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An ordinance not to support the Seoul Metropolitan Government's budget for TBS, which was embroiled in controversy over biased broadcasting, passed the plenary session of the Seoul Metropolitan Council.

The TBS union and Democratic City Council members are strongly protesting.



This is Reporter Yu Deok-gi.



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TBS union members protest with pickets.



When the Seoul Metropolitan Council tried to pass an ordinance to stop Seoul's budget support for TBS, it protested.



[Chairman Lee Jeong-hwan/TBS Labor Union: Protect TBS, the public broadcaster that is the home of our lives, and pour out all our strength to defend the right to live for TBS workers...

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Despite opposition from TBS, the ordinance passed the plenary session.



The power of the people with 76 seats, more than half of the total seats in the city council, pushed the ordinance.



[Kim Hyun-ki/Chairman of Seoul Metropolitan Government: We declare that the vote was passed with 72 votes in favor, 0 votes against, and 1 abstention out of 73 members in Jae-seok.]



The TBS union attempted to observe the vote, but was stopped, and



[Park Yu-jin/Seoul City Council Member (Democratic Party of Korea): He said that he had a different opinion from me, felt that he was partisan, and made a decision like "You guys don't broadcast at all"...

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The Democratic Party protested the ordinance and exited without voting.



If the ordinance is implemented after going through the Seoul Metropolitan Government Ordinance and Regulations Council, the Seoul Metropolitan Government's budget support for TBS will cease from January 2024.



Currently, TBS relies on the Seoul Metropolitan Government for more than 70% of its annual budget of KRW 50 billion.



The power of the people is the position that the TBS program represented by 'Kim Eo-jun's News Factory' has lost fairness, and requires independent management.



In the ordinance proposed in July, there was an addendum promising the employment succession of TBS employees, but it was omitted from the ordinance to amend the ordinance of the plenary session.



The TBS union has revealed its struggle policy, saying that it will create a more democratic and independent TBS ordinance with civil society than the previous ordinance.