Ruling and Opposition Parties Struggle Over the Passage of the Itaewon Special Act

The ruling and opposition parties are expected to continue their power struggle over the passage of the Itaewon Special Act at the National Assembly plenary session on the 20th. Both parties have proposed the bill. However, there is a difference. The Democratic Party focuses on the 'establishment of an investigative body,' while the People Power Party emphasizes 'victim compensation and support.' Speaker of the National Assembly Kim Jin-pyo is stressing the importance of bipartisan agreement. However, the People Power Party is holding firm on excluding fact-finding, whereas the Democratic Party insists on pushing forward with their version of the bill.

On the day, Lee Jae-myung, leader of the Democratic Party, stated at the Supreme Council meeting held at the National Assembly, "We will definitely pass the Itaewon disaster special law." He emphasized, "By establishing an independent investigative body, we will hold responsible parties clearly accountable," and added, "We must prepare measures to prevent recurrence so that such an incident never happens again." He then urged the People Power Party, "Do not mock the bereaved families and immediately join in enacting the special law."

The Democratic Party's 'Itaewon Disaster Fact-Finding and Recurrence Prevention Special Act' was jointly proposed by 183 lawmakers in April and was designated as a fast-track bill at the June plenary session of the National Assembly. Subsequently, the Administrative and Security Committee approved an amended version and referred it to the Legislation and Judiciary Committee. However, even the detailed review within the statutory 90-day processing period was not conducted, and it was automatically submitted to the plenary session on the 29th of last month.

In response, the People Power Party proposed the 'Itaewon Disaster Victim Relief and Support Special Act' on the 11th. As the Democratic Party appeared likely to push forward with the fact-finding special law, the opposition presented a bill focusing on 'victim support' as an alternative. The core of the bill is to establish a Victim Support Deliberation Committee and a Victim Memorial Committee under the Prime Minister's office. In particular, since the ruling party insists that fact-finding should be conducted through investigations rather than a special law, it seems unlikely that an agreement with the Democratic Party, which emphasizes 'fact-finding,' will be easily reached.