National Assembly votes narrowly to reject motion for opposition leader's arrest

• Published date: 28 February 2023
• Publication title: The Korea Times

The National Assembly on Monday voted narrowly to reject the government's request for consent to arrest opposition leader Lee Jae-myung over corruption charges.

The motion was voted down 139-138 with nine abstentions and 11 deemed invalid.

The result, though in line with widespread views that Lee's main opposition Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) would use its majority power to reject the request, came as a surprise as it means some DPK lawmakers cast dissenting votes for Lee's arrest.

The DPK, which holds 169 seats in the 299-member National Assembly, has denounced the prosecution's attempt to arrest Lee as political revenge by President Yoon Suk Yeol against his presidential election rival.

By law, parliamentary consent is necessary to arrest a lawmaker while parliament is in session.

Prosecutors had earlier sought an arrest warrant for Lee over development corruption and bribery allegations...