[Anchor]
Conservative opposition parties, led by the People Power Party, strongly protested, claiming that South Korea's rule of law has received a death sentence. They urged President Lee Jae-myung to exercise his veto power against the amendment to the Criminal Procedure Act.
Reporter Kim Bo-mi has the details.
[Reporter]
Today (August 3), the day President Lee Jae-myung returned to Korea after wrapping up his tour of the United States and three South American countries, the People Power Party held an on-site Supreme Council meeting in front of the presidential office.
The People Power Party urged the president to exercise his veto power, denouncing the amendment to the Criminal Procedure Act passed by the National Assembly as a bad law that "only benefits criminals."
[Jang Dong-hyeok / Leader, People Power Party : South Korea's rule of law has received a death sentence. If he refuses to exercise his veto, demands for impeachment will grow even stronger.]
The People Power Party intensified its offensive by making these arguments regarding the addition of grounds for dismissal of indictment to the amendment.
[Chung Jeom-sik / Floor Leader, People Power Party : The very first thing the president must take care of is halting his ugly deal with the Democratic Party aimed at having his own trial dismissed.]
The Reform Party also urged President Lee to exercise his veto power. Citing internal polling results showing that over 80 percent of those in their 20s and 30s view the amendment negatively, the party applied pressure as follows:
[Lee Jun-seok / Leader, Reform Party : If he does not use the veto, this law will remain not only as a law made by the Democratic Party, but also as a law that the president failed to stop.]
If President Lee promulgates the amendment without exercising his veto, the People Power Party plans to file a petition for a constitutional review. Consequently, the political battle surrounding the amendment to the Criminal Procedure Act is expected to continue onto the stage of the Constitutional Court.
(Photo: Yonhap News)
(Video Coverage: Lee Seung-hwan, Shin Dong-hwan | Video Editing: Yu Mi-ra, Design: Seo Hyun-jung)
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