GNP expected to railroad Seoul-Washington FTA today

By Park Si-soo

The ruling Grand National Party (GNP) is expected to railroad the passage of a bill ratifying the Seoul-Washington free trade agreement on Thursday at a parliament committee, despite opposition of rival parties.

Opposition lawmakers have pledged to block it no-holds-barred, raising the possibility of a violent clash with proponents during the meeting.

“Putting the bill to a vote was delayed to Thursday morning at the request of opposition lawmakers,” said Rep. Yoo Ki-joon, who represents GNP lawmakers registered with the National Assembly’s foreign affairs committee. “We will vote as scheduled regardless of opposition lawmakers’ opinion.”

The committee’s approval is a precondition for a bill to be ratified at the National Assembly’s general meeting. The general meeting is slated for October. The U.S. Congress is expected to endorse its part of the pact in September or October at the latest, observers said.

The ruling party made a last-minute push to ratify the pact in the committee during a special parliament session that ended Wednesday, but it was blocked by lawmakers from rival parties calling for the renegotiation of the bilateral deal. President Lee Myung-bak has underscored the necessity of the deal’s early ratification.

Rep. Nam Kyung-pil, who chaired the committee, solicited for opposition lawmakers’ cooperation to pass the bill through the committee. If so, he said, the ruling party will “never railroad the passage of the bill in the general meeting.” The chairman reaffirmed the ruling party’s policy that nothing will be ratified here ahead of the approval in the U.S.

The main opposition Democratic Party (DP) has called for the renegotiation of the agreement, saying it was biased in favor of the U.S. government.

The DP’s so-called “10+2” renegotiation plan involves the modifying of two clauses in domestic laws and 10 in the agreement itself. Rep. Kim Dong-cheol demanded that the ruling party start discussing related issues “back from zero.” Rep. Song Min-soon, a former foreign minister, echoed the view and criticized the ruling party’s attempt to endorse the bill despite opposition.

“It’s not to late to start discussing the matter (in the committee) after watching how the U.S. work on it,” Song said.

Trade Minister Kim Jong-hoon told lawmakers the U.S. Congress will open its session on Sept. 6 for a three-week run, pinning high hopes on the ratification of its part of the pact.

“Details (of the pact) have already been discussed. I think the process of ratification will go smoothly,” Kim said, citing political sources in the U.S.