[Exclusive] U.S. 'Denies' Ruling Party Lawmaker Jung Cheongrae a Visa, Disrupting Foreign Affairs Committee Audit

It was confirmed on October 8 that Jung Cheong-rae, a lawmaker of the Democratic Party of Korea and a member of the National Assembly's Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee, was recently denied a visa by the United States. As a result, a parliamentary audit of South Korean diplomatic missions in the Americas is expected to face some disruption.

Chung Cheongrae, a Democratic Party of Korea lawmaker. Yonhap News Agency.

According to multiple committee officials, Jung had originally planned to depart on October 11 with other committee members for a joint on-site parliamentary audit of South Korean diplomatic missions in the Americas, scheduled to take place in Washington, D.C., on October 12 local time. However, his participation in the schedule was called off after he was unable to obtain a visa from the United States. This means he will have difficulty taking part in the entire 9-night, 12-day audit schedule, which includes not only the United States but also Brazil and Colombia.

During this parliamentary audit, committee members will be divided into three groups—the Americas, Europe and Asia—to inspect South Korean diplomatic missions in those regions. Jung was originally assigned to the Americas group, but reports say he will inevitably be reassigned to a group covering another region because the visa denial has prevented him from traveling. However, as the departure date is approaching, the audit is expected to proceed with the vacancy in the Americas group unfilled. An aide to a lawmaker said, "The Americas group's schedule has already been finalized, and there is too little time to obtain a new visa, so it is practically impossible to assign someone else."

Jung is the only member of either party's Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee scheduled to travel for the on-site audit in the Americas whose visa application was denied. Democratic Party lawmakers Park Sungjoon and Maeng Seonggyu, as well as People Power Party lawmakers Ko Dongjin and Kim Geon, are expected to travel to the United States as scheduled and conduct the on-site audit.

When members of the National Assembly travel overseas on official business, they generally use official passports. However, lawmakers on the Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee may be issued diplomatic passports to support their diplomatic work. They are generally understood to apply for an official visa (A2) to visit the United States.

It is highly unusual for a sitting member of the National Assembly's Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee to be denied a visa, as in this case. Some within the ruling party speculate that Jung's past involvement in what is known as the "anti-American movement" may have been a factor, including his arrest after entering the U.S. ambassador's residence in 1989. Party leader Jung also previously had a visa application denied in 2013, when he applied to travel to the United States as a member of the National Assembly's Foreign Affairs and Unification Committee.

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