(EDITORIAL from the Korea Times on Sept. 17) - Constitutional Change Put National Interest Before Partisan Struggles

President Lee Myung-bak's remarks about constitutional revision are likely to
activate discussions on how to rewrite the nation's supreme charter. In an
interview with the Yonhap News Agency and Kyodo News on Tuesday, Lee said it
could be possible to review a change in the nation's power structure. He said it
would be difficult to push for an across-the-board change of the whole
Constitution, adding it was necessary to confine the issues to political power.
This is the first time for the President to put forward his views on a revision
of the Constitution. It seems that Lee wants to reform the leadership structure
which has often been criticized for bestowing too much power on the chief
executive. One of the shortcomings of the present Constitution, which was amended
following the 1987 Pro-Democracy Movement, is a lack of institutions to guarantee
democratic checks and balances. Past experiences show that unchecked presidential
power has given rise to many problems such as power abuse and corruption.
Lee must have recognized those problems. Furthermore, he certainly intends to
take the political initiative by encouraging lawmakers, politicians and scholars
to more actively discuss constitutional matters. Lee's move came after National
Assembly Speaker Kim Hyong-o announced in July that the Constitution should be
revised before the local elections scheduled for June 2010. Rep. Kim of the
governing Grand National Party (GNP) also offered to create a bipartisan
constitutional amendment committee.
Amending the Constitution must be a hot issue in the political circle. However,
it has been slow to gain momentum because the GNP and opposition parties have
taken different approaches. In other words, partisan interests have served as a
stumbling block to this matter. In this context, Lee's remarks are seen as a ploy
to provide bait to both the ruling and opposition camps. He was apparently trying
to link restructuring of administrative and electoral districts to constitutional
change.
At present, cities and counties around the country are actively seeking to merge
to form bigger and more competitive autonomous units to meet challenges at home
and abroad in the rapidly-changing 21st century. Currently, voters elect only one
lawmaker in each constituency. Lee undoubtedly hopes to allow two or three
lawmakers to be elected in each district in some provinces and cities in order to
overcome political parochialism. This kind of electoral reform may sound
attractive to the GNP and the main opposition Democratic Party, whose power base
is in Gyeongsang and Jolla provinces, respectively.
What's important is that the rival parties should go beyond partisan interests
and make compromises to work together to create a better Constitution. They also
need to build national consensus on what and how to change the nation's basic
charter. Last but not least, possible constitutional revision must be made to
better promote human rights and democracy as well as bring a brighter future to
the country. It should also be pushed to realize the democratic principle of
setting up a government of the people, by the people and for the people.
(END)