Assembly feuds over troops to Iraq

The National Assembly’s approval of the government plan to dispatch noncombat support troops to the war in Iraq, slated for today, remains in question.
The two main political parties were busy yesterday working out the details of their presentation at the Assembly’s main session. Floor leaders of the governing Millennium Democratic Party and the opposition Grand National Party agreed to limit to six the number of legislators from each party allowed to speak for or against the government bill.
The limitation is to forestall a filibuster by about 50 legislators in the 273-seat National Assembly who oppose the government dispatch of troops.
Park Hee-tae, chairman of the GNP, met with Chyung Dai-chul, chairman of the MDP, over lunch yesterday. They agreed on bipartisan cooperation and that the president should try to persuade the public in order to gain the support of civic-minded politicians.
But there was a sense of reluctance among party leadership to expedite the bill’s approval, given the rising anti-war sentiment in the nation.
“I sensed that Mr. Chyung was not certain that he could persuade fellow Millennium Democrats,” said one GNP official, requesting anonymity.
Grand Nationals, who had been supportive of dispatching the troops, remain undecided due to the rising tide of anti-war protests. In addition, pro-dispatch legislators such as Representative Seol Song-woong of the governing party have been receiving hostile e-mails from civic groups threatening to withhold their votes for pro-dispatch lawmakers at the next National Assembly elections, to be held in April 2004.
Meanwhile, President Roh Moo-hyun said yesterday that the National Human Rights Commission’s opposition to the war in Iraq was a result of a breakdown in communications within the government.
“The president said that there will never be a uniformity of opinion, and that it is more important to maintain unity through a system of checks and balances,” Ms. Song said.

by Nam Jeong-ho