Jang Dong-hyuk, leader of the People Power Party, and Song Eon-seok, floor leader, are holding a rally at the National Assembly Rotunda Hall on the 15th, ahead of the plenary session, to condemn the Democratic Party's forceful passage of the second comprehensive special prosecutor bill. [Photo=Yonhap News]

Jang Dong-hyuk, leader of the People Power Party, has begun a hunger strike on the 15th at the National Assembly in Yeouido, Seoul, escalating the party's offensive against the Democratic Party.

Last year, Jang opposed the processing of judicial-related contentious bills such as the "Law on the Establishment of a Court Dedicated to Insurrection," proposed by the Democratic Party, and engaged in a 24-hour filibuster in the National Assembly plenary session.

In the current political climate, as the Democratic Party pushes for the tabling of a comprehensive special prosecutor bill encompassing allegations related to former President Yoon Suk-yeol, Chun Ha-ram, the floor leader of the Reform Party, opposing it, stepped up as the first filibuster speaker against the comprehensive special prosecutor bill.

In contrast, Jang stated that while the Democratic Party is pursuing a comprehensive special prosecutor, it is not accepting the "political funding special prosecutor" and "Unification Church special prosecutor" bills, commonly referred to as the "twin special prosecutor bills," which the People Power Party has requested. He has therefore begun a hunger strike to urge their acceptance.

It has been reported that Jang is demanding the acceptance of the twin special prosecutor bills, stating, "We are not asking for a comprehensive special prosecutor that targets only specific individuals and incidents, but for the fair introduction of a special prosecutor for matters where public suspicion has been raised."

The People Power Party maintains that a comprehensive special prosecutor is a political special prosecutor, while the twin special prosecutors are to hold individuals accountable for specific matters, thus differing in nature. The Reform Party also explained the reason for its filibuster by stating that a comprehensive special prosecutor, with its broad investigation of bundled allegations, has a high potential for political misuse.

In response, the Democratic Party has characterized the opposition's filibuster and hunger strike as a political offensive and maintains its stance of processing contentious bills, including the comprehensive special prosecutor bill, as scheduled.

Amidst the escalating confrontation between the ruling and opposition parties over the comprehensive special prosecutor bill and the twin special prosecutor bills, the cooperative stance of the opposition parties, dividing roles by issue, is expected to be a major variable in future National Assembly politics.

Key Issues of the Comprehensive Special Prosecutor Bill

The comprehensive special prosecutor bill aims to investigate multiple matters, including allegations related to former President Yoon Suk-yeol, through a single special prosecutor. The contentious points include: △ the scope and range of the investigation being defined in a comprehensive rather than an individual case-by-case manner △ criticisms that the special prosecutor's investigation period and authority are excessive △ concerns about the overlap with existing prosecutorial and judicial procedures and the undermining of the separation of powers.

Hanmi Ilbo Editorial Department