Negotiations Lasted Over 2 Hours but No Agreement Reached
On the 17th, the ruling and opposition parties held negotiations on the formation of parliamentary committees presided over by the Speaker of the National Assembly but ultimately failed to reach an agreement.
Speaker Woo Won-shik, Park Chan-dae, floor leader of the Democratic Party of Korea, and Chu Kyung-ho, floor leader of the People Power Party, engaged in negotiations in the Speaker's office for over two hours. The floor leaders exchanged opinions regarding the formation of committees but were unable to find common ground. However, they agreed to continue the negotiation process.
Speaker of the National Assembly Woo Won-sik (third from the left) is meeting with People Power Party Floor Leader Choo Kyung-ho and Democratic Party Floor Leader Park Chan-dae on the 17th at the National Assembly regarding the organization of the floor. From the left, People Power Party Deputy Floor Leader Bae Jun-young, Floor Leader Choo Kyung-ho, Speaker Woo Won-sik, Democratic Party Floor Leader Park Chan-dae, and Deputy Floor Leader Park Sung-jun. Photo by Kim Hyun-min kimhyun81@
Floor leader Chu said, "I had extensive discussions with Speaker Woo and floor leader Park," but added, "The conversation was long as we explained and confirmed each other's existing positions and logic." He stated, "We could not narrow the differences today," and added, "Starting tomorrow, the chief floor negotiators of both parties will continue their talks."
Floor leader Park said, "It has been a week since the 11 standing committees were formed on the 10th, and we are also frustrated by the lack of further progress." He continued, "We will discuss reaching the maximum possible agreement."
Before the meeting, floor leader Chu criticized, "The basis of negotiation is to gain what you can and concede what you must while aligning intentions, but the Democratic Party has never shown a genuine willingness to negotiate in the committee formation talks so far." He questioned, "Has the Democratic Party ever made any concessions or proposals to the People Power Party?" and said, "If the Democratic Party has nothing to propose at today's meeting, I think the meeting will be meaningless."
Floor leader Park said, "There are pressing livelihood issues piled up like a mountain that the National Assembly urgently needs to address. We must also conduct interpellations of the government within the June extraordinary session," and added, "I respectfully request Speaker Woo to immediately convene a plenary session tomorrow so that lawmakers can start working right away."
Prior to the meeting, Speaker Woo urged in a press conference, "I ask the ruling and opposition parties to quickly agree on the formation of standing committees."
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