South Korea’s main opposition Democratic Party said on Feb. 28 that it would boycott a trilateral policy meeting with the ruling party and the government, protesting the acting president’s delay in appointing Ma Eun-hyuk as a Constitutional Court justice.
Democratic Party floor leader Park Chan-dae issued a statement at around 3 p.m., saying, “As long as Acting President Choi Sang-mok refuses to fulfill his constitutional duty, it is difficult to recognize him as a legitimate counterpart for discussions. We are putting today’s policy meeting on hold.”
Park pointed to the Constitutional Court’s ruling a day earlier, which found Choi’s failure to appoint Ma unconstitutional.
He said the ruling reaffirmed the clear principle that neither the president nor the acting president has the authority to reject a Constitutional Court justice recommended by the National Assembly.
Park said Choi was still stalling Ma’s appointment and criticized the prolonged delay. He noted that the government had remained in a state of unconstitutionality for 63 days and, instead of stabilizing state affairs, was further deepening political turmoil.
The trilateral policy meeting, scheduled for later in the day, was to bring together Choi, National Assembly Speaker Woo Won-shik, ruling People Power Party interim leader Kwon Young-se, and Democratic Party leader Lee Jae-myung. The agenda included discussions on a supplementary budget plan, a special semiconductor law, pension reform, and other key issues.
