local elections, as the ruling and opposition parties continue their debate over the 'privatization of electricity, water, airports, and railroads,' on the 24th, the Democratic Party of Korea announced that it is pushing for a 'Privatization Prevention Act.'

Kim Seong-hwan, Chairman of the Policy Committee of the Democratic Party of Korea, is speaking at a press briefing on the supplementary budget bill held at the National Assembly on the 12th. Photo by Yoon Dong-joo doso7@

On the same day, Kim Seong-hwan, the policy chief of the Democratic Party, appeared on MBC Radio's 'Kim Jong-bae's Focus' and said, "We plan to create a Privatization Prevention Act that fundamentally blocks attempts to privatize sectors such as healthcare, electricity, and aviation."

Kim explained, "The purpose is to institutionalize through law the design to block the privatization of national infrastructure such as railroads, electricity, water, and airports," adding, "However, the specific wording has not yet been finalized." He emphasized that after sufficient consultation with experts and civil society, they intend to propose the bill as soon as possible.

Kim stated, "We aim to process it within this regular session of the National Assembly."

On the 17th, during a National Assembly Steering Committee meeting, Kim Dae-gi, Chief of Staff to the President, responded to a question from Democratic Party lawmaker Park Chan-dae about the 'perception of key industries,' saying, "In the case of Incheon Airport Corporation, the government would manage the airport operations, but about 30-40% of the shares would be sold to the private sector."

In response to this statement, the Democratic Party launched an offensive, accusing the government and the People Power Party of moving toward privatizing public enterprises. Democratic Party lawmakers, including Lee Jae-myung, the overall election committee chairman, repeatedly posted phrases such as 'Opposition to the privatization of electricity, water, airports, and railroads' on Facebook and other platforms.

The People Power Party immediately rebutted, stating, "The Yoon Seok-yeol administration has never pursued privatization including electricity, water, airports, and railroads," but the Democratic Party countered, "If there is no plan to privatize the public sector, the government and ruling party should apologize and retract Chief of Staff Kim's remarks," and the dispute continues.

On the same day, Kim Seong-hwan also referred again to Chief of Staff Kim's remarks, saying, "Isn't that ultimately the trigger for privatization?" and criticized, "If the People Power Party's transition team and the Presidential Secretariat say that the smoke from the chimney is not real, then that is a problem."