[Koo Bon-young Column] Electoral Reform Is More Urgent Than Constitutional Amendment

At the end of last month, the Democratic Party of Korea (DPK) unilaterally passed a revision to the Criminal Procedure Act in the National Assembly that would abolish the prosecution's supplementary investigative powers entirely. After the murder of a high school girl in Gwangju, some voices within the ruling bloc gained traction, saying that "at least the minimum supplementary investigative powers should remain." It was a rare expression of conscience, insisting that protecting victims should come first. But those voices were quickly drowned out by the party's hard-liners. The People Power Party's filibuster, which was forcibly ended after 24 hours, was equally futile. It was like a minor-name credit at the end of the 'complete deprivation of prosecutorial investigative powers' drama staged by the ruling party.
Even within the ruling camp, which is supposedly on the same ship when it comes to prosecution reform, there were many who worried about the side effects of abolishing supplementary investigative powers. Lawmaker Hong Ki-won and others held a forum with crime victims to discuss the issue. Justice Minister Jeong Seong-ho also posted on social media, in connection with the Gwangju high school girl's murder case, that "the prosecution's supplementary investigation uncovered the killer's sexual crime intent." But as hard-line party members rallied during the Democratic Party leadership race, calls to preserve those powers quietly faded.
Public opinion also favored keeping the supplementary investigative powers. Even so, the ruling party pushed ahead with the revision to the Criminal Procedure Act and secretly inserted items such as "illegal investigations" into the grounds for a court's dismissal of indictments. It even drew suspicions that the move was a trick to reduce President Lee Jae Myung's legal risks, but the cost will be borne by the public, who are all potential victims of crime. Reasonable views have lost their place before what amounts to a "Taliban-style party will." It shows how severe political polarization has become, to the point where "if you're not on my side, you're wrong."
There are also signs that the damage from political polarization is spreading into other areas. A prime example is the plan to integrate the Army, Navy and Air Force academies. Experts inside and outside the military, as well as public opinion, including residents in Changwon's Jinhae District and Cheongju, where the naval and air force academies are located, have been negative, yet the plan is still being pushed forward. The original justification was to strengthen joint operations, but that was merely a pretext. Once President Lee Jae Myung directly mentioned the Korea Military Academy's responsibility for coups, it became clear that the real intent was to erase the KMA or weaken the Army. Setting aside the enormous budget required to build an integrated academy, the problem is serious. The burden of security gaps and other setbacks caused by trial and error will fall squarely on the public.
In 2023, the National Assembly Futures Institute distilled the Korean characteristics of political polarization into 13 points. "Irresponsible party politics driven by extreme partisanship" was ranked first. "Factional polarization within parties" came next. Looking at the situation now, none of it has improved. Each party has already lost its positive function of productively managing and coordinating the many conflicts across society.
What is more, even diversity within each camp has weakened beyond the broader progressive-conservative divide. As the center has shrunk, the camps have moved toward both extremes. So if someone holds a different view within the same camp, they are branded as a force to be eliminated. In fact, the race to choose the Democratic Party leader unfolded like a life-or-death version of "Squid Game." The insults traded between the supporters of candidates Kim Min-seok, Song Young-gil and Jung Chung-rae, who were all strongly pro-Lee Jae Myung, are a glimpse of that reality. The same goes for the hostility and finger-pointing between People Power Party leader Jang Dong-hyuk and the camp around independent lawmaker Han Dong-hoon.
What, then, is the alternative to prevent the damage caused by this political polarization? Scholars generally see constitutional amendment as the ultimate solution. However, many also say this is not the right time, given the ruling party's current legislative rampage. A constitutional revision focused on redistributing power rather than strengthening basic rights could further intensify political strife. The proposal for a presidential consecutive-term amendment raised by National Assembly Speaker Cho Jeong-sik is a case in point. He said it was "a matter for the people to decide," but in reality, his amendment balloon, tailored to the demands of pro-Lee Jae Myung supporters, only triggered a backlash. It has narrowed the room for a bipartisan constitutional deal that the public actually wants...
In that context, the argument from some scholars that domestic parties must first break the monopoly of the two major parties if they are to function properly sounds persuasive. For example, the view of Yonsei University professor Jo Hwa-soon that "we need to strengthen multiparty elements, ease the monopoly structure centered on the two major parties, and build an open public platform where diverse social values and citizens' demands can be reflected in the political process" is worth agreeing with. It has been two months since the June 3 local elections, yet the ruling and opposition parties still cannot even bring the voices of young people calling for the protection of voting rights at Olympic Park in Seoul into the chamber.
The introduction of a multiparty system is not a new issue. The long-standing premise has been to escape the spell of "majority rule at all costs" and prevent the tyranny of the majority. That means compromise and conciliation between parties, and if necessary, even tactical alliances, must be possible. If Korean politics is to escape the trap of polarization, revising the election law, including abolishing the single-member district system, appears more urgent than amending the constitution.
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