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A female lawmaker of the opposition Democratic Labor Party is taken away by the ruling Grand National Party's lawmakers at the National Assembly main chamber in Seoul - Source: Reuters
A rowdy South Korean parliament passed a set of media and bank
ownership laws that form part of the conservative government's
delayed reforms to shake up Asia's fourth-largest economy and make
it more competitive.
MPs of both sexes punched, shoved, screamed and occasionally
dragged each other to the ground in the long-delayed vote on the
changes which the left-leaning opposition says will hand even more
control of the economy to giant conglomerates.
Changes to the media ownership laws, especially by allowing
business groups to buy into broadcasters, have been among the most
bitterly opposed of the reforms President Lee Myung-bak, once a top
official at one of the country's biggest conglomerates, pledged
since he took office in February last year.
The issue has also deepened the split within the ruling Grand
National Party (GNP) after Lee's bitter rival to be its leader
voiced her disapproval of the way the government was trying to push
through the media laws.
The ruling party had watered down some of the more controversial
elements of the laws which cover newspapers, broadcasting the
Internet TV to prevent dominant players in the market taking
control of terrestrial broadcasters.
In scenes that have become a hallmark of parliament, fighting broke
out repeatedly during the session as opposition MPs, some shouting
liquidate the GNP!, blocking many members of the ruling party from
entering the chamber to vote.
Parliament security guards and pro-government legislators stood
guard around the speaker's podium to protect him from attack.
Opposition MPs did not vote.
Parliament also passed a bill to raise the ceiling to nine percent
from four percent the stake non-financial companies can hold in
financial holding firms.
One of the most pressing proposed changes yet to be voted on in the
current session which ends on July 25 is to double to four years
the period that a company can employ contract workers.
The government says that will make the job market more flexible and
help ease the problem of growing unemployment as the economic
downturn bites.
It says that thousands will lose their jobs if the current law,
which expired on July 1, is not replaced.
Under the previous law, employers must turn contract workers into
more costly members of staff after two years.
In practice, it usually means contract workers are discarded
after the time limit and replaced by new ones.
Most of the contract workers being laid off have been at small- and
medium-sized firms, which provide the bulk of employment in the
country.
Among other major pieces of legislation being delayed include
ratification of a free trade deal with the United States.
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