문희상 "개헌은 시대적 과제...여야 결단 촉구"
South Korea's National Assembly held a ceremony today... to mark the seventy-first Constitution Day.
Assembly Speaker Moon Hee-sang stressed the importance of public unity,... and the need to revise the country's Constitution to change the presidential system.
Kim Min-ji reports.
National Assembly Speaker Moon Hee-sang says... amending the Constitution is an imperative task calling on political parties to show more determination.
Speaking at an event marking the 71st anniversary of Constitution Day,... the parliamentary speaker stressed that less than a year remains until the 20th National Assembly comes to an end.
He lamented the fact that lawmakers have yet to revamp an authoritarian presidential system that people called for an end to,... during the candlelight protests.
"At this point, we've missed the golden time to amend the Constitution. If there is no determination from political leaders, we may lose momentum. I ask on the leaders to make an important decision. Constitutional amendment is the task we have at hand."
On July 17th, 1948,... South Korea enacted the Constitution,... laying the groundwork for the country's democracy.
It was last revised in 1987 after decades of authoritarian rule.
That's when the country adopted a direct presidential election system,... and five-year presidential terms.
But there has been mounting criticism... that it vested too much executive power in the hands of the President.
There were plans to amend the Constitution last year,... but they collapsed as political parties couldn't reach a compromise.
Moon implored rival parties to work together,... saying the National Assembly has made no progress on constitutional revision nor reform-related bills... due to habitual stand-offs.
"The politics of today is heading toward tension and strife. Public trust in the National Assembly has dropped and their patience has also reached a limit. Even lawmakers are now calling for the need to adopt a recall system to penalize those that don't work. To show that we mean business, talks to revise the Constitution is a must."
Noting that this year marks the 100th anniversary of the establishment of Korea's provisional government,... Moon stressed that the country needs a paradigm shift that can last the next hundred years.
He called for the resumption of talks and compromises in the political arena to regain public trust,... as well as finding a breakthrough to establish peace on the peninsula,... and supporting the economy amid growing uncertainties.
Kim Min-ji, Arirang News.
