FTA may face uphill battle in Korean Assembly approval

Posted on : 2007-04-03 13:53 KST Modified on : 2019-10-19 20:29 KST
Release of deal’s details may cause further public, political backlash: observers

South Korea and the United States finally agreed upon a free trade agreement (FTA) on April 2. In order for the FTA to take effect, it needs ratification by Korea’s National Assembly, but as political parties as well as members within the parties are divided over the FTA, the final approval procedure is expected to face a number of obstacles.

If the two countries sign the FTA in late June according to the proposed U.S. schedule, the South Korean government is expected to seek parliamentary approval for the agreement around September, when the National Assembly opens its regular session. Just as in ordinary bills, in order for the FTA deal to be passed at the National Assembly, at least half of the Assembly members must be present for the plenary session and more than half of the members attending must give their approval.

The first challenge of Assembly approval is garnering the needed majority. Considering there are currently 296 Assembly members, at least 149 legislators should approve it if all are present at the Assembly session. As the pro-government Uri Party (108 seats) and major opposition Grand National Party (GNP, 127 seats) have expressed their approval for the FTA at the party level, the majority of the National Assembly is expected to support the deal. Those lawmakers that have either reserved judgement on the deal or expressed opposition to it number 52, including nine from the Democratic Labor Party (DLP) and 11 from the Democratic Party.

However, the number of participants of a supra-party movement against a "hasty settlement" of the ROK-U.S. FTA - the membership of which cuts across party lines - had increased to 51 by April 2. Twenty-two lawmakers from the Uri Party, including its former chairman Kim Geun-tae, and Reps. Kwon Oh-eul and Hong Moon-pyo of the GNP, have joined this movement.

The number of the currently opposing lawmakers - 51 - was exactly the same number that voted against the appointment of Han Duck-soo as prime minister on April 2. During the approval session, 210 voted for Han, 51 against, and 9 abstained. The 51 that opposed his appointment cited the fact that he was formerly the head of the governmental committee for promotion of the FTA with the U.S.

If official debate starts after the details of the FTA are released, there will inevitably be some changes in public opinion regarding the deal. If public opposition becomes stronger, an estimated 80 legislators from Korea’s largely rural provinces may join the forces opposing the FTA. Anti-FTA lawmakers are pushing ahead with hearings and parliamentary investigations on the matter, and they may wield influence on the general public and opinions in the political world, observers said.

In particular, ahead of the presidential election this December and general elections in April next year, lawmakers may feel more burden in handling the FTA deal within this year, as they do not want to alienate their voter base. They may choose to take advantage of the fact that there is no time limit for the National Assembly to approve the deal. In the case of the first ROK-Chile FTA, the deal was submitted to the National Assembly in late 2002, but it was approved by the Assembly of the next administration, one-and-a-half years later. Since the ripple effects of the FTA with the U.S. are anticipated to be far larger than those from the deal with Chile, many experts predict that the FTA settlement may not be handled until the next presidential administration, which will begin in February 2008, or the 18th National Assembly, which will start in May 2008.

Please direct questions or comments to [englishhani@hani.co.kr]

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