Nation's party politics, democracy went sharply backward
After resisting President Park's pressure for nearly two weeks, the governing party's floor leader grudgingly stepped down Wednesday. "I am sorry for all the trouble caused by my delayed decision," said Rep. Yoo Seong-min of the Saenuri Party at a news conference. "I just wanted to uphold such values as law, principle and justice, however."
The rare confrontation between the chief executive and her own party's floor leader, and consequent factional infighting that gripped the Saenuri Party, explicitly revealed the level where Korea's party politics stands, and sent the nation's democracy decades backward.
It all began half a month ago when the party, guided by Yoo, passed an opposition-proposed bill that would have allowed the National Assembly to review government ordinances that widely veered from their parent laws. Such a bill came right after the Park administration's enforcement decree of the "Sewol law" ― named after the ill-fated ferry that sank last year taking 304 lives ― almost gutted its mother law making it impossible to properly investigate the causes of the most tragic maritime accident in decades.
In a normal democracy, President Park had only to veto the law if she disliked it, and the parliament, put it to a revote to override the veto if deemed necessary. But Park went far further, accusing the entire legislature, particularly her own party and its floor leader, of trying to incapacitate the government by meddling in its ordinance-making function.
Even more surprising ― and disappointing ― all of the 160 Saenuri lawmakers except just one, the majority of which had approved the bill, did not even cast ballots in a revote while pressuring Yoo to step down.
It was more than just sad to see so many legislators, each of whom is a Constitutional institution, forget their foremost duty of ensuring the checks-and-balances with the administrative branch and surrender to the chief executive, minding only about their respective chance of re-election. Even those lawmakers who don't agree with President Park's moves dared not oppose her in public if they are to win re-nomination and get a government budget for their electorates.
The nation's first female president might feel satisfied now reaffirming her influence and preventing a premature fall into lame-duck status.
It will not take much time, however, for the short-term political victory to turn into a long-term defeat not just for Park but for the nation's democracy. By openly criticizing the legislature's attempts to rein in administrative overreach, Park ignored the division of the three branches of the government. Her emotional attacks against the party floor leader ― calling him a "betrayer" looking after his own political interests ― also revealed Park is not just irresponsible and incompetent, as shown by the two national disasters of ferry sinking and the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome, but unreliable as well, losing her composure when faced with a political crisis.
If one compares it with the United States, what would Americans say if President Obama rebukes and tries to oust Nancy Pelosi, who led the Congressional Democrat' opposition to giving Obama the trade promotion authority essential for a Pacific-rim free trade deal?
It's natural that President Park has learned all she needs as a politician from her father and mentor, ex-President Park Chung-hee. Yet it is a tragedy, not just for the incumbent leader but for entire nation, that she cannot, or will not, leave behind the authoritarian ruler's style.
After resisting President Park's pressure for nearly two weeks, the governing party's floor leader grudgingly stepped down Wednesday. "I am sorry for all the trouble caused by my delayed decision," said Rep. Yoo Seong-min of the Saenuri Party at a news conference. "I just wanted to uphold such values as law, principle and justice, however."
The rare confrontation between the chief executive and her own party's floor leader, and consequent factional infighting that gripped the Saenuri Party, explicitly revealed the level where Korea's party politics stands, and sent the nation's democracy decades backward.
It all began half a month ago when the party, guided by Yoo, passed an opposition-proposed bill that would have allowed the National Assembly to review government ordinances that widely veered from their parent laws. Such a bill came right after the Park administration's enforcement decree of the "Sewol law" ― named after the ill-fated ferry that sank last year taking 304 lives ― almost gutted its mother law making it impossible to properly investigate the causes of the most tragic maritime accident in decades.
In a normal democracy, President Park had only to veto the law if she disliked it, and the parliament, put it to a revote to override the veto if deemed necessary. But Park went far further, accusing the entire legislature, particularly her own party and its floor leader, of trying to incapacitate the government by meddling in its ordinance-making function.
Even more surprising ― and disappointing ― all of the 160 Saenuri lawmakers except just one, the majority of which had approved the bill, did not even cast ballots in a revote while pressuring Yoo to step down.
It was more than just sad to see so many legislators, each of whom is a Constitutional institution, forget their foremost duty of ensuring the checks-and-balances with the administrative branch and surrender to the chief executive, minding only about their respective chance of re-election. Even those lawmakers who don't agree with President Park's moves dared not oppose her in public if they are to win re-nomination and get a government budget for their electorates.
The nation's first female president might feel satisfied now reaffirming her influence and preventing a premature fall into lame-duck status.
It will not take much time, however, for the short-term political victory to turn into a long-term defeat not just for Park but for the nation's democracy. By openly criticizing the legislature's attempts to rein in administrative overreach, Park ignored the division of the three branches of the government. Her emotional attacks against the party floor leader ― calling him a "betrayer" looking after his own political interests ― also revealed Park is not just irresponsible and incompetent, as shown by the two national disasters of ferry sinking and the Middle East Respiratory Syndrome, but unreliable as well, losing her composure when faced with a political crisis.
If one compares it with the United States, what would Americans say if President Obama rebukes and tries to oust Nancy Pelosi, who led the Congressional Democrat' opposition to giving Obama the trade promotion authority essential for a Pacific-rim free trade deal?
It's natural that President Park has learned all she needs as a politician from her father and mentor, ex-President Park Chung-hee. Yet it is a tragedy, not just for the incumbent leader but for entire nation, that she cannot, or will not, leave behind the authoritarian ruler's style.
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