Corporate Donations for Political Activities is on the Agenda

On March 25, the National Politics Reform Committee under Congress announced it would reconsider the issue of political donations from corporations and various organizations that is banned under the current election law.

Through the revision of the political fund law in March of last year, the ruling and opposition parties made it illegal for corporations and businesses to donate funds for political activities to prevent any “cozy” relations between political and business circles. In the plenary session, the committee put five issues on the agenda for the public hearing scheduled to be held on April 8: legalizing donations from corporations for political activities, finalizing constituency, eliminating the public recommendation system for local elections, expanding women’s participation in elections, and campaigning on the Internet.

However, amid strong opposition from many civil organizations, the legalization of political donations from corporations seems to generate controversies.

Myoung-Gun Lee gun43@donga.com