Legislation to end death penalty sought

A group of lawmakers are pushing for special legislation to abolish the death penalty.

Rep. Chyung Dai-Chul of the ruling Millennium Democratic Party (MDP) said Sunday that he and his fellow lawmakers are planning to enact a special law for the abolition of capital punishment. The move comes amid an ongoing campaign to discontinue the death penalty.

He said that the death penalty could be replaced with life imprisonment.

A total of 76 lawmakers from both the ruling and opposition parties had signed a draft bill as of Sunday, he said.

The bill will be presented to the National Assembly with the signatures of more than 100 lawmakers, he said.

In the 15th-term National Assembly (1996. 5. 30 ?2000. 5. 29), a similar bill with the signatures of 98 lawmakers, including You Jay-Kun of the then National Congress for New Politics, now the MDP, was forwarded to the Assembly for legislation. Due to public opinion, the bill was automatically repealed without being subject to deliberations.