1.
Government of South Korea
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The executive and legislative branches operate primarily at the national level, although various ministries in the executive branch also carry out local functions. Local governments are semi-autonomous, and contain executive and legislative bodies of their own, the judicial branch operates at both the national and local levels. The South Korean governments structure is determined by the Constitution of the Republic of Korea and this document has been revised several times since its first promulgation in 1948. As with most stable three-branch systems, a system of checks. For instance, the judges of the Constitutional Court are partially appointed by the executive, likewise, when a resolution of impeachment is passed by the legislature, it is sent to the judiciary for a final decision. At the national level, the legislative branch consists of the National Assembly of South Korea and this is a unicameral legislature, it consists of a single large assembly. Most of its 300 members are elected from single-member constituencies, however,56 are elected through proportional representation, the members of the National Assembly serve for four years, in the event that a member is unable to complete his or her term, a by-election is held. The National Assembly is charged with deliberating and passing legislation, auditing the budget and administrative procedures, ratifying treaties, in addition, it has the power to impeach or recommend the removal of high officials. The Assembly forms 17 standing committees to deliberate matters of detailed policy, for the most part, these coincide with the ministries of the executive branch. Bills pass through these committees before they reach the floor, however, before they reach committee, they must already have gained the support of at least 20 members, unless they have been introduced by the president. To secure final passage, a bill must be approved by a majority of those present, after passage, bills are sent to the president for approval, they must be approved within 15 days. Each year, the bill is submitted to the National Assembly by the executive. By law, it must be submitted at least 90 days before the start of the year. The Assembly is also responsible for auditing accounts of past expenditures, sessions of the Assembly may be either regular or extraordinary. These sessions are open-door by default, but can be closed to the public by majority vote or by decree of the Speaker, in order for laws to be passed in any session, a quorum of half the members must be present. Currently, four parties are represented in the National Assembly. The executive branch is headed by the president, the president is elected directly by the people, and is the only elected member of the national executive. The president serves for one term, additional terms are not permitted
2.
South Korea
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South Korea, officially the Republic of Korea, is a sovereign state in East Asia, constituting the southern part of the Korean Peninsula. The earliest Korean pottery dates to 8000 BC, with three kingdoms flourishing in the 1st century BC and its rich and vibrant culture left 19 UNESCO Intangible Cultural Heritages of Humanity, the third largest in the world, along with 12 World Heritage Sites. Annexed into Imperial Japan in 1910, Korea was divided after its surrender in 1945, peace has since mostly continued with the two agreeing to work peacefully for reunification and the South solidifying peace as a regional power with the worlds 10th largest defence budget. South Koreas tiger economy soared at an average of 10% for over 30 years in a period of rapid transformation called the Miracle on the Han River. A long legacy of openness and focus on innovation made it successful, today, it is the worlds fifth largest exporter with the G20s largest budget surplus and highest credit rating of any country in East Asia. It has free trade agreements with 75% of the economy and is the only G20 nation trading freely with China, the US. Since 1988, its constitution guarantees a liberal democracy with high government transparency, high personal freedoms led to the rise of a globally influential pop culture such as K-pop and K-drama, a phenomenon called the Korean Wave, known for its distinctive fashionable and trendy style. Home of the UN Green Climate Fund and GGGI, South Korea is a leader in low carbon growth, committed to helping developing countries as a major DAC. It is the third least ignorant country in the Index of Ignorance, ranking eighth highest for peaceful tolerance. It is the worlds largest spender on R&D per GDP, leading the OECD in graduates in science, the name Korea derives from the name Goryeo. The name Goryeo itself was first used by the ancient kingdom of Goguryeo in the 5th century as a form of its name. The 10th-century kingdom of Goryeo succeeded Goguryeo, and thus inherited its name, the modern spelling of Korea first appeared in the late 17th century in the travel writings of the Dutch East India Companys Hendrick Hamel. After Goryeo was replaced by Joseon in 1392, Joseon became the name for the entire territory. The new official name has its origin in the ancient country of Gojoseon, in 1897, the Joseon dynasty changed the official name of the country from Joseon to Daehan Jeguk. The name Daehan, which means great Han literally, derives from Samhan, however, the name Joseon was still widely used by Koreans to refer to their country, though it was no longer the official name. Under Japanese rule, the two names Han and Joseon coexisted, there were several groups who fought for independence, the most notable being the Provisional Government of the Republic of Korea. Following the surrender of Japan, in 1945, the Republic of Korea was adopted as the name for the new country. Since the government only controlled the part of the Korean Peninsula
3.
President of South Korea
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The president is directly elected to a five-year term with no possibility of re-election. While in office, the chief executive lives in Cheong Wa Dae, on February 25,2013, Park Geun-hye became the 18th President of South Korea. She was also the first woman to assume this post and she has since been impeached on corruption charges, which was confirmed by the Constitutional Court of Korea on March 10,2017, removing her from office. Prime minister Hwang Kyo-ahn has been Acting President since 9 December 2016, chapter 3 of the Constitution of the Republic of Korea states the duties and the powers of the president. The president may refer important policy matters to a referendum, declare war, conclude peace and other treaties, appoint senior public officials. Emergency measures may be taken only when the National Assembly is not in session, the measures are limited to the minimum necessary. The 1987 Constitution removed the 1980 Constitutions explicit provisions that empowered the government to suspend the freedoms. However, the president is permitted to take measures that could amend or abolish existing laws for the duration of a crisis. It is unclear whether such emergency measures could temporarily suspend portions of the Constitution itself, emergency measures must be referred to the National Assembly for concurrence. If not endorsed by the assembly, the measures can be revoked. In a change from the 1980 Constitution, the 1987 Constitution stated that the president is not permitted to dissolve the National Assembly, the official residence of the president is Cheong Wa Dae. It means the House of the Blue Roof Tiles, so it is called the Blue House in English. The president is assisted by the staff of the Presidential Secretariat, apart from the State Council, or cabinet, the chief executive relies on several constitutional organs. These constitutional organs included the National Security Council, which provided advice concerning the foreign, military, another important body is the National Unification Advisory Council, inaugurated in June 1981 under the chairpersonship of the president. The president also was assisted in 1990 by the Audit and Inspection Board, in addition to auditing the accounts of all public institutions, the board scrutinized the administrative performance of government agencies and public officials. Its findings were reported to the president and the National Assembly, Board members were appointed by the president. One controversial constitutional organ was the Advisory Council of Elder Statesmen, the government announced plans to reduce the size and functions of this body immediately after Rohs inauguration. Article 68 of the Constitution requires the president to hold new elections within 60 days
4.
Elections in South Korea
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Elections in South Korea are held on national level to select the President and the National Assembly. Local elections are every four years to elect governors, metropolitan mayors, municipal mayors. The president is elected for a single five-year term by plurality vote. The National Assembly has 300 members elected for a term,253 in single-seat constituencies and 47 members by proportional representation. Since the 2016 legislative elections, South Korea has a three-party system, polling places are usually located in schools. During the absentee or early voting period, voters can vote at any polling place in the country, on election day, voters may only vote at polling places in their registered constituency. Korean voters mark paper ballots with a rubber stamp using red ink, there is one race per ballot paper, if there are multiple office up for election, ballot papers are color coded and voters are issued one ballot per race. Korea uses a central count model, after the polls close, ballot boxes are sealed and transported to the constituencys counting center. Traditionally, ballots were counted, but since around 2012. The scanners resemble cash sorter machines, sorting the ballots into stacks by how they are voted, stacks are then counted using machines resembling currency counting machines. Korean elections have been praised as a model of best practice, however, the legality of the introduction of optical scan technology has been challenged and there have been allegations of rigged counting. C. Korea, A history of the Korean people, 인명국사대사전 (Inmyeong guksa daesajeon, Unabridged biographical dictionary of Korean history. Overview of candidates, parties and outcomes of South Korean elections since 1952 Comment on the October 26,2005 by-election results
5.
South Korean legislative election, 2016
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South Koreas 20th legislative elections were held on 13 April 2016. All 300 members of the National Assembly were elected,253 from first-past-the-post constituencies and 47 from proportional party lists, in votes for party lists, however, the Minjoo Party came third, behind the Saenuri Party in first place and the new Peoples Party in second. The election marked an upheaval in the South Korean party system, installing a hung parliament for the first time since 2000, in the 2012 legislative election, the ruling conservative Saenuri Party won a slim majority of 152 seats out of 300. The party also retained control of the presidency, as Saenuri candidate Park Geun-hye won the election that year. By the time of the 2016 legislative election, the Saenuri delegation had fallen to 146 out of 292 filled Assembly seats, the 2016 election was seen as an important stepping stone to the next presidential election, which will be held in December 2017. A deadline of 31 December 2015 was set for the redistricting to take place, nonetheless, by the end of 2015 the National Assembly had not approved a new electoral map. Viewing the situation as an emergency, the National Election Commission was forced to allow registered candidates to campaign without a set map of constituencies. The crisis was resolved in February 2016 with an agreement between the two major parties that allowed a new electoral map to be passed by the National Assembly. The new set of provisions raised the number of districts from 246 to 253, the dissolution of the UPP left the Justice Party as the sole left-wing democratic socialist party in the National Assembly. The Korean Confederation of Trade Unions, the most influential trade union organisation in Korea that had originally supported the UPP. The opposition was further fragmented when Ahn Cheol-soo defected from the main opposition Minjoo Party, the outgoing 19th National Assembly was marked by political gridlock. In February 2016, Minjoo lawmakers undertook the worlds longest filibuster to stall an anti-terrorism bill, in order to win seats through proportional representation, parties needed to pass an election threshold of either 5 single-member districts or 3% of the total list vote. Eligible voters were required to be registered and at least 19 years old on the day of the election, polls on Election Day were open from 6 a. m. to 6 p. m. Korea Standard Time. Since 2009, voters have been able to vote overseas, for the first time in a national election, the National Election Commission also allowed early votes to be cast at polling stations in Korea without notice. This early voting period lasted from April 8 to 9, in time the NEC reported a high turnout of 12. 2%. The Saenuri Partys candidate nomination process proved contentious, many of the deselected candidates defected from the party and announced that they would run as independents. On April 4, a spokesman for the party said that during the selection process, we upset our people. The party published a theme song apologizing for the nominations controversy and it also is thought by many that it was the main reason that caused the Saenuri Party to lose
6.
South Korean local elections, 2010
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The 5th local elections were held in South Korea on 2 June 2010. The voter turnout reached 54. 4%, the highest in 15 years, overall voter turnout,54. 5% Source：투표진행상황 The ruling GNP was able to win 4 out of 7 mayoral seats but suffer by massive landslide on the gubernatorial election winning only 2 out of 9 seats. On the other hand, DEP was able to capture 2 mayoral seats, the LFP won Daejeon while two independent candidates won gubernatorial seats one in Gyeongsangnam-do and the other in Jeju-do. Source, 구·시·군의회의원선거 정당별 당선인수 기초의원비례대표선거 정당별 당선인수 5th local elections results - the Central Election Management Committee
7.
Korean reunification
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Korean reunification refers to the potential future reunification of the Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea, the Republic of Korea, and the Korean Demilitarized Zone under a single government. The process towards such a merger was started by the June 15th North–South Joint Declaration in June 2000, the current division of the Korean Peninsula is the result of decisions taken at the end of World War II. In 1910, the Empire of Japan annexed Korea, and ruled over it until its defeat in World War II, in 1945, the United Nations developed plans for trusteeship administration of Korea. The division of the peninsula into two occupation zones was agreed — a northern zone administered by the Soviet Union and a southern zone administered by the United States. At midnight on 10 August 1945, two lieutenant colonels selected the 38th parallel as a dividing line. Japanese troops to the North of this line were to surrender to the Soviet Union, the desire of many Koreans for a peaceful unification was ended when the Korean War broke out in 1950. In June 1950, North Korea began the Korean War by invading South Korea, with Mao Zedong encouraging confrontation with the United States and Joseph Stalin reluctantly supporting the invasion. After three years of fighting that involved both Koreas, China and United Nations forces led by the U. S. the war ended with an agreement at approximately the same boundary. Despite now being politically separate entities, the governments of North and South Korea have proclaimed the restoration of Korea as a single state as a goal. The two sides, in order to restore severed national ties, promote understanding, and expedite independent peaceful unification, have agreed to carry out various exchanges in many fields. The two sides have agreed to cooperate positively with each other to seek early success of the North-South Red Cross talks, the agreement outlined the steps to be taken towards achieving a peaceful reunification of the country. However, the North-South Coordination Committee was disbanded the year after no progress had been made towards implementing the agreement. In January 1989, the founder of Hyundai, Jung Ju-young, toured North Korea, after a twelve-year hiatus, the prime ministers of the two Koreas met in Seoul in September 1990 to engage in the Inter-Korean Summits or High-Level Talks. The North and the South agreed to hold an authority-to-authority negotiation as soon as possible to put the above-mentioned agreed points into speedy operation. A unified Korean team marched in the ceremonies of the 2000,2004, and 2006 Olympics. There were plans for a unified team at the 2008 Summer Olympics. In the 1991 World Table Tennis Championships in Chiba, Japan, eventual political integration of the Koreas under a democratic government from the South is generally viewed as inevitable by the U. S. and South Korea. However, the nature of unification, i. e. Relations between the two Koreas have been strained in recent years, with actions taken under the rule of Kim Jong-il and his son
8.
Korean conflict
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During the Cold War, North Korea was backed by the Soviet Union, China, and other Communist states, and South Korea was backed by the United States and its allies. The division of Korea occurred at the end of World War Two in 1945, tensions erupted into the Korean War in 1950. When the war ended, the country was devastated, but the division remained, North and South Korea continued a military standoff with periodic clashes. The conflict survived the collapse of the Eastern Bloc of 1989 to 1991, the USA maintains a military presence in the South to deter an attack from the North. In 1997, US President Bill Clinton described the division of Korea as the Cold Wars last divide, in 2002, US President George W Bush described North Korea as a member of an Axis of Evil. Facing increasing isolation, North Korea has developed nuclear missiles, Korea was annexed by the Empire of Japan in 1910. In the following decades during the Japanese occupation of Korea, nationalist and radical groups emerged, mostly in exile, divergent in their outlooks and approaches, these groups failed to unite in one national movement. Based in China, the Korean Provisional Government failed to obtain widespread recognition, following the end of the occupation, many high-ranking Koreans were accused of collaborating with Japanese imperialism. An intense struggle between various figures and political groups aspiring to lead Korea ensued, on August 9,1945, in the closing days of World War II, the Soviet Union declared war on Japan and advanced into Korea. Though the Soviet declaration of war had been agreed by the Allies at the Yalta Conference, the US government became concerned at the prospect of all of Korea falling under Soviet control. The US government therefore requested Soviet forces halt their advance at the 38th parallel north, leaving the south of the peninsula, including the capital, Seoul and this was incorporated into General Order No.1 to Japanese forces after the surrender of Japan on August 15. On August 24, the Red Army entered Pyongyang and established a government over Korea north of the parallel. American forces landed in the south on September 8 and established the United States Army Military Government in Korea, the Allies had originally envisaged a joint trusteeship which would usher Korea towards independence, but most Korean nationalists wanted independence immediately. Meanwhile, the wartime co-operation between the Soviet Union and the US deteriorated as the Cold War took hold, both occupying powers began promoting into positions of authority Koreans aligned with their side of politics and marginalizing their opponents. Many of these political leaders were returning exiles with little popular support. In North Korea, the Soviet Union supported Korean Communists, Kim Il-sung, who from 1941 had served in the Soviet Army, became the major political figure. Society was centralized and collectivized, following the Soviet model, politics in the South were more tumultuous, but the strongly anti-Communist Syngman Rhee, who had been educated in the United States, was positioned as the most prominent politician. The rival leaders, Kim Koo and Lyuh Woon-hyung, were assassinated, as a result, two antagonistic states emerged, with diametrically opposed political, economic, and social systems
9.
Moon Jae-in
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Moon Jae-in is a South Korean politician who served as the opposition leader of the Minjoo Party of Korea from 2015 to 2016. He was formerly a lawyer and the chief of staff to late President Roh Moo-hyun. In the 19th legislative election on 11 April 2012, Moon won a seat in the Sasang District of Busan, born in Geoje, South Korea, Moon Jae-in was the first son of father Moon Yong-hyung and mother Kang Han-ok among five children. His father was a peasant refugee from South Hamgyeong Province who fled his native city of Hamhung during the Hamhung Retreat and his father settled in Geoje as a laborer for the Geoje POW Camp. His family eventually settled in Busan and Moon attended Kyungnam High School and he enrolled in Kyunghee University where he majored in law. He was arrested and expelled from the university when he organized a student protest against the Yushin Constitution, later, he was forcibly conscripted to the military and recruited to the Special Forces, where he participated in a military mission during the Axe murder incident. After his discharge, he passed the Bar Exam and was admitted to the Judicial Research and he stepped down from the Minjoo Political Party in 2016. After becoming a lawyer, he partnered and worked with Roh Moo Hyun and they remained friends up until Rohs death in 2009. Along with Roh, he took cases involving human rights and civil rights issues and he was a member of Minbyun and the Chairman of Human Rights at Busan Bar. He was a member of the progressive South Korean newspaper, The Hankyoreh. Due to Rohs insistence, Moon became Rohs campaign manager during his presidential bid, after Rohs victory, Moon became Rohs chief of staff and close aide. When prosecutors began investigating Rohs corruption charges, Moon was the counsel to Roh. After Roh committed suicide, Moon was in charge of the funeral, despite his earlier indifference to politics, he began to get involved in the politics. He published a memoir called Moon Jae-in, The Destiny which became a bestseller and his popularity had been rising steady against the likely opponent in the presidential race, Park Geun-hye. For instance, in a February 2012 poll, Moon managed to gain parity with Park in popularity, in early 2012, Moon entered a bid for a seat at the National Assembly and has been campaigning in western Busan. He ran for the 2012 presidential election and was defeated by Park Geun-hye, Moon was elected as the leader of New Politics Alliance for Democracy in February 2,2015. After his recruitment, Moon resigned his position for another scouted advisor Kim Chong-in and he also promised to abolish the domestic wing of NIS in order to maintain their political neutrality, transferring domestic affairs to the police force. Moon also promised transparency on his presidency, moving the president residence from palatial, Moon is currently favored to win Koreas next election as of January 2017
10.
South Korean presidential election, 2012
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The 18th South Korean presidential election was held in South Korea on 19 December 2012. Under the South Korean constitution, presidents are restricted to a single term in office. The term of incumbent president Lee Myung-bak has ended on 24 February 2013, according to the Korea Times,30.7 million people voted with turnout at 75. 8%. Park Geun-hye of the Saenuri party was elected the first female South Korean president with 51. 6% of the vote opposed to 48. 0% for her opponent Moon Jae-in. Parks share of the vote was the highest won by any candidate since the beginning of free and his victory brought to a close ten years of liberal administration under Kim Dae-jung and Roh Moo-hyun. Despite the fact that he was elected in a victory and received initial approval ratings of 70%. At the end of 2011, Park Geun-hye assumed control of the Grand National Party and she distanced herself from Lee and led the party towards the center. In legislative elections in April 2012, Park guided the party to an upset victory and this contributed to an increase in her poll ratings and consolidated her position as frontrunner for the Saenuri nomination. In the DUP, focus initially lay on Sohn Hak-kyu as a nominee, but by late 2011 Moon Jae-in. Although the DUP invited Ahn to join the party, only 2. 3% of respondents to a poll on 21 April thought that Ahn was best suited to be DUP nominee. The DUP itself has been troubled by the split between pro-Roh members such as Moon Jae-in and the Honam wing of former president Kim Dae-jung, ballot numbers for party candidates were given according to the candidates party seat distribution in the National Assembly. Ballot numbers for independent candidates were determined through a lottery by the National Election Commission. The 2012 Democratic United Party presidential primary saw an open primary system implemented for the first time and this new open primary introduced mobile voting, it was hailed as a revolution in voting because people could participate in voting more conveniently. However, controversies persisted during the elections, as questions of the legitimacy. The official result was announced on 16 September 2012, at 15,32 KST, after nominated, Moon stated that he would like to join forces with Ahn Cheol-soo. 11 of Saenuri Party Acting First Lady of Park Jeong-hee Slogan, / Female President in ready Yim Tae-hee Former Chief of staff of Lee Myung-bak administration Slogan, No worries with Yim Tae-hee. The official result was announced at Saenuri Convention, which place on 20 August 2012 at 05,40 KST. The first member of the Saenuri Party to officially announce their candidacy was Kim Moon-soo on 22 April and he stated further that Park Geun-hyes leadership of the party represented only an ambiguously prevailing trend, and could not be relied upon to reach victory in the elections
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