The National Assembly is pushing a bill to again designate Constitution Day, July 17 every year, as a public holiday for the first time in 18 years. Constitution Day is expected to become a public holiday as early as next year.
The National Assembly Public Administration and Security Committee on the 17th passed, by bipartisan agreement in its bill review subcommittee, an amendment to the Act on Public Holidays (Public Holidays Act) that would again designate Constitution Day as a public holiday.
If the amendment passes the full meeting of the Public Administration and Security Committee and then the National Assembly plenary session, Constitution Day will again become a public holiday starting next year. Considering that Constitution Day was removed from the list of public holidays in 2008, this is a reassignment after 18 years. Previously, during the Roh Moo-hyun administration, Constitution Day was excluded from the list of public holidays in response to business community demands when the five-day workweek was introduced.
Constitution Day commemorates the promulgation of the Constitution of the Republic of Korea on July 17, 1948. It is the only one among the five national holidays (March 1 Independence Movement Day, Constitution Day, Liberation Day, National Foundation Day, Hangeul Day) that is not a public holiday.
Earlier, President Lee Jae-myung also presided over a senior secretaries meeting on July 17 and asked for a review of designating Constitution Day as a public holiday. At the time, Lee said, "Although Constitution Day is a day to commemorate the enactment and promulgation of the Constitution, it seems to be the only national commemoration among the so-called 'Day' observances that is not a holiday."