South Korean Ruling Party's Constitutional Amendment Lacks Power Reform

National Assembly Speaker Woo Eun-sik withdrew the re-submission of a constitutional amendment, halting attempts to change the 39-year-old constitution. This decision followed a filibuster by the People Power Party. Consequently, the procedure for a national referendum, previously scheduled for June 3, has been stopped. This suspension occurred after all 106 members of the National Assembly did not participate in the vote, leading to the failure of the constitutional amendment process due to an invalid vote. The constitutional amendment was described as a non- bill. The People Power Party suggested that such a move during an election could be advantageous for the ruling party by increasing voter turnout. The South Korean government and ruling party are reportedly pushing for a constitutional amendment to address negative public opinion.