[Newsis]
[Newsis]

Gwangmyeong City Council has launched formal disciplinary proceedings against a council member who sparked controversy after it emerged he had visited a hotel with a woman during an ongoing council session. The member, identified only as A and reported to be married, resigned from the Democratic Party of Korea shortly after the incident came to light, as civic groups and opposition lawmakers called for his resignation and strict punishment.

The council voted Friday to refer a disciplinary motion against council member A to its ethics special committee during the second plenary session of the 302nd regular session. Because A had been serving on the ethics committee himself, the council also approved his resignation from that body at the same session.

The controversy began Thursday, when local media reported that A had visited a hotel in Geumcheon-gu, Seoul, with a woman while the regular council session was still under way.

According to local media reports, A — who chairs the council's planning and administration committee — conducted a standing committee audit that morning, had lunch with fellow council members, and then drove to the hotel. He was reportedly seen leaving the hotel with the woman around 4:30 p.m.

As the controversy spread, A submitted his resignation from the Democratic Party later that same afternoon.

A told a local Gwangmyeong newspaper that he had gone to a hotel room with intentions as a man, but that the woman had refused and he had not crossed the line. He said he immediately left the room and spent time with the woman at the hotel's coffee shop before leaving.

He also argued that the standing committee meeting had already ended in the morning, adding that council members are entitled to a private life.

A was reported to have acknowledged in the same interview that he had violated his duty to maintain decorum as a council member. The woman who accompanied him is said to be a Democratic Party member, though the nature of their relationship and what specifically occurred inside the hotel room have not been independently confirmed.

The ethics special committee is expected to focus its review on whether A's conduct violated the standards of decorum and ethical norms required of local council members.

Council Speaker Lee Hyeong-deok also asked ethics committee members to review the matter strictly in accordance with the relevant procedures.

Under Gwangmyeong City Council rules, the ethics special committee reviews disciplinary matters related to members' qualifications and alleged violations of the Local Autonomy Act and the council's code of ethics. When necessary, it may summon the member who filed the disciplinary request, the member under review, and other relevant members for questioning. The member under review may also appear before the committee to offer a direct explanation. Disciplinary review hearings are in principle held behind closed doors.

Criticism also came from local civic society and political circles.

The Gwangmyeong branch of Citizens' Coalition for Economic Justice issued a statement Friday saying the incident had gone beyond the bounds of private life, and called for a formal apology from the council, a full investigation through the ethics committee, and strict disciplinary action against A.

The group said A's claim that he had not crossed the line because the woman refused was a one-sided account, and described the incident as serious given that A holds a position to which he was elected by citizens.

Four People Power Party members of the council also issued a separate statement condemning A, urging him to resign his seat and calling for the harshest possible disciplinary sanction.

Attention is now focused on what ruling the ethics committee will reach. Under current law, four disciplinary measures are available against a local council member: a warning in open session, a public apology, a suspension from attendance of up to 30 days, and expulsion. Expulsion — the most severe — requires approval from at least two-thirds of all council members.

Gwangmyeong City Council has previously sought the opinion of an ethics advisory panel before determining the level of discipline in past cases involving other members. The same process is expected this time, and the council's eventual decision is drawing close scrutiny.


rainbow@heraldcorp.com