Goyang City Responds to Urban Planning Committee Controversy: "Claims of Forcible Continuation Are a Distortion of the Facts"

Goyang City Immediately Recessed Meeting in Emergency
Session Resumed After Hospital Transfer With Committee Consent
Refutes "Disregard for Human Life" Accusations as Irresponsible Distortion

Goyang Special City in Gyeonggi Province (Mayor Lee Donghwan) issued a strong statement of regret, saying, "The claim that the meeting was forcibly continued is a clear distortion of the facts," in response to concerns about the health of City Council member Lim Hongryeol during the Urban Planning Committee meeting held on July 16.

A view of Goyang Special City Hall. Provided by Goyang Special City

Previously, Kim Unnam, Chair of the Goyang City Council, claimed that the meeting was not suspended and was forcibly continued even after Councilor Lim collapsed during the session.

In response, on July 18, Goyang Special City released an official statement, saying, "The meeting was immediately recessed as soon as the emergency occurred. After emergency measures and hospital transport were completed, the meeting was resumed with the agreement of the majority of committee members," and added, "The criticism that the meeting was forcibly continued while ignoring the emergency is not true."

According to Goyang Special City, when Councilor Lim suddenly showed signs of a health problem during the meeting, the committee chair immediately recessed the session and called 119 emergency services. City officials loosened Lim's shirt buttons and belt to stabilize him and administered emergency measures as instructed by the emergency center. About three minutes later, at around 4:10 p.m., paramedics arrived at the scene and transported Lim to the nearby Myongji Hospital.

Goyang Special City emphasized, "After the emergency was resolved, the committee shared the situation while wishing for the councilor's recovery. The decision to resume the meeting was discussed, and the session was reconvened under the chair's leadership with the consent of the majority of members, so there was no procedural issue."

The city also added, "The Urban Planning Committee is a statutory deliberative body in which both private experts and city council members participate, and the chair does not have the authority to arbitrarily continue or suspend the meeting."

At the time, 14 out of 17 committee members were present, meeting the quorum requirement, and each agenda item passed with a majority vote.

Goyang Special City stated, "Three major agenda items directly affecting citizens' property rights and livelihood were on the table, and the committee was deliberating the second item when the incident occurred. Since the conditions allowed for continued deliberation after the emergency was resolved, unconditionally postponing or suspending the meeting could have amounted to irresponsible administration."

The city further criticized, "The city responded swiftly to the emergency and responsibly concluded the meeting. Nevertheless, framing the situation as 'prioritizing agenda items over people' is a malicious and irresponsible distortion."

Goyang Special City announced that, in light of this incident, it will supplement its meeting operation standards and crisis response manual to prepare for similar situations in the future, and will work with the city council to establish measures to prevent recurrence.

Meanwhile, Councilor Lim Hongryeol, who collapsed during the meeting, is reportedly recovering and in stable condition.