hankyoreh

The government submitted a petition with the Constitutional Court on Nov. 5 calling for the disbandment of the Unified Progressive Party (UPP). It described the petition as an effort to protect the basic constitutional order and liberal democracy in the country.

The government claims that the UPP’s party platform, the objective for which it was established, and some of its activities violate the constitutional order. Ironically, the government’s decision also raises the questions of whether the administration of President Park Geun-hye fully understands what the values of the constitution are, and whether it intends to defend those values.

The right to establish and be a member of political parties is one of the most important constitutional values in a democracy. The judgment of political parties and interest groups belongs entirely to the people, and the question of whether a party will continue to function should be determined by voters in elections.

The misguided effort by a government to disband a particular political party is a complete denial of constitutionally guaranteed values, including the right of the people to vote. It is no exaggeration to say that this decision is a serious abuse of the power of the government, and that it undermines the foundations of democracy in South Korea.

What is even more disturbing is how the Ministry of Justice explained its petition for the disbandment of the UPP. It was bad enough that the Ministry cited the results of a poll that asked ordinary people about the convoluted legal process of dissolving a political party. But what was even more ridiculous was who organized the poll: TV Chosun, JTBC, and the Munhwa Ilbo, all far-right media organizations.

Let’s get this straight: the government says one of the main reasons it is pushing for the disbandment of a political party is a poll carried out by TV stations that have been castigated by the media for their sensational, bigoted reporting. What more needs to be said?

The same goes for the Justice Ministry’s claim that it consulted with distinguished scholars of the constitution and former members of the Constitutional Court, who agreed that the government needed to file the petition. Even if the Ministry did manage to cherry-pick experts that were likely to sympathize with the government’s position, the claim that all of them agreed on such a tricky legal question boggles the mind.

This one-sided consultation process, which ignored the diverse views held by legal scholars, is nothing more than an attempt by government officials to deceive the experts, the Korean public, and ultimately themselves.

The Ministry of Justice mentioned “North Korean-style socialism” as one of the reasons why the UPP ought to be disbanded. This is funny, since the Justice Ministry’s claim that the legal experts are in complete agreement is reminiscent of North Korean-style elections where the party’s chosen candidate gets 100% of the vote.

Why would the government make the foolish decision to petition for the disbandment of a political party? It seems obvious that the government deemed this to be the perfect opportunity to make its move, since fallout from the Lee Seok-ki scandal had sent public opinion about the UPP plunging.

Nevertheless, there is no definitive proof of a connection between the Lee Seok-gi scandal and the UPP, and the courts have not reached a decision in the trial of the former UPP lawmaker.

It is contradictory for the government to argue that no action should be taken about the National Intelligence Service’s (NIS) tampering with the presidential election until the courts have made their decision while wasting no time to call for the disbandment of the UPP.

The government contends that the UPP rejects the elections, the National Assembly, and the party system itself. If that were true, why has the party made such an effort to win more seats in the National Assembly through elections?

In the history of Korea, the most dangerous times have been when the political establishment had concealed its violent impulses behind the cloak of defending liberal democracy. The clearest example of this was the Yushin dictatorship and we are once again witnessing these frightening tendencies in the Park administration.

Even more damning is the fact that the government’s actions also appear to be connected to Park’s personal feelings. During the 2012 president election, the UPP’s presidential candidate Lee Jung-hee made some nasty attacks on Park.

It is now left to the Constitutional Court to check the government’s abuse of its power and its disregard of the constitution. The South Korean judiciary is still in debt to the Korean people for going against the dictates of conscience and bowing to the will of the government during the Yushin dictatorship.

We hope that the Constitutional Court will make the right decision to ensure that it does not add to this debt.

Please direct questions or comments to [english@hani.co.kr]