People Power Party Halts Filibuster: "Convene Judiciary Committee to Advance TK Integration"

[Financial News] The People Power Party decided on the 1st to halt its ongoing filibuster on the amendment to the National Referendum Act, which is a form of unlimited debate allowed under the National Assembly Act to block parliamentary proceedings. The party abruptly announced the end of the filibuster after the Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) argued that, because of the filibuster, the Legislation and Judiciary Committee of the National Assembly could not deliberate the Daegu–Gyeongbuk Administrative Integration Special Act for the Daegu–North Gyeongsang (TK) region.
Song Eon-seok, the People Power Party’s parliamentary leader, held an emergency press conference at the National Assembly the same day. He said, "The DPK is still opposing the convening of the Legislation and Judiciary Committee of the National Assembly to handle the Daegu–North Gyeongsang Administrative Integration Act," adding, "To break through this refusal to convene the committee, today (the 1st) our People Power Party has decided to halt the filibuster as of this moment."
He continued, "We know full well that the claim that the committee cannot be convened because of the filibuster has no basis whatsoever. Nevertheless, we have decided to end the filibuster and give them time to convene the Legislation and Judiciary Committee of the National Assembly so that the Daegu–North Gyeongsang Administrative Integration Act can be processed."
Choo Mi-ae of the DPK, who chairs the Legislation and Judiciary Committee of the National Assembly, wrote on her social networking service (SNS) account on the 27th of last month that it would be difficult to convene the committee due to the People Power Party’s filibuster. In response, the People Power Party criticized this as a "feeble excuse," yet it ultimately appears to have found it unavoidable to revise its filibuster strategy in order to secure passage of the Daegu–North Gyeongsang Administrative Integration Act.
Regarding the opposition from some basic-level councils, which the DPK has cited as a reason to put the TK integration bill on hold, Song said, "It seems they are once again using the claim that basic councils are opposed as a pretext to block administrative integration between Daegu and North Gyeongsang Province." He added, "The main actors in the integration are the metropolitan governments, not the basic-level local governments."


gowell@fnnews.com Kim Hyeong-gu Reporter