The National Assembly announced Thursday that it will hold the 22nd Children's Parliament of the Republic of Korea on Friday at the Special Committee on Budget and Accounts chamber.
Since its inaugural session in 2005, the Children's Parliament has served as a learning platform to help children develop the qualities of democratic citizens and deepen their understanding of parliamentary democracy.
Schools nationwide are invited to apply, after which student participants work through children's parliament study groups to draft and submit proposed bills and written questions. On the day of the event, representative child lawmakers serve as one-day Assembly members, presenting agenda items, taking part in debate and casting votes.
This year, 991 children from 145 elementary schools and other institutions across the country took part in the study groups, submitting 132 proposed bills and 76 written questions to the Assembly.
A total of 100 child lawmakers are expected to participate Friday, including, for the first time in the event's history, representatives from an out-of-school youth support center and a Korean international school. The gathering is expected to offer a meaningful opportunity for children from diverse educational backgrounds at home and abroad to come together and exchange ideas.
The Children's Parliament will be divided into morning committee sessions and an afternoon plenary session. In the morning, three standing committees will hear proposal presentations on bills, hold debates and vote to select seven bills to be referred to the plenary.
This year's event will also, for the first time, include a session before the afternoon plenary in which child lawmakers tour the main chamber where Assembly sessions are held and interact with presiding officers, giving them a more direct experience of the legislature. The afternoon plenary will proceed with questions and answers directed at the government, followed by presentations and a vote on outstanding bills, after which gold, silver and merit prizes will be awarded along with the Assembly Speaker's Award, the Deputy Speaker's Award and the Secretary General's Award.
Assembly Speaker Cho Jung-sik, Deputy Speakers Nam In-soon and Park Deok-heum, Secretary General Ko Yong-jin and Education Minister Choi Kyo-jin are all expected to attend the plenary session.
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