Lawmaker proposes anti-terrorism bill

By Kim Hyo-jin

A ruling party lawmaker Thursday proposed a terrorism prevention bill, which if passed, would establish an anti-terrorism committee.

“Swift responses to terrorist attacks are needed to better protect the public,” Rep. Lee No-keun of Saenuri Party said in a press release. “The existing rules on terrorist acts have no strong legal basis,” he added.

The proposal came in the wake of a knife attack on U.S. ambassador to Korea Mark Lippert, which the ruling party described as an act of “pro-North Korea terrorism.”

The current rules on counter-terrorist action are dependent on presidential instructions. He pointed that it is difficult for authorities to quickly respond to a terrorist attack.

The anti-terrorism committee would be headed by the Prime Minister. Rep. Lee said the committee can play a role as a control tower of the overall governmental actions against terrorism.

The bill also states setting up a Terrorist Threat Control Center. It designates the National Intelligence Service (NIS) chief as the head of the center, which manages data on potential terrorists.

The ruling party lawmakers have proposed anti-terrorism bills that contain similar content, but they are pending in parliament. The opposition lawmakers blocked them to be passed over concerns about overexpansion of the NIS and abuse of authority.