South Korea: GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS

GOVERNMENT AND POLITICS



GOVERNMENT Overview: South Korea is a republic governed by a directly elected president and a unicameral legislature, the National Assembly. Although today South Korea is recognized as a democracy, for several decades following the Korean War it was ruled by a succession of leaders who assumed office under less than democratic circumstances. Fair elections in 1952 were followed by corrupt ones later that decade. A succession of military leaders assumed power in South Korea starting in 1961 with a coup led by army officers. Growing frustration with repressive rule among South Koreans led to demonstrations in May 1980 in the city of Kwangju. These demonstrations were violently suppressed, killing hundreds of civilians. Whereas the South Korean economy flourished, democratic institutions and a free press often did not. In spite of political violence in the form of brutal crackdowns against civilian protests and the assassination of government leaders, a civil society emerged to lead the South Korean democracy movement. In 1987, after years of regular protests, the military leaders of South Korea were forced to hold free and democratic elections. Their handpicked successor, Roh Tae-woo, won, as opposition parties failed to unite around a single candidate and split the vote. In 1992 Kim Young-sam was elected, followed in 1997 by longtime opposition leader Kim Dae-jung. In 2002 South Koreans elected a human rights lawyer and relative political newcomer, Roh Moo-hyun president.



Constitution: The current constitution was adopted on July 17, 1948. It was last revised in 1987.



Executive Branch: The president is the head of state and commander in chief of the armed forces. The prime minister is appointed by the president and approved by the National Assembly. The president also appoints the heads of the 17 ministries that direct public policy and affairs of state. The main advisory agencies to the presidency are the National Security Council, the Advisory Council on Democratic and Peaceful Reunification, the Presidential Council on Science and Technology, the Presidential Commission on Small and Medium Business, the Civil Service Commission, the Korean Independent Commission Against Corruption, and the Truth Commission on Suspicious Deaths. The president also directs the National Intelligence Service and the Board of Audit and Inspection. The current president is Roh Moo-hyun, who was elected in 2002 (and took office in February 2003). The current prime minister is Lee Hae-chan, who assumed office in 2004.



Legislative Branch: The unicameral National Assembly is the legislative body of the South Korean government. It has 273 members elected to four-year terms and meets in regular 100-day sessions from September to December every year. The president can request that the assembly meet in a special session of up to 30 days. The constitution charges the assembly with responsibility for making the nation’s laws, as well as approving the national budget, declaring war, and impeachment, among others. The assembly elects a speaker and two vice speakers, who serve two-year terms. The current speaker is Kim Won-Ki.



Judicial Branch: The judicial branch is composed of the Supreme Court, appellate courts, local courts, and the Constitutional Court. It is an independent branch and is increasingly willing to exercise that independence: in 2004 the Supreme Court handed down a controversial ruling quashing President Roh’s plan to relocate the national capital from Seoul to a new city in South Ch’ungch’4ng Province.



Administrative Divisions: South Korea has nine provinces (do): Kangwon, Ky4nggi, North Ch’ungch’4ng, South Ch’ungch’4ng, North Cholla, South Cholla, North Ky4ngsang, South Ky4ngsang, and Cheju. There are also seven separately administered metropolitan cities: Seoul, Pusan, Taegu, Inch’4n, Kwangju, Taej4n, and Ulsan.



Provincial and Local Government: South Korea has a long and established tradition of strong central governance, dating back to the early years of the Chos4n dynasty (1392–1910). Although Article 117 of the constitution established provisions for local government at the provincial and municipal level, the elections held in 1995 for governors and mayors were the first in more than 30 years. A second round of local elections was held in 1998, with subsequent elections scheduled every four years. Provincial and local government is divided into 16 provincial-level governments and 235 municipal governments, including 72 si (or shi, city) governments, 94 gun (county) governments, and 69 gu (autonomous district) governments. Provincial and local governments may be elected independently of the central government, but their primary purpose is to implement policies and programs created and directed by central government ministries. The central government also provides much of the funding for provisional and local governments.



Judicial and Legal System: The South Korean legal system contains elements of Anglo-American law, continental European civil law, and Chinese classical thought. The president appoints the chief justice and most justices of the Constitutional Court. Although judges do not receive lifetime appointments, they cannot be fired for political reasons. Judges preside over local courts and also render verdicts, as there is no trial by jury. Both defendants and prosecutors can appeal first to the district appellate court and then to the Supreme Court. Constitutional challenges are made to the Constitutional Court. Constitutional provisions that call for the presumption of innocence, protection against self-incrimination, freedom from double jeopardy, the right to speedy trial, and the right of appeal generally are observed.



Electoral System: Suffrage is universal, and the voting age is 20. The president is elected by direct popular vote and serves one five-year term. The 273 members of the National Assembly are directly elected to four-year terms. The most recent presidential election was held in December 2002; the next is scheduled for 2007. The most recent National Assembly election was held on April 15, 2004; the next is scheduled for 2008.



Political Parties: South Korea is a multiparty state. In the most recent round of general elections to the National Assembly in 2004, the majority party was the Uri Party (the party of President Roh Moo-hyun) with 152 seats, followed by the Grand National Party with 121 seats, the Democratic Labor Party with 10 seats, and the Millennium Democratic Party (the party of Roh’s predecessor, Kim Dae-jung) with 9 seats. Other parties include the United Liberal Democrats and the Democratic People’s Party.



Mass Media: In the twentieth century, the successive governments of the colonial Japanese authorities, the U.S. military authorities, and the Republic of Korea all restricted freedom of the press. Today, after decades of state control and heavy censorship, the press (in print, on television, and online) is experiencing a period of relative freedom. The repressive Basic Press Law was repealed in 1987, and since 1990 the television market has expanded significantly. Whereas in 1980 there were only 28 national newspapers, today there are 122. In 2002 satellite broadcasting brought multi-channel commercial television to homes across South Korea. According to most outside observers, political discourse is unrestricted in South Korea; however, persistent concerns are worth noting. The National Security Law allows the government to limit the expression of ideas deemed pro-North Korean or communist; broad interpretations of this statute place a chill on peaceful dissent. In addition, in 2003 President Roh brought a libel suit against four of the major national newspapers, and the government has stated that editorials are subject to legal action if they are found to contain falsehoods. Outside observers have criticized pressure tactics used by both the South Korean government and the business community to influence reporting. Major newspapers include Chosun Ilbo, Dong-A Ilbo, Joong-Ang Ilbo, and Hankook Ilbo , all published in Seoul. The five nationwide television networks are KBS-1 and KBS-2 (public broadcast), MBC (run as a public organization), EBS (state-funded), and SBS (a commercial broadcaster). Some 70 percent of South Korean households have broadband Internet access, and the online media marketplace is growing rapidly. Popular news Web sites (such as OhMyNews.com) register as many as 15 million visits per day.



Foreign Relations: In addition to its extensive network of trading partners, South Korea has diplomatic relations with more than 170 nations. Since the 1980s, relations with China have played an increasingly important role in South Korean politics and economics, particularly in relation to North Korea. South Korea maintains close military, economic, and diplomatic relations with the United States, although at times those relations are strained by domestic opposition to the U.S. military presence on the peninsula. In spite of long-standing animosity to Japan during the 36-year occupation of the Korean Peninsula, economic and diplomatic relations between the two nations are increasingly close.



Inter-Korean Relations: The political importance of relations between North and South Korea, and the impact of the division of the Korean Peninsula on the national consciousness, is difficult to overstate. Although many South Koreans support the concept of reunification, there are widespread concerns that reunification could have a significant, negative economic and social impact on the South, as, under the best of circumstances, it would have to absorb underskilled North Korean workers and upgrade the North’s outdated infrastructure. The desire for unification is thus balanced by concerns about any sudden collapse of the North Korean state. In 1991 North and South Korea signed an agreement pledging to resolve national disagreements through dialogue and to keep the Korean Peninsula free of nuclear weapons. Implementation has been stalled by continual political disagreements and proliferation issues. In 1997 Kim Dae-jung was elected president of South Korea and instituted a “Sunshine Policy” toward North Korea, which sought to increase contacts between the two nations. In 2000 Kim Jong Il and Kim Dae-jung held the first-ever meeting between leaders of the two sides.



North-South unification is overseen on the South Korean side by its Ministry of Unification. The South Korean government’s “Policy for Peace and Prosperity” was initiated in 2003 by President Roh Moo-hyun with the goal of laying the foundation for peaceful unification through the promotion of peace on the Korean Peninsula and achieving mutual prosperity for both South and North Korea. This policy also is seen as contributing to the development of a Northeast Asian business hub on the Korean Peninsula. The predecessor organization of the Ministry of Unification, the National Unification Board, was established in 1969. The board was raised to ministerial level in 1990 and in 1991 was renamed the Ministry of Unification. Seen as a powerful force in South Korea, the ministry provides an institutional framework for peaceful political, economic, and cultural exchanges with and humanitarian assistance to the North. Ministry projects have included education of South Koreans about North Korean developments, meetings of divided families, resettlement of North Korean refugees, South-North transit routes through the Demilitarized Zone (DMZ), and the Kaes4ng joint-venture industrial zone and the Mount Kumgang scenic and sport-tourist zone, both just north of the DMZ. Juxtaposed with such goodwill overtures, is the reality of North Korea’s faltering economy, its military threat to the South and to the region, and the fact that a state of war technically continues to exist between the North and the South and its United Nations allies.



Membership in International Organizations: South Korea is a member of numerous international organizations, including the African Development Bank, Asia-Pacific Economic Cooperation, Asian Development Bank, Association of Southeast Asian Nations, Australia Group, Bank for International Settlements, Colombo Plan, European Bank for Reconstruction and Development, Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations, International Atomic Energy Agency, International Bank for Reconstruction and Development (World Bank), International Chamber of Commerce, International Civil Aviation Organization, International Confederation of Free Trade Unions, International Criminal Court, International Criminal Police Organization, International Development Association, International Energy Agency, International Federation of Red Cross and Red Crescent Societies, International Finance Corporation, International Fund for Agricultural Development, International Hydrographic Organization, International Labour Organization, International Maritime Organization, International Monetary Fund, International Olympic Committee, International Organization for Migration, International Organization for Standardization, International Red Cross and Red Crescent Movement, International Telecommunication Union, Nonaligned Movement (guest), Nuclear Energy Agency, Nuclear Suppliers Group, Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development, Organisation for the Prohibition of Chemical Weapons, Organization for Security and Cooperation in Europe (partner), Organization of American States (observer), Permanent Court of Arbitration, United Nations, Universal Postal Union, World Confederation of Labor, World Customs Organization, World Health Organization, World Intellectual Property Organization, World Meteorological Organization, World Tourism Organization, World Trade Organization, and Zangger Committee.

Major International Treaties: The 1954 Mutual Defense Treaty with the United States is perhaps the most important of the treaties to which South Korea is a party. In addition, South Korea is a state party to the Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, the Comprehensive Nuclear Test Ban Treaty, the Joint Spent Fuel Management Convention, the Chemical Weapons Convention, the Biological and Toxin Weapons Convention, and the Geneva Protocol. It is also a state party to the following antiterrorism conventions: Marking of Plastic Explosives for the Purpose of Detection, Against the Taking of Hostages, Offences and Certain Other Acts Committed Onboard Aircraft, Suppression of Unlawful Seizure of Aircraft, Suppression of Unlawful Acts Against the Safety of Civil Aviation, Protocol on the Suppression of Unlawful Acts of Violence at Airports Serving International Civil Aviation, and Prevention and Punishment of Crimes Against Internationally Protected Persons, including Diplomatic Agents. It is a signatory to the antiterrorist conventions on Suppression of the Financing of Terrorism and Suppression of Terrorist Bombings. South Korea is also a party to a number of environmental agreements: Antarctic-Environmental Protocol, Antarctic-Marine Living Resources, Antarctic Treaty, Biodiversity, Climate Change, Climate Change-Kyoto Protocol, Desertification, Endangered Species, Environmental Modification, Hazardous Wastes, Law of the Sea, Marine Dumping, Ozone Layer Protection, Ship Pollution, Tropical Timber 83, Tropical Timber 94, Wetlands, and Whaling.