National Assembly Speaker Woo Won-sik on the 9th declared a recess during a filibuster by the People Power Party at a plenary session. The reason was that remarks by Na Kyung-won of the People Power Party, who took the floor as a filibuster speaker, were not related to the bill on the agenda.
Speaker Woo declared a recess at about 6:19 p.m. while the plenary session was underway that day.
The National Assembly that day placed on the agenda a partial amendment to the Fair Transactions in Franchise Business Act. The People Power Party immediately requested a filibuster. Although the franchise business act amendment is a bill with no disagreement between the ruling and opposition parties, the People Power Party launched a filibuster, saying it expects the Democratic Party of Korea to push ahead with creating a dedicated sedition chamber and a bill on the crime of historical distortion.
Na began the filibuster at about 4:28 p.m. that day. Speaker Woo and Na clashed from the moment she approached the rostrum. When Na did not greet Speaker Woo, he said, "Aren't you going to greet me?" About 10 minutes after the filibuster began, he moved to put the brakes on Na's filibuster.
Speaker Woo found that Na's filibuster remarks were unrelated to the franchise business act on the agenda. Na was explaining the "fast track (expedited agenda)" process that preceded the act being placed on the floor. Speaker Woo said, "This is not an unlimited debate on the franchise business act. This is an attempt to obstruct proceedings." When Na ignored the speaker's remarks and continued, Woo cut off Na's microphone.
Lawmakers from the People Power Party strongly protested Speaker Woo's decision to cut the microphone. Democratic Party lawmakers also shouted at Na, saying, "Apologize," "Get a grip." As Woo kept the microphone off, Na at one point used a wireless microphone separately prepared by the People Power Party.
In the end, Speaker Woo declared a recess, saying, "I am so ashamed to show this face of the National Assembly that I cannot continue the meeting."
Kwak Kyu-taek, the People Power Party's senior deputy floor spokesperson, held an emergency briefing and said, "For the first time in the history of the National Assembly of the Republic of Korea, an unthinkable situation occurred in which the speaker obstructed a speech and cut off the microphone," adding, "It is a dogmatic handling of the plenary session and a tyrannical act by the speaker that ignores legal provisions."