Main opposition party returns to parliament

SEOUL, Aug. 27 (Yonhap) -- South Korea's main opposition Democratic Party (DP) withdrew Thursday its earlier threat to boycott next month's regular parliamentary session, ending a month of street protests over its rival's unilateral passage of controversial media bills.

"The party will fight against the revised media laws both inside and out of
parliament to help overcome the crises facing the nation's democracy, economy and
inter-Korean relations," DP chairman Chung Sye-kyun told a press conference.
The DP has held a number of street rallies throughout the country since the
ruling Grand National Party (GNP) passed revisions to four media-related laws on
July 22 in a vote attended only by its own legislators.
The party suspended its protests last week to mourn the death of its former
leader, Kim Dae-jung, who served as president from 1998-2003. The parliament is
currently in a recess.
The opposition party warned of an "intensified" struggle within the house.
"All democratic, liberal forces must join to fight against the autocratic rule of
the Lee Myung-bak government and the ruling party," said Chung, who had offered
to quit his Assembly seat following the passage of the media law revisions. The
DP chairman has vacated his Assembly office but continues to maintain his seat as
the Assembly Speaker refused to accept his resignation.
"We made the decision (not to boycott) because we believe the GNP will not change
its stance, and this means we will return to the National Assembly to fight
against the media law revisions there," a DP legislator said earlier, asking not
to be identified.
The revisions allow private businesses and newspapers to own stakes in broadcast
companies. The DP argues their passage was part of a government effort to
exercise more control over the media, saying only a handful of heavyweight
conservative dailies are well-positioned to enter the broadcast market.
The GNP claims the revisions will help create tens of thousands of jobs and raise
the overall competitiveness of the country's media industry.
The opposition party has asked the Constitutional Court to nullify legislation of
the government-backed revision bills, based on a claim that at least several
ballots in last month's vote were cast not by lawmakers but party officials or
aides.
A public hearing on the issue by the Constitutional Court is set for Sept. 10.
bdk@yna.co.kr