Translation result
Opposition: Park Hyung-joon, Joo Jin-woo — Democrats are hobbling us
Ruling party: Jeon Jae-soo — a formal procedural step; I’ll take responsibility for securing its passage
Busan Mayor Park Hyung-joon shaves his head to demand passage of the Busan Global Hub City Special Act(Seoul=Yonhap) Reporter Shin Hyun-woo = On the 23rd, Busan Mayor Park Hyung-joon shaved his head on the steps in front of the National Assembly main building to urge passage of the Busan Global Hub City Special Act. 2026.3.23 nowwego@yna.co.kr(Seoul=Yonhap) Reporter Shin Hyun-woo = On the 23rd, Busan Mayor Park Hyung-joon shaved his head on the steps in front of the National Assembly main building to urge passage of the Busan Global Hub City Special Act. 2026.3.23 nowwego@yna.co.kr
Lawmakers removed the Busan Global Hub Special Act (Busan Special Act) bill from the agenda of the National Assembly’s Legislation and Judiciary Committee meeting today (the 30th). As a result, the bill is unlikely to be brought to the plenary session scheduled for tomorrow.
Kim Yong-min, the Legislation and Judiciary Committee’s ruling-party ranking member, said the committee made the decision because the bill had not yet met the required deliberation period.
He noted the bill was referred to the Legislation and Judiciary Committee after the Public Administration and Security Committee voted on it on the 26th, so it has not completed the deliberation period. Under Article 59 of the National Assembly Act, a bill must undergo a 20-day deliberation period after being introduced before it can be placed on the agenda.
A Democratic Party floor official said the party plans to resolve the bill through bipartisan agreement and pass it before the local elections once the deliberation period ends.
Jeon Jae-soo, a Democratic candidate in the Busan mayoral primary, told supporters, \”Don’t worry about the Busan Special Act. I’ll take responsibility from getting it on the agenda to securing its passage.\” He added on social media that removing the bill from the committee agenda was a formal procedural requirement under Assembly rules.
By contrast, People Power Party pre-candidates for Busan mayor sharply criticized the Democratic Party.
Park Hyung-joon, who shaved his head to press for the Busan Special Act, wrote on social media that blocking even the committee listing of a law long sought by Busan residents exposed the Democratic Party’s true colors — treating Busan as an election prop.
He accused the party of dousing Busan residents’ hopes by using the deliberation-period technicality to block the bill, even though it had ignored such procedures in the past to push through laws it favored.
Park’s office pointed to Article 59, Paragraph 3 of the National Assembly Act, saying that for bills that clear a standing committee and are referred to the Legislation and Judiciary Committee, the deliberation period is five days. It argued that because the Busan Special Act was referred to the committee on the 26th, it could be listed on the committee agenda beginning on the 31st.
Joo Jin-woo, another People Power Party pre-candidate for Busan mayor, also wrote on social media that the Busan Special Act had been hampered by the Democratic Party. He accused the party of arrogance, saying it granted every exception to the Jeonnam–Gwangju integration special law while neglecting Busan.
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Yang Sori (sound@yna.co.kr)
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