The People Power Party has filed a resolution calling for an emergency joint hearing to determine the facts behind a landmine explosion in the Demilitarized Zone. The resolution also calls for forming a separate fact-finding team that would include experts recommended by the opposition.
Rep. Na Kyung-won of the People Power Party introduced the resolution on the 29th, political sources said on the 30th. Titled a resolution demanding an investigation into suspicions that the Lee Jae-myung administration downplayed and covered up the DMZ mine disaster, believed to involve North Korean mines, and urging proper treatment and support for the wounded soldiers, the measure calls for an emergency joint hearing involving the National Assembly's Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee, National Defense Committee and Intelligence Committee. The aim is to address both the DMZ mine explosion and the repatriation of North Korean soldiers who had been held as prisoners of war in Ukraine.
The resolution also calls for forming a fact-finding team to separately establish how the incident occurred. It requires that the team include experts in explosives, landmines and military investigations recommended by the opposition.
It further demands that the National Assembly hold an emergency question session to disclose when President Lee Jae-myung was briefed on the incident, what instructions he gave at the time and how the government has handled the wounded soldiers. It also urges personnel action against those responsible and the determination of legal accountability.
The resolution says that if the incident is confirmed to have resulted from hostile acts, including mines laid by North Korean troops, the wounded soldiers should be classified as combat casualties and given corresponding honors and compensation. It also calls for guaranteeing continued service for wounded soldiers who wish to remain in the military, and for linking those who are discharged to veterans registration as well as rehabilitation, employment and living support.
About 50 People Power Party lawmakers signed on to the resolution, including party leader Jang Dong-hyuk and Reps. Kwon Young-se, Cho Bae-sook, Lee Jong-bae, Ahn Cheol-soo and Park Dae-chul. Independent Rep. Han Dong-hoon and former Reform Party leader Lee Jun-seok also added their names.
