[Anchor]
Today, July 20, a clash erupted between the ruling and opposition parties in the National Assembly over a proposed amendment to the Special Counsel Act, which seeks to extend the investigation period for the second comprehensive special counsel. As the Democratic Party of Korea attempts to push the bill through, the People Power Party has countered with a filibuster, signaling a further hardening of the political landscape.
Reporter Park Chan-beom has the story.
[Reporter]
The amendment to the "Act on the Appointment of a Special Counsel to Uncover the Truth Regarding Insurrection, Foreign Aggression, and State Affairs Manipulation by Yoon Suk Yeol and Kim Keon Hee" was tabled at the National Assembly plenary session this afternoon, led by the Democratic Party of Korea.
The proposed amendment includes provisions to extend the investigation period of the second comprehensive special counsel, which was launched in February, by an additional 30 days and to increase the number of dispatched public officials from the current 130 to 150.
The second comprehensive special counsel, which has already had its investigation period extended twice and has been conducting probes for 145 days so far, would be able to continue its investigation until August 23 if this amendment is passed.
The Democratic Party of Korea maintains that the extension of the special counsel is necessary to completely eradicate insurrection and punish those responsible.
[Interview] Han Byung-do / Democratic Party Floor Leader: "The public's demand is not to end the special counsel on a set date, but to uncover the truth behind the insurrection and state affairs manipulation without a single shred of suspicion."
The People Power Party strongly protested, arguing that while the Democratic Party of Korea claims to be abolishing the prosecution's supplementary investigation rights, it is pushing for a special counsel solely to suppress the opposition party.
The People Power Party held a rally to condemn the attempt to extend the special counsel and immediately launched a filibuster—a legal obstruction of proceedings—as soon as the amendment was brought to the plenary session.
[Interview] Jeong Jeom-sik / People Power Party Floor Leader: "This is an extension of a public security-driven political climate designed to tighten the noose around and suppress the opposition party, and it is a legislative tyranny that clearly demonstrates the contradictions and hypocrisy of the Lee Jae-myung administration."
The first speaker, five-term lawmaker Yoon Sang-hyun, argued that the Democratic Party of Korea is failing to uphold Article 1 of the Constitution, which states that "sovereignty resides in the people, and all state authority emanates from the people."
It has been over 50 days since the second half of the National Assembly opened, but with the plenary session now entering a filibuster phase amidst the standoff over the formation of standing committees, the normalization of the National Assembly remains uncertain.
(Video reporting: Lee Seung-hwan, Shin Dong-hwan | Video editing: Park Sun-soo)
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