Handonghun: "The ruling and opposition parties' parliamentary consultative body must start before Chuseok... a desperate situation"

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Han Dong-hoon, leader of the People Power Party, requested the participation of many medical organizations on the 11th, stating, "Even if many medical organizations do not attend, the ruling and opposition parliamentary council must start before Chuseok."

After visiting the emergency room of Busan National University Hospital in Yangsan that afternoon, Han told reporters, "We are asking for participation in the ruling and opposition parliamentary council through various channels, and I understand that some are positively considering it."

Earlier, a media outlet reported that the ruling and opposition parliamentary council is likely to launch as early as tomorrow with the participation of some medical organizations. In response, Lim Hyun-taek, president of the Korean Medical Association, which was mentioned as one of the participating medical organizations, denied the report on Facebook.

Regarding the report, Han said, "I don't know well," but emphasized, "Even if many representatives from the medical community do not participate in this council from the beginning, if there are organizations that think they will participate partially, we should start first and proceed. During the discussion process, the medical community and medical organizations can participate as much as they want. Waiting until a certain number of medical organizations participate is too urgent a situation."

Handonghun, the leader of the People Power Party, is speaking at the Supreme Council meeting held at the National Assembly on the 9th. Photo by Kim Hyunmin kimhyun81@

Accordingly, Han's idea is to adjust the number of participants from the ruling party, opposition, and government, but not to limit the number of participants from medical organizations. Han explained, "(Medical organizations) have a structure where it is difficult to elect a single unified representative, and opinions may vary. Those who are willing to participate should come and start the discussion."

He continued, "The council will not operate by majority rule requiring everyone to follow the decision. The main thing is to come and start restoring the broken trust and begin dialogue. Just starting the dialogue will give the public hope that the issue will be resolved, and now it is necessary to quickly launch the council," urging participation again.

In particular, he said, "Medical organizations can come in first, and if they find it difficult to accept any conclusion here, they can withdraw. What is important now is for the ruling party, opposition, and government to come together and promptly start resolving this situation."

Regarding the demand from the Democratic Party and medical organizations for an apology from President Yoon Seok-youl, Han responded, "They can come in and discuss it. Setting preconditions for starting the council will make it difficult to start at all. I hope this becomes an opportunity to restore trust with the sole intention of resolving this issue for the health of the people, without any preconditions or agenda restrictions."

When reporters asked if the ruling and opposition parliamentary council might launch first, Han drew a line, saying, "If the ruling and opposition start first, it could create a situation where the medical community finds it difficult to participate. Various opinions will come out, and some may contradict what the medical community thinks."

Regarding the issue of '2025 increase adjustment' demanded by the medical community, he said, "It is a matter to be discussed. There is no need to limit the agenda. If you say it is absolutely not possible at some times and only possible after certain times, the council will not be able to start."