On Friday, President Yoon Suk Yeol vetoed two bills sponsored by the majority opposition party.
One was to protect striking workers from what unionists perceive as extreme demands by employers for compensation. The other was to shield public broadcasters from excessive government interference.
It was Yoon’s third exercise of his veto privilege since taking office 18 months ago.
In April, he rejected a bill that protects farmers from falling rice prices by buying surplus crop yields. It was also the first presidential veto in seven years. In May, Yoon dismissed a bill to better ensure the rights of nurses.
These bills aim to protect the weak from the strong. Each, of course, has its opponents. Industrialists say Korea’s rice farming is no longer competitive. Doctors are afraid nurses will encroach upon their domain. Employers claim the pro-labor bill will encourage unionized workers to down tools too often. Conservatives complain that progressives are dominating public broadcasters.
Presidents can sign or veto bills. However, what is more important is the process.
U.S. presidents meet or call opposition lawmakers to save or stall a bill. Their Korean counterparts hardly do so. Yoon has not even met the opposition leader face-to-face over the past year and a half. Consequently, Yoon has had to appoint 18 cabinet minister-level officials without the endorsement of the opposition-led National Assembly. One can’t help but wonder what the total will end up being when he leaves office.
The presidential system has a critical weakness: a national administration can become paralyzed when opposition parties hold a majority in the parliament. In such a case, presidents should seek to unify the nation and collaborate with their political opponents. Otherwise, nothing moves an inch forward and the nation is stuck where it was five years ago whenever political power changes hands. Regrettably, it appears that Korea is in such a situation right now. The nation cannot afford to let the remaining three-and-a-half years pass by like that.
Unfortunately, Yoon has acted in the least desirable way in order to steer opposition-dominated politics. He split the nation along ideological lines and urged his government to act combatively instead of compromising. The ruling People Power Party (PPP) has shifted from the center-right to being a far-right party under a neo-conservative leader. That could also force the Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) to change from a center-left to a far-left party.
In most advanced countries, political parties are moving toward the center. Sadly, politics in Korea is moving to the extremes under a divisive leader.
The DPK is not setting the best example, either.
The relatively progressive party is understandably frustrated with the conservative leader’s one-way rule. However, the liberal opposition is abusing its impeachment card. At least eight of the 20 ministerial officials have been on the block. Some radical party cadres called for impeaching Yoon himself by winning more than 200 parliamentary seats in the general elections next April. They are going too far.
Impeachments are strictly legal proceedings. Politicians must not seek to impeach their opponents no matter how undesirable their policies may be -- unless the latter betray their country or commit grave acts of corruption.
“We woke up to find Korea an underdeveloped country.” That is the headline often seen in vernacular dailies. Koreans had to see drastic setbacks in their national reputation in the wake of the Itaewon crowd crush, the bungled Jamboree event, the administrative computer network stoppage, and the excruciating defeat in the nation's bid to bring World Expo 2030 to Busan.
It may be unfair to put all the blame on the Yoon administration for these fiascos. They may reflect Korea’s accumulated problems and limitations, if temporary. However, the incumbent government must take the biggest responsibility and prevent their possible recurrences. Can the president, with an approval rating in the 30-percent range, do this alone? Hardly.
Yoon recently reshuffled his chief secretaries. However, many Koreans believe the president himself should change first. We also think so. Yoon must reach out to his opponents first, not by words or gestures, but throgh action.
Politics is meant to improve the people’s livelihood and promote national interests. However, that simple proposition seems far easier said than done. And all leaders say that they do this.
Only the voters can judge. They will do so four months from now.