A motion to allow the court to issue a warrant to arrest independent lawmaker Rep. Kang Sun-woo, who has been embroiled in a pay-to-play corruption scandal, passed the National Assembly on Tuesday.
The liberal party-controlled National Assembly's 164-87 vote lifted the 47-year-old liberal lawmaker's immunity from arrest. Three lawmakers abstained, with nine votes deemed invalid. Kang, a two-term lawmaker, was affiliated with the ruling Democratic Party of Korea until her expulsion from the party on Jan. 1.
Kang, representing the Gangseo A constituency in western Seoul, was accused of receiving 100 million won ($69,000) from a Seoul city councilor candidate when she had the authority to select her party's candidate for the 2022 local election.
The candidate, Kim Kyung, was selected as the party's sole candidate and won the election. The money was reportedly returned several months after Kim's nomination was confirmed.
Kim quit her position as councilor in late January.
The passage of the motion came about two months after a media revelation in December of a leaked conversation between Kang and fellow Democratic Party lawmaker Rep. Kim Byung-kee.
Before the motion was put to a vote, Kang on Tuesday denied the bribery accusations in her speech, saying she was not aware of the cash gift at the time of the exchange. This ran contrary to Kang's secretary, who said in police questioning that the request for money had come from Kang.
Kang became the 21st lawmaker to have her immunity from arrest stripped by the parliament, out of 75 such attempts in South Korea's modern history.
Kang will face a review for a court warrant that would put her in detention as she awaits the impending criminal trial. She will remain a lawmaker unless and until a guilty verdict with a suspended sentence or imprisonment is finalized.
consnow@heraldcorp.com
