South Korea's national pension reform plan receives a flurry of Leave votes... Even the chairman of the ruling party's special committee opposes it

The ruling party, People's Power, met with a closed-door general meeting of lawmakers ahead of a vote on the "National Pension Fund Reform Bill," which was submitted to the Diet for the first time in 18 years by a ruling and opposition party agreement.
Rep. Park Suyeong (South Busan district), who is the chairperson of the party, has announced her intention to resign. According to a South Korean political source on the 20th, at the party's general assembly held in the afternoon,
Opposition to the proposed amendment to the National Pension Act, which calls for "paying more and receiving more," has been mounting. Rep. Kim Mi-ae, a member of the ruling party's Health and Welfare Committee, urged voters to vote in favor.
Park reportedly expressed his intention to resign immediately after the meeting. Regarding the proposed amendment, which was reached through an agreement between the ruling and opposition party floor leaders, Park said, "It takes away the rights of the younger generation and
He also criticized the proposal to raise the insurance premium rate by 13% and the income replacement rate by 43% in the proposed revision, which he said was in line with the government's pension reform plan last year.
He pointed out that this was something that the ruling party, including the Presidential Office, opposed when the reform plan was announced. By accepting the demands of the Democratic Party of Korea, which clearly stated that "stable and continuous payment of the national pension" would
They also expressed concern that the bill would hinder the National Assembly's special committee on pension reform, which is currently discussing structural reform. Rep. Kim Jae-seop and Rep. Woo Jae-jung, both of whom were born in the 1980s, also expressed opposition to the bill.
"This is not an agreement on reform, but a conspiracy by the older generation with political vested interests," Rep. Kim wrote on his blog. "I would like to see the government attach oxygen respirators to the limited-term national pension system."
"I cannot agree to this agreement," he wrote. Rep. Woo also said, "This pension reform plan is one in which only the younger generation makes concessions while the older generation benefits even in these difficult times."
Such opposition seems to have influenced the voting behavior of lawmakers. One new lawmaker said, "I understand that the leadership had a hard time.
"I am against this reform plan, but when I heard the explanation, I thought it would be very hard on young people," he said. In fact, 84 votes were cast against or abstained from voting, but the people's support was supported by the
The People Power lawmakers made up 55 of the 277 present and 193 in favor. Of the 108 People Power lawmakers, more than half voted against or abstained. Kim Yong-tae, the party's youngest member born in 1990,
From Lee Chul-gyu, born in 1957, to Lee Jun-seok, a member of the New Reform Party, and Lee Ji-hoon, a member of the New Reform Party, voted against or abstained.
Rep. Lee Yoo-young and Rep. Cheon Haram also voted against the bill, resulting in a significant number of withdrawal votes from the Democratic Party.
The vote on the composition of the special committee for reform also resulted in 219 votes in favor, 11 against, and 9 abstentions out of 239 present.
The insurance premium rate will be raised by 0.5% per year for eight years from 2026, and the income replacement rate will also be raised by 2026.
The minimum age for pension payments will be increased from 2019. The bill also includes provisions to clarify the stable and sustainable payment of national pensions, expand maternity and military credits, and expand support for low-income earners.
However, the Korean government has been insisting on introducing the National Pension Automatic Adjustment System, and the entire pension system including national, basic, retirement and individual pensions.
The ruling and opposition parties failed to reach an agreement on the structural reform plan to fix the current pension system. The ruling and opposition party leaders in the Diet plan to discuss related issues at the National Diet Pension Reform Special Committee to be formed in the future.
It will be the chairman, have the power to review bills, and continue its activities until the end of this year.