"Street Protests, Are They the Thoughts of All Citizens?" Questioning
"Maturity of Formal Procedures Is the Maturity of Democracy"
On the 14th, ahead of the impeachment vote, Na Kyung-won, a member of the People Power Party, once again expressed her opposition to the impeachment, saying, "Is it democracy to pass an impeachment motion without a parliamentary investigation?"
On the same day, Na posted on social media, "What is mature democracy? Is it only about quickly responding to the cries on the streets? Are those cries truly the thoughts of all the people? Is it democracy to pass an impeachment motion without a parliamentary investigation?" she questioned.
Na Kyung-won, a member of the People Power Party, and Bae Jun-young are talking during the plenary session held at the National Assembly on the 10th. Photo by Kim Hyun-min
Na said, "I believe that being faithful to the constitution and legal procedures is what mature democracy truly is. At the very least, if the members of the National Assembly intend to suspend the duties of a president directly elected by the people through impeachment, the procedures must be carefully examined," adding, "A parliamentary investigation must be conducted before the impeachment vote."
She also pointed out, "The impeachment motion requires the presentation of grounds for impeachment, evidence, and other reference materials. Looking at the opposition party's impeachment motion submitted today, the evidence and other reference materials consist of only 63 news articles. Is this sufficient as evidence and reference materials?"
Furthermore, she recalled, "When I met with American lawmakers during the impeachment crisis of former President Park Geun-hye, their reaction was vivid: 'You are impeaching a president elected by the people without any investigation?'” She also mentioned the impeachment process of former U.S. President Nixon.
Na explained, "After the Watergate scandal occurred in June 1972, criminal procedures against those involved proceeded, followed by the Senate special committee's fact-finding investigation in February 1973, and one year later, in February 1974, the House Judiciary Committee began investigating the grounds for impeachment," adding, "The investigations by the Senate and the House lasted about one year and six months, respectively."
She continued, "The maturity of formal procedures is the maturity of democracy, and that is how we can prevent demagogic politics," emphasizing, "We clearly remember the beef candlelight protests caused by fake news. Now, the impeachment process must also befit the stature of 21st-century Republic of Korea."
The National Assembly will hold a vote on President Yoon's impeachment motion at 4 p.m. today. This is the second impeachment motion following the one on the 7th. During the first impeachment, many People Power Party members abstained from voting, resulting in a failure to meet the required quorum and the motion being discarded. The motion will pass if more than two-thirds of the total members, i.e., over 200 members, vote in favor.
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