S. Korea's ruling party proposes capital relocation as solution to overheated housing market
- 4 years ago
정부여당 행정수도완성추진단 월요일 세종시 방문,... '행정수도 이전' 실현 가능성은?
South Korea's ruling party is still pushing to move the administrative capital from Seoul to Sejong.
Members of the party's special task force in charge of renewing the decade-old plan will be heading down to Sejong for an on-field inspection.
They'll be touring the prospective sites for government offices and the presidential office, should the party win support for the relocation plan.
The party hopes a move, if approved, will cool an overheated housing market, but many still question the feasibility of the plan.
Lee Kyung-eun tells us more.
Back in 2002, the South Korean government proposed a Special Act for creating a new administrative capital.
But the Constitutional Court struck it down, saying "the capital Seoul is part of our unwritten and customary constitution. Thus, changing the status is unconstitutional."
That, instead, led to the construction of an administrative city, Sejong,...but only some of the government institutions were moved there.
16 years have passed, and the capital relocation is gaining traction again.
The ruling Democratic Party has proposed the idea to increase housing supply in Seoul amid soaring real estate prices.
This time, though, they are trying move core institutions like the National Assembly and the Blue House.
"To begin the discussions for the completion of an administrative capital, I officially propose to lawmakers and citizens that the National Assembly make a special committee for it."
The proposal is rapidly gaining momentum, with the first meeting of the team last week.
But a major legal hurdle lies ahead the previous court ruling.
Three approaches can be taken to address the issue,...the most clear way being amending the constitution by inserting the phrase "our capital is Sejong City."
"But a constitutional amendment would require the support of two-thirds of the National Assembly. But it's very unlikely to get the support from the main opposition party, which remains largely critical of the plan.
The second will be submitting another special act to the parliament,... like in 2002.
"There were a lot of criticism regarding the previous ruling, that it’s wrong constitutional interpretation- the customary constitutional rationale. Maybe the ruling party believes the current court would make a different decision. But it’s unlikely to do so because they keep the precedents of unconstitutionality."
Another idea is to hold a national referendum, asking the public to decide.
The latest national poll shows,... opinions are largely split over the issue.
The ruling party aims to finalize which method to use by the end of the year. But, experts say that the third method is the most plausible at this moment in time.
Lee Kyung-eun, Arirang News.
South Korea's ruling party is still pushing to move the administrative capital from Seoul to Sejong.
Members of the party's special task force in charge of renewing the decade-old plan will be heading down to Sejong for an on-field inspection.
They'll be touring the prospective sites for government offices and the presidential office, should the party win support for the relocation plan.
The party hopes a move, if approved, will cool an overheated housing market, but many still question the feasibility of the plan.
Lee Kyung-eun tells us more.
Back in 2002, the South Korean government proposed a Special Act for creating a new administrative capital.
But the Constitutional Court struck it down, saying "the capital Seoul is part of our unwritten and customary constitution. Thus, changing the status is unconstitutional."
That, instead, led to the construction of an administrative city, Sejong,...but only some of the government institutions were moved there.
16 years have passed, and the capital relocation is gaining traction again.
The ruling Democratic Party has proposed the idea to increase housing supply in Seoul amid soaring real estate prices.
This time, though, they are trying move core institutions like the National Assembly and the Blue House.
"To begin the discussions for the completion of an administrative capital, I officially propose to lawmakers and citizens that the National Assembly make a special committee for it."
The proposal is rapidly gaining momentum, with the first meeting of the team last week.
But a major legal hurdle lies ahead the previous court ruling.
Three approaches can be taken to address the issue,...the most clear way being amending the constitution by inserting the phrase "our capital is Sejong City."
"But a constitutional amendment would require the support of two-thirds of the National Assembly. But it's very unlikely to get the support from the main opposition party, which remains largely critical of the plan.
The second will be submitting another special act to the parliament,... like in 2002.
"There were a lot of criticism regarding the previous ruling, that it’s wrong constitutional interpretation- the customary constitutional rationale. Maybe the ruling party believes the current court would make a different decision. But it’s unlikely to do so because they keep the precedents of unconstitutionality."
Another idea is to hold a national referendum, asking the public to decide.
The latest national poll shows,... opinions are largely split over the issue.
The ruling party aims to finalize which method to use by the end of the year. But, experts say that the third method is the most plausible at this moment in time.
Lee Kyung-eun, Arirang News.