Jin Seong-jun, chairman of the Democratic Party of Korea's policy committee, publicly suggested to the People Power Party on the 22nd, 'Let's hold a council to promote common civic pledges within this week,' requesting a response for discussions on related bills to be addressed during the July extraordinary National Assembly.
Chairman Jin stated during a meeting of the ruling party's policy committee held in the National Assembly that he 'requests bipartisan cooperation from the People Power Party for the processing of civil legislation.'
Chairman Jin explained, 'Last week, I selected 11 common civic pledges that can be addressed during the July extraordinary National Assembly and delivered them to the People Power Party. These are bills that the two parties already promised to the public during the last presidential election, and there are no disagreements between the parties.'
Chairman Jin emphasized that he would actively address legislative arrangements related to damage from recent heavy rains and the rising food prices.
He stressed, 'This heavy rain was an extreme rainfall event that occurs once in 200 years. However, our disaster prevention infrastructure is currently designed based on rainfall amounts expected once every 30 or 50 years,' adding, 'We need to completely review and redesign our disaster prevention infrastructure to respond to extreme climate phenomena, and enhance our disaster safety system, including improvements to disaster response manuals.'
He also mentioned the response to price increases due to the damage from heavy rains. Chairman Jin said, 'As concerns over food prices continue to grow due to damage to agricultural, livestock, and fishery products, we must be fully prepared for price management,' adding, 'I hope the government will do its best.'
He noted that he would actively pursue legislation for disaster prevention and support. Chairman Jin stated, 'The state will introduce a 'National Support Local River System' to directly manage local rivers and prevent damage caused by flooding in advance.' He added, 'I will promptly work on amending the river law,' stating, 'This law was pushed for amendment by the Democratic Party in 2023 but was discarded due to opposition from the Yoon Suk-yeol administration. This time, we will ensure that it is processed so that such damage does not recur.'
Chairman Jin also discussed tariff negotiations with the United States, stating, 'We only have ten days left. However, we cannot rush into negotiations,' adding, 'Negotiations must be concluded in a way that balances the interests of both countries under the principle of prioritizing national interests. The agricultural sector and other private sectors must be protected as much as possible, and active support measures for our corporations must be prepared.' He emphasized the need to minimize damage by sector, such as in the automotive and steel industries, diversify export routes, improve economic structures, and strengthen industrial competitiveness, stating, 'The Democratic Party will exert all efforts to ensure the best negotiation results.'
The Democratic Party plans to quickly process the 11 civic common pledge-related bills in the July extraordinary National Assembly if the People Power Party accepts them. The 11 bills include: ▲ Capital Markets Act ▲ Electronic Securities Act ▲ Support Act for Abandoned Coal Power Plant Areas ▲ Essential Medical Care Promotion and Regional Medical Gap Resolution Support Act ▲ Infectious Disease Prevention and Management Act ▲ Medical Act ▲ Food Sanitation Act ▲ Persons with Disabilities Rights Protection Act ▲ Support Act for Individuals with Borderline Intellectual Functioning ▲ Labor Standards Act ▲ Wage Claims Guarantee Act.