Lawmakers launch lawsuit against South Korea-U.S. FTA talks
Hankyoreh, Korea
Lawmakers launch lawsuit against South Korea-U.S. FTA talks
7 September 2006
(Yonhap News, Seoul.)A group of 23 South Korean lawmakers on Thursday filed a suit with South Korea’s Constitutional Court, claiming that President Roh Moo-hyun’s administration’s move to conclude a free trade agreement (FTA) with the U.S. is unconstitutional.
The 23 lawmakers, including nine from the ruling Uri Party, complained that the Roh government has infringed on the National Assembly’s constitutional right of approval in the conclusion of a foreign treaty by unilaterally pushing ahead with FTA negotiations with the U.S.
"The administration has monopolized FTA-related information and carried out negotiations in a hasty, unfaithful and unilateral manner," said Rep. Kim Tae-hong of the Uri Party in a news conference at the Assembly.
"We filed the constitutional lawsuit to demand transparent disclosure of information and more systematic negotiations," he said.
All of the minor opposition Democratic Labor Party’s nine lawmakers joined the lawsuit, while the main opposition Grand National Party did not participate.
The lawsuit came as South Korean and U.S. negotiators are holding the third round of FTA talks in Seattle.
