Gwak Byeong-chan, Editorial Writer

It was a truly upsetting scene. Last week, a welcome luncheon was held at the Cheong Wa Dae (the presidential office in South Korea or Blue House) for the athletes who had taken part in the Winter Olympics in Vancouver. There, President Lee Myung-bak and former Samsung Group chairman Lee Kun-hee sat side by side at the head table, smiling broadly. They were the true winners: the president who independently pardoned Lee Kun-hee four months after the Supreme Court confirmed the verdict against him, and the former Samsung Chairman who took issue with the people’s “honesty” as soon as he was pardoned, carrying on in such a way at the head table of the Cheong Wa Dae, the symbol of power.

That luncheon was intended for two people. For Lee Kun-hee, it was a setting for declaring his de facto reinstatement and his reign as a leader of the business world, while for President Lee Myung-bak, it was a setting for demonstrating the unification of political power and economic power. Interestingly enough, the heads of the ruling party and the top opposition party were seated at the tables on either side, as unknowing props for recognizing and honoring the two men’s victory. Not a trace was found of any rational questions or criticism within the sports patriotism and blind enthusiasm about improved national fortunes.

Perhaps some presentiments of this were evident with remarks like “I wish the people were more honest” by Lee Kun-hee and “I am not currently thinking about a referendum” by President Lee. The speakers surely have been unaware that their words would be seen as mockery or intimidation directed against the people or politicians, but they said them anyway, and did not take them back even after they became an issue.

Of course, Lee Kun-hee had something of an excuse, given the array of unanimously laudatory politicians, media figures, lawyers and senior public officials present before him. If he was mistaken, it was simply in confusing these figures of power for the South Korean people as a whole. President Lee, on the other hand, has no real excuse. The mere fact that he believes a referendum is something that can be done in any matter that the president wishes is of course problematic in itself. A greater problem, is his intimidation against politicians and the people, or his belief that he can intimidate them, by constantly presenting and withdrawing the possibility of a referendum. As he has expressed his intention to hold a referendum two or three times now, is he already identifying himself with former president Park Chung-hee?

To date, the political, academic and legal sectors have blocked a referendum, due to the clear legal basis that the Sejong city revision plan is not the subject of referendum and the political repercussions of the unknown alley it would lead to. But one must question the wisdom of continuing to simply block this type of behavior in the future. Most of all, it is a question of efficacy. This government has done as it pleases, regardless of whether it was in accordance with the people, the Constitution or the law. It has arbitrarily fired organization heads under the term system, disregarding court rulings to reinstating them to their positions. It has carried out punishments against school teachers participating in emergency statements, the blogger “Minerva” and the TV show “PD Notebook,” despite the fact that even some within the ruling government saw this as unreasonable. In response to verdicts that did not suit its palate, it has intimidated the judiciary.

This is not merely in the interest of fixing bad habits. A great many things are taking place around us that truly threaten the country’s security. The Four Major Rivers Restoration Project is an issue directly connected with the lives of the people and nature, and an issue of permanent violation of the country’s land. Contamination of these four rivers, which have served to nourish our lives and culture for millennia, has already become a reality, and irreversible destruction is being carried out. It is not just the four rivers, either. People can live together even if they are poor, but not when they distrust one another. With the president’s repeated lies and betrayals of his promises, trust and confidence have lost any place to take hold. Indeed, Finance Minister Yoon Jeung-hyun, in response to a National Assembly member’s criticisms of his impostures, actually grew angry and asked if the lawmaker was expecting a public official to have a soul. How can one speak of trust when the legislators for the administrative city at Sejong have been standing in the front row to bring about its destruction? With this, divisions in public opinion have reached the danger zone.

Now is also a time for citizens to outwardly voice their judgments and thoughts. It is irresponsible to simply hold them inside. If the result is that a majority agrees, then follow through, and if a majority is opposed, simply change your policies and actions. There is no need to stir up a controversy with a linkage to the matter of trust in Lee’s presidency. There was no controversy over the Constitutionality of a referendum (interim evaluation) promised by former President Roh Tae-woo. Let us not try to block it. Instead, let us look at this as an opportunity for the citizens to show their thoughts, to reach a resolution and move forward.

The views presented in this column are the writer‘s own, and do not necessarily reflect those of The Hankyoreh.