By Kim Tae-jong
Staff Reporter
The president of the nation's Constitutional Court said Wednesday that Korean society lacks dialogue and compromise or political measures to cope with disputes.
``Disputes on social values and conflicts of interest tend not to be properly resolved through a rational social mechanism of dialogue and compromise or through the political process,'' Lee Kang-kook said during an international conference in Seoul. ``Many of them are brought to the court.''
He pointed out that while on the one hand it can be viewed negatively as excessive judicial dependence, on the other it was a positive use of the rule of law, which requires the court to make accurate and fair judicial reviews as it protects constitutional standards.
``If we consider all the constitutional norms and social realities to make accurate and fair judicial reviews and also consistently protect constitutional standards, the people will have more confidence in the constitutional adjudication system and thereby, we would more firmly settle the principle of the rule of law within a liberal democracy,'' he said.
The remark came as part of his keynote speech at the 5th Conference of Asian Constitutional Court Judges, which kicked off Tuesday and will continue through Thursday.
The annual event, this year co-hosted by the Constitutional Court of Korea and German Konrad Adenauer Stiftung foundation, invited presidents of constitutional courts, judges and scholars from nine Asian countries including Mongolia, Indonesia, Cambodia, Thailand, Japan and China and non-Asian countries such as Lithuania, Germany and Australia to promote interchange and cooperation.
Some of distinguished guests include Glanni Buuicchio, secretary general of the Venice Commission; Clauspeter Hill, director of the Rule of Law Program Asia at the Konrad Adenauer Stiftung; and J. Byambadorj, chairman of the Constitutional Court of Mongolia.
The participants will discuss the ``Standards for Constitutional Review in Safeguarding Civil, Political and Socio-Economic Rights'' during the three-day conference.
Lee sees the conference as a meaningful event providing deeper understanding of constitutions and constitutional adjudication systems while sharing experiences and wisdom.
The participants also discussed mutual cooperation to help the Constitutional Court of Korea host the International Conference of Constitutional Presidents scheduled for next year in Seoul.