South Korea Parliament Fails to Pass Constitutional Amendment Bill

The National Assembly failed to vote on a constitutional amendment bill Thursday after the main opposition party boycotted the plenary session. Only 178 lawmakers participated, short of the 191 needed for a quorum. In the 300-member parliament with 14 vacant seats, a minimum two-thirds of the 286 occupied seats must be present to hold a vote on constitutional changes.

The ruling party holds 152 seats while the main opposition controls 106. The bill, jointly proposed by 187 lawmakers from the ruling party and five minor parties, sought to require the president to obtain parliamentary approval for martial law without delay.

It stipulated that if the National Assembly rejects the declaration or fails to approve it within 48 hours, the martial law would be immediately nullified. The proposal also aimed to include the 1980 pro-democracy uprising in Gwangju and the 1979 Busan-Masan pro-democracy protests in the preamble.

The current text states that the country inherits the spirit of the April 19 revolution in 1960, which overthrew the country's first president over election fraud. The National Assembly plans to hold another plenary session Friday for a second attempt at a vote.

If approved by May 10, a national referendum could be held alongside the June 3 local elections. A constitutional amendment must win both majority turnout and majority approval in the referendum to take effect.

The presidential office expressed disappointment and regret over the scuttled vote. It urged the opposition party to participate in Friday's session. "Lawmakers of the PPP should participate in the vote without fail with a sense of responsibility as constitutional institutions, as another plenary session will be convened tomorrow," a spokesperson said.