Prime Minister Han Duck-soo said constitutional and legal restrictions exist to protect people’s lives, not to give doctors unlimited freedom.

On a visit to the Seoul National University(SNU)-affiliated Boramae Medical Center in Seoul's Dongjak District on Friday, Han emphasized that the right to life is one of the most basic rights, adding that the nation exists for the lives and safety of the people.

Han then urged SNU medical professors and the Korean Medical Association(KMA) who plan to launch a collective suspension of patient treatment from Monday and stage a walkout on Tuesday, respectively, to call off the planned action and to remain with their patients.

The prime minister stressed that while protecting health and lives is a part of the legal responsibility given to the medical community, it is more importantly a precious promise made to their patients.

Han also reiterated the government's position that trainee doctors who have walked off their jobs in protest of the medical school admissions quota hike will face no punitive action or disadvantages if they return.