South Korea's main opposition People Power Party (PPP) voted at a full caucus on July 2 to reject the National Assembly's newly configured committee structure and boycott further parliamentary proceedings after the ruling Democratic Party filled 11 of 18 standing committee chairmanships on June 30.
Speaking to reporters after approximately two hours of deliberations, PPP floor leader Jeong Jeom-sik said the party had decided not to cooperate with the current committee arrangement and would consider stronger forms of political opposition. According to PPP senior floor whip Kim Seung-su, most of the roughly 80 lawmakers who attended the meeting supported a more assertive response, with some first-term lawmakers advocating particularly strong measures.
Jeong criticized the Democratic Party's decision to retain control of the Legislation and Judiciary Committee, whose chairmanship was assigned to Democratic Party lawmaker Seo Young-gyo. Jeong argued that the arrangement could facilitate consideration of legislation related to ongoing legal and prosecutorial matters involving President Lee Jae-myung. The Democratic Party rejected that characterization. Seo denied any wrongdoing and stated that she was considering legal action in response to remarks she described as false.
The PPP also declined to accept the seven committee chairmanships that the Democratic Party had allocated to opposition lawmakers. While some PPP members reportedly argued internally that accepting the positions would allow the party to exert greater influence within the committees, the party ultimately chose not to participate. Kim dismissed as false a circulating list that purported to identify PPP nominees for the positions, saying it appeared intended to create internal discord.
Based on media reports, one PPP lawmaker suggested accepting the chairmanship of the Legislation and Judiciary Committee in exchange for assurances regarding future legislation, but the proposal reportedly received little support within the party.
According to Kookmin Ilbo, at least one PPP member publicly called for all PPP lawmakers to resign their National Assembly seats, although the proposal did not appear to gain broad support.
Democratic Party acting leader and floor chief Han Byung-do announced plans to convene an extraordinary July session of the National Assembly and proceed with committee meetings under the 11 chairpersons already elected. Han said the party intended to focus on issues including small-business support and unpaid wages. He criticized the PPP's boycott decision, describing it as a failure to fulfill parliamentary responsibilities and arguing that it could hinder efforts to address citizens' economic concerns.
The Democratic Party also announced plans to establish a task force to prepare legislation concerning the separation of investigative and prosecutorial functions.
The PPP said it would continue participating in a separate parliamentary inquiry into ballot shortages reported during the June 3 local elections, citing the distinct nature of that investigation.