The Democratic Party of Korea urged the government and local governments to spend preliminary expenditure related to the large-scale forest fire that occurred in the Gyeongsangbuk-do area. The government also plans to push for legislation on the Agricultural and Fishery Disaster Countermeasure Act, for which it had exercised the right of request for reconsideration (veto), to realize support for victims.
The Democratic Party's Special Committee on Emergency Response to Forest Disasters (Forest Fire Response Special Committee) held its first meeting at the National Assembly on the afternoon of the 28th, sharing the current status of the Gyeongsangbuk-do forest fire and discussing response measures. Attending the meeting were Chairperson Kim Byeong-joo, Deputy Chairperson Han Byeong-do, Situation Room Head Im Ho-sun, and Commissioner Lee Won-taek, an opposition party member of the National Assembly's Agriculture, Food, Rural Affairs, and Fisheries Committee.
The Forest Fire Response Special Committee argued that not only fire suppression but also support for the victims' damages should be strengthened. It plans to compile requests from cities and counties for support measures, including temporary housing support and restoration of living infrastructure. In particular, they emphasized the need for livelihood support measures, as this large-scale forest fire occurred before the farming season that returns every year from April to June.
Deputy Chairperson Han Byeong-do noted, “To take follow-up measures for the forest fire, we must also request cooperation from the government and form a cross-government task force (TF) to establish comprehensive measures such as housing support for victims and compensation for living stability,” and added, “In the current situation where large forest fires are becoming commonplace due to recent abnormal temperatures, related system improvements must also be swiftly promoted in the National Assembly.”
There were also calls for the rapid preliminary expenditure by the government and local governments. Commissioner Lee Won-taek said, “Since most of the victims are farmers, temporary housing facilities must be set up so that they can continue agricultural activities,” adding, “If modular houses cost 5 million won for a 6-pyeong unit and assuming 3,000 units, that’s not a large amount. The central government and local governments must respond urgently to secure temporary housing facilities through preliminary expenditure.”
The Democratic Party will again push for legislation on the Agricultural and Fishery Disaster Countermeasure Act included in the 'four agricultural laws' that the government vetoed last December. The Agricultural and Fishery Disaster Countermeasure Act includes provisions to guarantee production costs considering the actual transaction prices, going beyond simple damage recovery for agricultural and fishing households affected by disasters. The government exercised its veto, citing concerns over equity and moral hazard in compensating production costs beyond disaster recovery expenses.
Representative Lee stated, “If we only provide support at the level of livelihood relief and recovery when disasters occur, it will be too difficult to stand back up again,” and added, “Especially, there have been too many cases where agricultural machinery or materials have been completely destroyed in this forest fire, so it won't be easy to recover using the existing support system.” He continued, “I will reintroduce the vetoed Agricultural and Fishery Disaster Countermeasure Act for legislation.”