The Democratic Party Fails to Reach Conclusion on 'Martial Law Special Investigation Act' at General Assembly... Leadership to Announce Position Tomorrow (Comprehensive)

Despite Floor Leadership's Call to "Prevent Dissenting Votes,"
Party Remains Deeply Divided

On the 13th, the People Power Party held a party caucus meeting to gather opinions on the proposed 'Emergency Martial Law Special Prosecutor Act' (tentative name), but the pro and con arguments were evenly matched, and no conclusion was reached. The floor leadership, entrusted with the final decision, plans to individually listen to the opinions of its members by the 14th before announcing its stance on whether to propose the bill, but there are also prospects that it will be difficult to reconcile internal disagreements.

Kwon Seong-dong, floor leader of the People Power Party, is speaking at the party meeting held at the National Assembly on the 13th. Photo by Kim Hyun-min

The nearly three-hour-long caucus meeting was conducted by the floor leadership sharing the draft contents of the special prosecutor act and members expressing their opinions on it. The draft prepared by Joo Jin-woo, the party's legal advisory chairman, mainly deletes charges such as foreign exchange offenses and incitement to rebellion from the 'Rebellion Special Prosecutor Act' proposed by opposition parties including the Democratic Party, and significantly narrows the scope of investigation.

At the caucus, the floor leadership explained that "considering the possibility of dissenting votes, realistically, the special prosecutor proposal cannot be avoided," but multiple attendees reported that many members expressed negative opinions about proposing the special prosecutor act. Among members opposing the proposal, including Yoon Sang-hyun, Song Eon-seok, and Jang Dong-hyuk, there were reportedly remarks questioning whether the declaration of martial law could be confidently linked to the crime of rebellion. Park Soo-min, the floor spokesperson, explained in a briefing after the caucus, "Investigations are already proceeding to an excessive degree, and there were concerns about potential conflicts among state agencies due to confusion in investigations if a special prosecutor is appointed."

Aside from the floor leadership, it was reported that member Kim Sang-wook publicly expressed support for proposing the special prosecutor act. Outside the caucus room, member Cho Kyung-tae told reporters, "It is most desirable for the ruling and opposition parties to reach an agreement and handle this, which is the way to minimize political strife," emphasizing the necessity of proposing the special prosecutor act.

The floor leadership is known to have taken a stance not to rule out the possibility of proposing the special prosecutor act and to continue gathering opinions. Floor leader Kwon Seong-dong said in a briefing after the caucus, "Regarding the 'Rebellion Special Prosecutor Act' submitted by the Democratic Party, opinions among our party members are divided on whether to submit our own bill or not, so the leadership has been entrusted with the decision-making authority," adding, "We will announce the leadership's position tomorrow (the 14th) afternoon." Leader Kwon said, "You can say the caucus was split between pros and cons," and added, "There was not enough time today to hear many members' opinions. The floor leadership will call each member individually to confirm before making a decision."