Park must seek voters' understanding about policy reversal
During a budget address delivered at the National Assembly Wednesday, President Park Geun-hye spent almost all of her time talking about the economy. Contrary to demands from her political opponents and expectations from the public, the president said nothing about her government's recent decision to postpone the takeover of wartime operational control, or OPCON, from the United States.
Not only did Park's silence on this crucial issue leave Koreans dumbfounded, it was a dereliction of duty. The decision amounted to giving up on Korea's military sovereignty indefinitely, a concession that cannot be explained away by her national security advisor or defense minister, let alone a spokesman. Only the nation's commander-in-chief could, and should, explain why.
Especially so because Kim Kwan-jin, the head of National Security Council, told lawmakers on Tuesday that the delay in the transfer of wartime military command from the agreed transfer scheduled of 2015 was "in accordance with President Park's guidelines."
Another reason Park should break her silence on this matter is that all the excuses made by her aides do not make any sense.
For instance, national security advisor Kim, in response to opposition legislators who criticized him for the government's secretive deal on the postponement, said that Seoul has been transparent in negotiating the delay. That was an egregious lie because this administration only belatedly acknowledged the behind-the-scenes process when U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel made it public last year. Koreans living in Yongsan and Dongducheon, where key U.S. bases are located, were notified of the decision ''only one day before" the government's announcement.
Pressed by reporters who took issue with President Park's revocation of election promises on this issue, Cheong Wa Dae spokesman Min Kyung-wook said that national security is more important than implementing campaign pledges, adding that the government's intention to retake military command remains unchanged. Most Korean voters might no longer be surprised with their president's breaking of election promises because too many of them have already been discarded. However, how many people will believe in the government's so-called unwavering intention when there are no specific action plans or even a target year?
Defense Minister Han Min-koo seemed to inadvertently reveal what's in the minds of security officials when he said, ''We can bring the OPCON back any time if the North abandons its nuclear programs or the two Koreas are reunified." Han only confirmed that critics were right when they said Seoul is putting it off indefinitely ― or rather giving up on it ― for as long as the status quo continues.
Few people, Koreans and foreigners alike, with the exception of South Korean conservatives, can understand why the South, which has an annual defense budget twice as large as the North's GDP, would not exercise its most important military rights. All the more so, given North Korea's nuclear and missile threats have been a constant of sorts in security cooperation between Seoul and Washington.
President Park's various diplomatic initiatives will end up becoming the laughingstock of regional governments if Seoul cannot make military decisions in times of emergency.
Park ought to dissolve ― if she can ― all these concerns. Otherwise Koreans can't help believing her critics who say that the conservatives' only goal is to remain in political power by exaggerating external threats, never minding the enormous burden that such a decision imposes on its people.
During a budget address delivered at the National Assembly Wednesday, President Park Geun-hye spent almost all of her time talking about the economy. Contrary to demands from her political opponents and expectations from the public, the president said nothing about her government's recent decision to postpone the takeover of wartime operational control, or OPCON, from the United States.
Not only did Park's silence on this crucial issue leave Koreans dumbfounded, it was a dereliction of duty. The decision amounted to giving up on Korea's military sovereignty indefinitely, a concession that cannot be explained away by her national security advisor or defense minister, let alone a spokesman. Only the nation's commander-in-chief could, and should, explain why.
Especially so because Kim Kwan-jin, the head of National Security Council, told lawmakers on Tuesday that the delay in the transfer of wartime military command from the agreed transfer scheduled of 2015 was "in accordance with President Park's guidelines."
Another reason Park should break her silence on this matter is that all the excuses made by her aides do not make any sense.
For instance, national security advisor Kim, in response to opposition legislators who criticized him for the government's secretive deal on the postponement, said that Seoul has been transparent in negotiating the delay. That was an egregious lie because this administration only belatedly acknowledged the behind-the-scenes process when U.S. Defense Secretary Chuck Hagel made it public last year. Koreans living in Yongsan and Dongducheon, where key U.S. bases are located, were notified of the decision ''only one day before" the government's announcement.
Pressed by reporters who took issue with President Park's revocation of election promises on this issue, Cheong Wa Dae spokesman Min Kyung-wook said that national security is more important than implementing campaign pledges, adding that the government's intention to retake military command remains unchanged. Most Korean voters might no longer be surprised with their president's breaking of election promises because too many of them have already been discarded. However, how many people will believe in the government's so-called unwavering intention when there are no specific action plans or even a target year?
Defense Minister Han Min-koo seemed to inadvertently reveal what's in the minds of security officials when he said, ''We can bring the OPCON back any time if the North abandons its nuclear programs or the two Koreas are reunified." Han only confirmed that critics were right when they said Seoul is putting it off indefinitely ― or rather giving up on it ― for as long as the status quo continues.
Few people, Koreans and foreigners alike, with the exception of South Korean conservatives, can understand why the South, which has an annual defense budget twice as large as the North's GDP, would not exercise its most important military rights. All the more so, given North Korea's nuclear and missile threats have been a constant of sorts in security cooperation between Seoul and Washington.
President Park's various diplomatic initiatives will end up becoming the laughingstock of regional governments if Seoul cannot make military decisions in times of emergency.
Park ought to dissolve ― if she can ― all these concerns. Otherwise Koreans can't help believing her critics who say that the conservatives' only goal is to remain in political power by exaggerating external threats, never minding the enormous burden that such a decision imposes on its people.
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