EDITORIAL from the JoongAng Daily on Aug. 18)

Reshaping the constitution

President Lee Myung-bak addressed the need to overhaul the electoral system,
certain administrative units and the constitution during his speech to mark
Liberation Day on Aug. 15.

It was a well-timed move. Massive financial and
political resources have been wasted in the past on the bevy of presidential
elections, nationwide general elections and provincial and county-level elections
held in Korea.
One possible constitutional amendment includes reducing the number of elections.
But in order to address the need for a constitutional amendment, the president
should adopt a more drastic and direct approach that will be immediately felt by
ordinary Koreans.
We have long urged the president and political leaders to take bolder actions to
amend the constitution. Some observers have expressed caution on this matter,
saying the president will be trapped once the debates over a constitutional
amendment begin. But a constitutional amendment involves changing the very pillar
of our democracy and should be implemented regardless of the president???s
day-to-day operations and governance. The president and political leaders should
first set an overall framework for a constitutional amendment and then start
working on electoral changes and on overhauling administrative units.
The issue of a constitutional amendment aside, overhauling the electoral system
and administrative units has long been left unsolved because so many political
interests are involved in the issue. The current single-winner system for each
district, along with the current constitution, was created in 1987. The system
helped create the nation???s current political landscape, where one political
party ends up sweeping up most of the seats in a certain region.
A possible alternative to improve the situation is to implement a system where
more than one person wins. In other words, there would be two to five elected
representatives from each district.
But it would take a lot of work to convince the current political players to give
up some of the privileges they have enjoyed for decades. And fears run high among
Grand National lawmakers that their party would secure fewer seats in its
political strongholds if such changes were introduced. But time is running out.
With inefficient and ineffective administrative units and longtime political
animosity between the Gyeongsang and Jeolla provinces, Korea can never become an
advanced nation.
In his speech last Saturday, Lee stressed that constitutional change and an
electoral system overhaul are critical tasks, adding that ???the ruling party
should even take some risks and possible losses.???
He is right. But doing so requires very drastic measures and serious thought from
political representatives, public servants and voters alike.
(END)