Assembly Canceled After Six Years Due to Lack of Quorum
After the Assembly was canceled due to insufficient attendance, the GSA’s decision to conduct a written review of important issues, such as raising student fees, has caused controversy.
The Assembly of National Hyowon Representatives for the second half of the 2024 academic year at Pusan National University (PNU) was canceled for the first time in six years due to lack of quorum, raising a red flag for student self-governance. In this context, the General Students’ Association (GSA) has decided to conduct a “written review” for major issues such as increasing student council fees, which is expected to cause ripples in the student community.
According to a comprehensive report by “Channel PNU” on the 13th, there has been a series of self-reflections and criticisms in the student community regarding the cancellation of the assembly, which was scheduled for the 10th, due to lack of quorum for the first time in six years. At that time, only 56 (35%) out of 159 total delegates attended, falling short of the quorum of 62 members required to convene the meeting, resulting in its dissolution (reported by “Channel PNU” on September 11th, 2024). The assembly is the core of student self-governance operations and a forum where representatives from each department and college gather to discuss major campus issues. It requires attendance from more than half of the registered members (excluding those with excused absences and unfilled positions) to be convened.
■ Is the failure of the assembly due to distrust in the GSA?
There are voices pointing that the unprecedented cancellation of the assembly stems from distrust toward the GSA. Some argue that the GSA has lost its leadership in guiding the student community due to incidents such as the “inappropriate support for a politician” involving the GSA president after the 2024 first-half assembly (reported by “Channel PNU” on March 19th, 2024) and the low rate of fulfilling promises in the first-half of the year (reported by “Channel PNU” on August 30th, 2024).
Delegate A said, “During the first semester, public opinion about the GSA wasn’t good, and there were discussions about unfulfilled promises on Everytime (PNU’s anonymous community). It seems natural (for delegates not to attend).”
This trend is also evident in the Assembly attendance. While about 27 delegates (approximately 17%) didn’t attend the 2024 first-half assembly held on March 12th (excluding those with excused absences and unfilled positions), 65 delegates (41%) didn’t attend this second-half assembly. The number of absentees nearly doubled compared to the 2024 first half.
Given this situation, the recent “Student Council Workshop” has lost its significance. Two weeks before the Assembly, on August 27-28th, a two-day student council capacity-building workshop was held at “BlueOne” water park in Gyeongju, North Gyeongsang Province, and a nearby resort. All expenses, including water park admission, were covered for all participants to discuss issues facing the student community and activate the network of student council officers. According to student council officials who attended the workshop, there was an uncomfortable tension between the GSA and some student council officers when the GSA president took to the stage to explain the issues surrounding him.
However, there are also voices of self-reflection suggesting that distrust in the GSA shouldn’t be a reason for not attending the Assembly. They argue that opinions should have been expressed through participation, not indifference or silence. Some express regret about the lack of responsibility as student representatives, as it’s reported that some student councils were so indifferent to the Assembly that they even forgot to apply for excused absences. Student Council President B said, “If they were boycotting because they didn’t like the GSA, they should have come to the meeting to oppose, ask questions, or raise objections. It’s unfortunate that they took no action at all.”
At the same time, there are self-deprecating voices saying that the Assembly only serves as a rubber stamp for the GSA. They argue that attending as a student representative is merely a waste of time. One delegate said, “Once at the assembly, it’s just 3-4 hours of meaningless time. Other department heads also react by saying, ‘Why should I go to a place just to agree?’”
■ “Written review” only allowed during COVID-19…
There are significant concerns about the decision to conduct a written review. The GSA has announced its position to hold the Assembly in writing between the 19th and 20th and review and approve the agenda items through discussions with the Expanded Central Operations Committee (ECOC). However, many worry about the side effects as it includes significant matters such as “increasing student council fees.” Additionally, regarding the recent recruitment of the “PNU Cheerleading Team,” there are criticisms that the GSA should have amended the student council regulations first to provide financial support for special organizations.
Student Council President C remarked, “It’s incomprehensible that (the issue of increasing student council fees) could suddenly appear on the Assembly agenda without providing any supporting evidence to students in advance or even notifying them.” He added, “At least a notice and survey should have been conducted for students about the background of the increase.” Regarding the GSA and ECOC’s decision to conduct the assembly as a written review, he said, “Instead of proceeding so unilaterally, shouldn’t they have obtained the consent of all delegates?” Student Council President D said, “I wonder why they’re not reconvening (the Assembly) and instead deciding through written proceedings,” adding, “I think immediate objections expressed in the same space are important.”
If the Assembly is conducted in written review, meaningful discussion is unlikely. This is because the Assembly’s rules of procedure are written based on face-to-face deliberation, and there are no regulations for debate or exchange of opinions in written reviews. The Assembly has only been conducted as a written review four times due to the COVID-19 situation (from the second half of 2020 to the first half of 2022). Generally, when attendance is low or meetings are halted due to “boycotts,” PNU’s GSA has held an “interim assembly” at an early date and resumed the Assembly from where it was suspended.
In response, the GSA explained that they decided on a written review expecting low participation in the Assembly due to college events in September and October. This decision was reportedly made through non-face-to-face exchanges of opinions among the ECOC members, consisting of the GSA leadership and college presidents. To address the potential shortcomings of the written review, the GSA plans to produce and distribute videos to explain important agenda items.
However, there are concerns that healthy debate and democratic activities in the student community are at risk of regressing. A graduate who claimed to have been active in the GSA until 2019 said, “It seems that the recent GSA and college student councils are only acting to protect their vested interests. To move towards a desirable student community, more students should be allowed to come out and express their opinions.”
Reported Jung Yoon-Seo
Translated by Seo Yoo-Jung