Jinseongjun "The Immediate Task is Ending the Civil War, Constitutional Amendment is the Next Task"

Jin Seong-jun, Democratic Party Policy Chief, Posts Blog Article
"Similar to 2017... Constitutional Amendment Talks Stalled After Election"
"Pressuring Lee for Constitutional Amendment When He Prioritizes Ending Internal Strife"

Jin Seong-jun, the Policy Committee Chairman of the Democratic Party of Korea, stated, "The immediate task is to end the internal strife," and emphasized, "Constitutional amendment is the next task."

Yonhap News

On the 6th, Chairman Jin posted an article titled 'The Immediate Task is to End the Internal Strife' on his Naver blog, revealing these views. He said, "We must focus on ending the internal strife now," adding, "In a situation where calls to dismantle the prosecution, the Corruption Investigation Office for High-ranking Officials, and the Constitutional Court are rampant as internal strife incitement, talking about constitutional amendment is a frivolous matter."

Chairman Jin cited the 2017 presidential election as an example. He said, "The Liberty Korea Party (now the People Power Party), the People's Party, and the Bareun Party pressured then-presidential candidate Moon Jae-in to agree to hold a constitutional referendum during the early presidential election triggered by the impeachment of President Park Geun-hye," adding, "However, the National Assembly's constitutional amendment special committee failed to prepare a constitutional amendment bill and missed the legal deadline for the referendum."

He continued, "Then, they insisted again that a constitutional referendum should be held during the June 2018 local elections," and added, "They said that if not then, the golden opportunity to improve the 1987 system would be lost."

Chairman Jin said, "Although Moon Jae-in, who basically believed that constitutional amendment is the work of the National Assembly, agreed to simultaneous local election constitutional amendment pledges under pressure from other parties and candidates," he noted, "After the presidential election ended, the National Assembly's constitutional amendment discussions stalled repeatedly, and both ruling and opposition parties wasted precious time without reaching any agreement."

Chairman Jin criticized, "President Moon Jae-in, who waited for the National Assembly's agreement until the last moment, proposed a constitutional amendment bill to keep his pledge," adding, "However, the People Power Party and others, who pressured for a constitutional amendment pledge throughout the presidential election period, refused to vote on the president's constitutional amendment bill in the National Assembly."

He said, "The pressure on Representative Lee Jae-myung for constitutional amendment feels very similar to the 2017 presidential election," and added, "Although Representative Lee supports constitutional amendment, everyone is pressuring him for it now, while he prioritizes ending the internal strife." He also said, "There are many necessary amendments to strengthen democratic constitutional order and expand citizens' basic rights, but all of these are being put aside, and only the president's term is being talked about," and criticized, "They are only interested in trivial matters."

Finally, he said, "Once the Constitutional Court decides to dismiss the president, constitutional amendment discussions will inevitably flood the upcoming presidential election phase," explaining, "Because presidential candidates who want to govern the country will express their visions and plans through constitutional amendment proposals." He emphasized, "The proper way is to promote constitutional amendment after candidates go through the process of pledges, debates, and competitions during the presidential election period, and confirm the people's support and choice."