Seoul, Aug 22 (IANS) South Korean National Assembly on Friday passed another controversial broadcasting bill that would revamp governance of public broadcasters, with the ruling Democratic Party (DP) railroading the bill despite opposition by the main opposition People Power Party (PPP).

The amendment to the Korea Educational Broadcasting System Act passed in a 179-1 vote at a plenary session. PPP lawmakers who had been staging a filibuster to block the bill boycotted the vote.

Under the bill, the board of directors at EBS will be expanded from nine members to 13.

The legislation is the last of three contentious broadcasting bills pushed by the DP that would eventually alter the governance structure of the three public broadcasters -- KBS, MBC and EBS -- by significantly increasing the number of their board directors and granting media and broadcasting associations, as well as related professional organizations, the right to recommend board members.

Under the revised Broadcasting Act and the Foundation for Broadcast Culture Act, which both passed the Assembly earlier this month, the KBS board will be expanded from 11 to 15 members, while the board members of the Foundation for Broadcast Culture, a major shareholder of public broadcaster MBC, will be expanded from nine to 13.

With Friday's passage of the EBS Act, all three bills have been approved by parliament.

The PPP had launched a filibuster to block the bill Thursday, but the DP, which holds a majority, swiftly put the bill up for a vote after the PPP's 24-hour filibuster ended.

A filibuster involves lawmakers holding the floor for extended periods as a way to prevent a parliamentary vote or delay the passage of a bill. Under the National Assembly Act, a filibuster can be stopped after 24 hours if at least three-fifths of all parliament members, or 180 lawmakers, consent to it.

The rival parties had clashed over the broadcasting bills, with the PPP arguing they will only increase the presence of progressive figures on the boards of public broadcasters.

The DP plans to push ahead with other key bills within the August extraordinary session, including the "yellow envelope bill" aimed at broadening labor protections and a revision to the Commercial Act, Yonhap news agency reported.

The PPP has warned it will stage a filibuster for each of the bills.

--IANS

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