Kim Woong Who Did Not Pledge to Waive Immunity
Proposes Measures to Prevent Abuse with Immunity Restriction Act
Kim Woong, a member of the People Power Party, proposed an amendment to the National Assembly Act on the 26th to prevent the so-called "Bulletproof National Assembly." Kim, who had refused to sign a pledge to waive parliamentary immunity, introduced a "Temporary Session Assembly Postponement Request System" that maintains the constitutional parliamentary immunity while preventing the Bulletproof National Assembly.
The day before, Kim proposed an amendment to the National Assembly Act introducing the "Temporary Session Assembly Postponement Request System," which allows postponing a temporary session assembly for 15 days if requested by more than one-third of the total members. Previously, Kim, along with Kwon Eun-hee, did not sign the pledge to waive parliamentary immunity promoted at the party level, stating that "it is not right to give up rights granted by the Constitution."
The alternative he found was the Temporary Session Assembly Postponement Request System. Currently, the People Power Party holds 112 seats. According to Kim's proposal, even if a Bulletproof National Assembly is convened, the People Power Party alone can lift the Bulletproof National Assembly.
However, Kim also stipulated that even a postponed temporary session can have its postponement withdrawn if more than two-thirds of the total members request it. Withdrawal of postponement can also occur in cases of major fiscal or economic crises, national emergencies, or agreements between the Speaker of the National Assembly and the leaders of negotiation groups.
Kim asserted, "The Democratic Party should stop the 'parliamentary immunity waiver show' and actively cooperate for the swift passage of this bill to demonstrate sincerity."
Meanwhile, Kim's office stated that no opposition party lawmakers, including those from the Democratic Party who were asked to co-sponsor the amendment, participated in the joint proposal. In fact, all ten lawmakers who joined Kim's proposal are members of the People Power Party.
Other proposals have also been introduced, including one by People Power Party lawmaker Cho Hae-jin, which allows requesting not to convene a temporary session for lawmakers who intend to attend pre-arrest warrant hearings; another by Yoon Sang-hyun, which considers submission of a waiver of parliamentary immunity as approval of an arrest consent bill; and one by Yoo Ui-dong, which requires the Speaker to announce if an arrest consent bill is accepted or if a request is made to prevent the temporary session from being held.
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