Constitutional Court Postpones Decision on Whether or Not to Conduct Open Debate

The Constitutional Court, headed by Yun Young-chul, held a general conference yesterday to discuss further legal procedures regarding a petition to the Constitutional Court ruling on the constitutionality of the special law on moving the capital.

“This general conference was just a generalized meeting to grasp an outline of the case,” said Constitutional Court researcher Chon Jong-ik, who is in charge of the public information of this case, and added, “The Court decided to set up the schedule of the general conferences, or whether or not to conduct an open debate, after doing more research and collecting opinions.”

Judges of the Constitutional Court changed their opinions about this case during the general conference on the basis of the theories and data they have examined so far, and statements each concerned institution have submitted.

Preceding the meeting, Lee Sang-kyung, the presiding justice of this case, said, “I can’t make public the concrete proceedings of the meeting because the general conference is not open to the public as a rule, but I will let you know about the parts related to legal procedures, including whether or not to conduct an open debate.”

The Constitutional Court requested six agencies, including Cheong Wa Dae and the National Assembly, to submit statements, and five agencies excluding the National Assembly had submitted their statements to the Court by August 14.

Sang-Rok Lee myzodan@donga.com